Silver and Chrome: A Bad Boy MC Romance (41 page)

Chapter Twenty-Five

“
Okay,
so hold on, Harrison actually said that?  Like, he actually said he was willing
to gamble your entire relationship on his poker hand?
”

“Yes.” 
I wasn’t sure how I would
feel talking about it, but I
’
m
surprisingly numb to Harrison
’
s
betrayal at this point.  It
’
s
only been a week but it feels like a lifetime ago.  Fresher memories of Chase
have pushed all of that old pain aside and replaced it with fresh wounds. 

“
Wow.  What did he have?
”

“
What do you mean?
”

“
His cards.  How good was
his hand?
”

I glance up to Evelyn to make sure she
’
s
joking and then we both burst out laughing.  It
’
s
good to laugh about it now, although we
’
ve
already gone through most of the first bottle of wine while I cried right after
getting home, so that has definitely helped.  Still, I wasn’t
sure I’
d ever be able to see the humor in the
Harrison situation.

“
I have no idea but it
wasn’t good enough.  Although Harry sure seemed shocked that he lost.
”

“Okay,”
Evelyn says slowly. 
“
So
let me see if I understand.  Harrison plays poker against one of the best poker
players in the world and puts up his girlfriend as collateral.  And then he
’
s
surprised when he loses?  Hell, Lila, I
’
m
sorry.  If I
’
d had known how
much of an idiot Harrison was I would have never introduced you two.
”

I just shrug. 
“
We
had some good times.  Live and learn.
”

“
I guess.  But
…”
Evelyn pauses now as she looks at me with a raised
eyebrow, as if unsure about her next words. 
“
You
know it
’
s not like that
bet was binding, right?  You didn’t actually have to go with Chase
…”

I swat her on the arm, hoping she doesn’t
really think I
’
m that naive. 
“Yes,
I
’
m quite aware.
”

“Okay, okay,”
she
says, raising her hands before grabbing the bottle and refilling both of our
glasses. 
“
Just making sure.  So
…
then I guess you left with Chase because you
’
re
just a dirty slut?
”

This time I hit her even harder and we
both almost topple over with laughter. 

“
I mean, I totally
understand it if that’s the case.  That man is so fucking hot.
”

“
I honestly had no
intention of sleeping with him.  I just wanted to piss Harrison off, and I knew
leaving with Chase would be the best way to do that.  I had no idea who he was
at the time.
” 
I pause for a minute,
reflecting as the smile fades from my lips. 
“
I
guess I still don
’
t.”

Evelyn sighs as she brings her glass to
her lips and takes a big swallow.  She knows most of what happened between
Chase and me, as much as she could gather from me between my initial sobs.  At
the very least, she knows he hurt me.

“
So Chase lied about
owning a house because he wanted you to like him, is that right?
”

I shake my head. 
“It
’
s
not that simple.
”

“
What else did he lie
about?
”

“
Denise.  He had an
ex-girlfriend that he still talks to, a complete bitch.
”

“
And he
’
s
still sleeping with her?
”

“
What?  No!
”
I almost spit the word out, almost offended by the
notion.

“Okay…” She
’
s
speaking slowly again, as if trying to work something out with a child. 
“
So
he has an ex-girlfriend.  You have an ex-boyfriend who, newsflash, is also a
big asshole.
”

“It
’
s
not just that, he lied about her.
”

“
Oh.  What did he say?
”

I think back for a moment as I try to
remember what exactly he had lied about in regards to Denise. 
“
He
told me he was asking her about some jewelry for me to cover up a secret
meeting he was having with her.
”

“
But not a secret meeting
to have sex.
”

“
No!  She was his real
estate agent and he was signing the papers for the house.
”

“
So it
’
s
still the same lie, really.  It was still just to cover up the lie about the
house.
”

I purse my lips, unhappy with the way she
’
s
turning this around. 
“
He never told me
she was his real estate agent.
”

“
What did he say she did?
”

I glare at Evelyn now. 
“
He
didn’t ever tell me what she did.
”

I can tell my best friend is keeping her
face as innocent as possible as she looks at me. 
“
So,
then he didn’t really lie about that, either?
”

“It
’
s
a lie of omission,
”
I
protest with a pout as I throw back the last of the wine in my glass and grab
one of the other bottles from the table next to us.

Evelyn takes a deep breath next to me and
then settles back against the couch. 
“Lila,”
she
says, resting her fingers lightly on my arm as if to comfort me,
“
you
know I love you.  But I honestly think you
’
re
over reacting to this whole thing.  I mean, unless you really just intend for
Chase to be a rebound
…
but
if that
’
s the case, I don
’
t
know why he
’
s
made
you so upset.
”

“
No one intends for
someone to be their rebound,
”
I
argue.  My voice is hard, but quieter now.  I turn to look at Evelyn and she
’
s
staring back at me with her wide hazel eyes that seem more brown than green
today. 
“
He
lied to me, Eve,
”
I
say, hoping she
’
ll understand. 
“
Harrison
lied.  I
’
m just tired of
lies.
”

“
I know, ho
n,”
she nods. 
“
I
know.
”

I can feel the tears burning at the edges
of my eyes again as I lean against my roommate and she gives me a hug.

“
I just worry that you
’
re
letting your experience with Harrison influence what
’
s
going on with Chase.  I get that he lied to you.  But is one lie always equal
to another?  Do the sins of Chase equal the sins of Harrison simply because
they
’
re both lies?
”

“
Shouldn’t they?
” 
I
’
m being stubborn now,
annoyed at how logical Evelyn is sounding even though she should be just as drunk
as I am by now.  But her glass is full and mine is empty.  I
’
m
still holding the full bottle in my hand as I stare down at it, unwilling to
meet her gaze.

“
You tell me.  Harrison
lied about things he was doing that he wanted to keep hidden because they were
broken promises, they were negative and they were things he knew you didn’t
approve of and he wasn’t willing to fix.  Chase lied about something that he
was actively trying to fix because he was worried you
’
d
judge him prematurely and he
’
d
lose you.
”

Evelyn has no right to be this logical
when I
’
m trying to be upset.  I
refill my glass and pick it up with a sigh.

“
Whatever happened to ‘
What
happens in Vegas,
Stays
in Vegas
?’
”
I
ask, letting a little smile touch the edges of my lips in the hopes that she’ll
take it as me admitting that maybe she
’
s
got a bit of a point without me having to come right out and say it.

“
That
’
s
one way to go, if that
’
s
what you want,
”
she smiles back.  She
picks up her own glass and we both take a long drink.  Tonight isn’t a sipping
night.

“
I don’
t
know what I want,
”
I
say softly, sinking into the couch and closing my eyes. 
“
In
some ways I just want to forget everything that happened in Vegas after
Harrison and just move on with my life.  But
…
Chase
is a hard man to forget.
”

“
I can only imagine,
”
Evelyn replies. 
“
Which
reminds me, you owe me some details on that.  Help me imagine.  I want to know
everything about Chase.
”

“I’ve
told you most of it,
”
I reply, cracking my eyes to see my roommate grinning
wildly at me.

“
Not the good stuff,
”
she laughs.

I laugh back. 
“I’ll
need a few more drinks, but I
’
m
sure you can convince me to spill the dirt.  Anyway, there
’
s
no rush.  I
’
m back for good
now.  We have all the time in the world to talk about Chase and his talents. 
And make no mistake, he is talented.  And I
’
m
not talking about poker.
”

I laugh at my own joke but catch a look on
Evelyn
’
s face that makes me
pause.  The smile has faded from her lips as if something I’ve said has
confused or upset her. 
“
What
’
s
wrong?
”

Evelyn shakes her head. 
“
Nothing. 
Nothing.  We can talk about it tomorrow.
”

“
Um, we can talk about it
tomorrow means it
’
s not nothing. 
What?
”