I loved that Trent had brought Lauren, but I was highly uncomfortable. We were going to Reese’s game. I was wearing his jersey—one I’d bought that he didn’t know I’d bought—and we were using his tickets for the game. Janet couldn’t get tickets anywhere near where we were sitting, and I was already feeling that pressure. Reese was doing dinner with us, and my friends were in town for the whole weekend, but I wanted tonight with Reese.

I just didn’t know how to maneuver all of those moving pieces.

Maybe it was unrealistic, but I didn’t want Janet to know about him or Lauren to spill the beans, if she found out too. And I didn’t know if Trent had told her where he got the tickets or not.

And then part of me felt I was stressing too much. I should just let it all lay how it was going to lay, but I was coming off quite a few years where I hadn’t told anyone what was going on with me.

Habits were hard to break.

People knowing my business gave them reason to form opinions, spread gossip. I was sweating just thinking of all the talk that’d rip through the group about Reese and me.

“Hey.” Hadley leaned close. “No stressing, okay? We all took a pact. No one will say a word.”

I loved her. I truly loved her.

My chest felt lighter.

“What about dinner? How do we do that?”

She gave an easygoing shrug. “We’ll figure it out. We’re prepared to handle Janet for you. Don’t worry. If you want him to come with us, he’s welcome. If you want to have your time with him, just give me a wink and a motion and I’ll cover. It’s really no problem. Are you staying with him tonight?”

I glanced up at Trent, half-turned to face Lauren, and he glanced back.

“You can just give me an extra key,” he said. “We can work it out. If you want to sneak in, I’ll make sure Lauren and I are in the guest room. We can do this. I mean, we understand.”

My face felt flushed. “We’re not even…” Yeah. How did I have that conversation with them? “We’re just friends.”

Trent smirked.

Hadley snorted. “Right. No boning there.”

“Hadley!”

“We might work at a camp, but we’re not backward hicks or something. I do have three children.”

The back of my neck was sweating. “This is just a lot to handle. I’m used to being a hermit and taking care of someone who some days remembered me and other days didn’t.”

My second reference to Damian.

They were coming easier and easier.

My therapist would be so proud, and I waited, but the instant, white-hot panic that always hit me after I mentioned Damian didn’t come.