Page 65 of Bound Lies

A blush creeps up her neck and cheeks as she nervously pushes her food around her plate.

“Do you not agree?” I ask.

“No, I do…”

“But?” I set down my fork and lean back in my chair.

I’ve hardly touched my own food because I’ve been too focused on Riley.

“Well…forging my own path was always important to me. My father didn't understand or respect my decision. He expected me to get married and let a man provide for me while I popped out a few crotch goblins.”

I almost spit my drink all down myself. “Crotch what?”

“Goblins.” She laughs. “It’s what my friend Lucy calls kids.”

I chuckle. “I mean, she’s not wrong. Remind me to pass that one on to my sister-in-law.”

“Ronan’s wife, right?”

“Yeah, Ciara. She’s pregnant with twins.”

Now it’s Riley’s turn to almost spit her drink all down herself.

I grab my untouched napkin and hand it to her, making a point not to watch as she dabs the tops of her breasts with it.

“Twins? Are you serious?”

“Deadly.”

“That’s… Whoa…”

I chuckle. “Tell me about it. I don’t understand how Ronan is so calm about the whole thing.”

“He seems like he would be a good dad, from what I’ve seen of his interactions with you and Brennan,” she teases.

“Brennan is definitely a crotch goblin.” I laugh. “I’ll have to change his contact name in my phone to that.”

“Oh, my god, don’t tell him it was me who got you onto that. He’ll be so mad.”

“Why do you care if Brennan is mad at you?”

“Because unlike you, I actually like Brennan. He’s funny.”

I narrow my eyes as I slowly lean forward, letting the amusement drain from my expression.

“Careful now, Riley. You don’t want to make me jealous.”

“If I wanted to make you jealous, I would bring up Ronan,” she teases, but her words instantly kill my good mood.

It seems no matter what I’m talking about, somehow Ronan always seems to come up and one-up me, and I’m so sick and tired of it.

It seems Riley can sense my annoyance as she reaches across the table to take my hand. “I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“Bringing up Ronan.”

“Don’t be. I’ve had three decades to get used to the fact that I will never be anything more than the spare.”