Page 13 of My Best Friend's Dad

“He’s gettingmarried. My mom had to find out via the internet. Apparently, the story broke super early this morning. I guess it made the news because it’s a socialite thing, and Providence isn’t that big. He’s marrying Geneiva Barnet. Daughter of Wendell Barnet, a hotel mogul from Europe.”

“I…oh my god. Is this an arranged thing between two rich people for connections?”

Mika’s velvet-clad shoulder rises up and down in a halfhearted shrug, making the lace at the end of her sleeves dance. “I called him right after my mom came into my room and freaking shook me awake. She was giving all the major drama vibes. I don’t even know why it should matter to her. She and my dad haven’t been together since eighteen forty-eight, and she’s the reason for it.”

Mika’s parents divorced when she was three. According to her, they were crazy in love when they first met, but then they found out they were pregnant, and it rushed their wedding along.Things were okay for a while until they weren’t. Marlene was the one who wanted a divorce. After Mika’s dad became rich by finding the antique score of the century after the divorce, he even bought Marlene a house, paid her ridiculous child support payments, and made sure Mika had everything she needed. Despite him trying to do the right thing, Marlene pretty much entered into her villain era and made his life a living hell. Mika knows her mom basically kept her dad from seeing her all throughout her childhood. Marlene was so wicked about it, and she never even bothered to hide or make excuses for it. It was left to Mika to sift through the lies and booby traps. At first, it was hard for her, being just a kid, but as she got older, it became easier and easier.

I wouldn’t say she has a relationship with her dad. I’d even call them estranged. She doesn’t hate him. It’s more like they’re standing on two different sides of a river, and all the bridges have been obliterated, and neither of them can swim or fly.

Mika doesn’t talk about her dad very often, but I know that underneath her tough girl exterior is a little girl who misses her dad very much.

I’ve gleaned whatever information I know about her dad from snippets of information over the six years of knowing her, but it’s not much. I don’t even know his full name or what he looks like.

“Ugh, he tried to tell me on the phone that this is just a marriage of convenience. He wants to expand to Europe, and their family needs his money, I guess. They’re running out. Cash-poor trying to maintain all their castles or something. It’s an open marriage where they’ll both be discreet and continue on with their lives as if they’re not married at all.”

My nose wrinkles before I can stop it. I should get up and make coffee. This is a java conversation if I’ve ever heard one. “I’m not trying to be a prude or get my judgmental bag on, but what the heck? Why even bother?”

Mika shakes her head, her wild red ponytail whipping through the air. She has this black plastic cone thing on top that makes it stand up half a foot tall. She also has extensions in, and her hair is likefestival vibesand anexploding volcanohad a baby.

But she pulls it off effortlessly.

“Read the article. It’s ridiculous. Who gets married intwo months?”

The thing that pops up at the top of the page she loaded on her phone is two photos. A man and an elegant, distinguished, beautiful blond woman.

Oh. My. Fucking. God.

No!

No times a thousand.

No times a million topped with smelly cheese and smelly cheese socks.

“Hey! Do you need to poop? I can wait here. It’s not a problem.”

I swallow past the monumental blockage ofholy shit, please, god, don’t let this be happeningthat is blocking my throat.

“I don’t need to poop,” I wheeze. “But I need…uh…coffee. Water. Tea. Juice. Anything.”

Mika jumps up and races to the kitchen, which is only three feet away. Within moments, she’s back with a tall glass of water that I chug back. But it does nothing to erase what’s staring me in the face, and it hits my empty stomach like a bomb.

“What? What’s wrong? You look like you just figured out that you have an extra foot. Or a monstrous wort has spontaneously bloomed on the tip of your nose.”

I immediately touch my nose and check my foot.

“No. I…I didn’t realize that was your dad.” I fold her phone up and pass it back to her, my hands shaking. It could be worse. It could be so, so much worse. I can’t be anything but truthful, and Mika deserves to be looked in the eye for my confession.

It means looking up at her because she’s still standing and looking like she’s waiting for her dark lord to come and claim her, her blood-red lips parted, the rest of her body tense.

“I…I might have almost slept with your dad last night. It didn’t happen, but—holy cheese sticks!”

“What?!” Mika sways and drops down to her knees. “Oh my god. No.” She blinks rapidly. “Wait. Definealmost.”

“It didn’t happen. I promise. My car broke down in front of this hotel, and I realized it was one your dad owned. My phone was dead, so I went in to use theirs. This was after the whole finding Kevin balls deep in more than one woman. There was almost no one in the hotel lobby because it was late, and the door to the lounge was open, but there was no one in there. It was like how it is in the movies when this weird vibe practically summons you in.”

“You’re supposed to resist the pull of the devil,” Mika says dryly.

But her lips twitch despite it all. If she had a dollar for every time someone accused her of being in league with devil worship, she’d be as rich as her dad. She just likes dark fashion and makeup. She’s the sweetest, most caring, most loyal, smartest person I know. And she’s a total badass. It’s kind of ironic because she doesn’t even do tarot cards, and even vanilla, boring, and bland little old me has a few decks.