Chapter 18

It had been a few days already since we got the news, and Nora was taking it hard. It was understandable, since it wasn’t just her being jilted by a guy. He’d lied to her, stolen from her, and disappeared.

For the past few days, I had been with Nora, comforting her. I’d moved out of the apartment she’d gotten for me already, with all my stuff moved to her larger apartment. Nora wasn’t very rich, but after the cash Paul took off with, she was definitely poorer.

“Don’t worry too much, okay?” I said gently. “Abe will definitely catch this bastard for you. With all the resources he’s putting into it, I’m positive, okay? So stop moping already.”

Nora just sighed, and shifted a little before settling back. We were seated at her dining table, having lunch. Nora had her elbow braced on the table, her chin in her palm, and she was running her spoon inside her bowl but not eating. And while she wasn’t eating, it felt awkward to start eating myself, so I wasn’t eating either.

I didn’t like seeing my friend so down. This was Nora, the woman that would keep moving even if ten guys dumped her, but getting conned by someone she was dating affected her differently.

“Maybe I should just let this go?” she asked wanly, looking up at me.

“Do you think you can let it go?” I asked back, arching an eyebrow.

She sighed and sat back in her seat, crossing her arms over her chest as she frowned. “Honestly, I don’t think so. You of all people know how much I hate being made a fool off. I really thought this guy had feelings for me, I thought he wanted to marry me and I was so excited about it. But not only was he seeing someone else, it’s a younger woman related to someone I knew, and he made off with my money. Not to mention all his other targets.”

Nora huffed, and I heard light thumps as she tapped her foot on the floor. She had been doing this, too, moving between anger and depression, though I could tell she was mostly angry. Especially since she couldn’t do anything besides sit back and wait for Paul to be found. We’d gone to the police after Abe told us the guy was a conman, and both Abe and the police were searching, but Nora couldn’t contribute. It went against everything she was, which was probably why it was attacking her this hard.

“Should we put off lunch again?” I asked with a sigh. “We’ve had to warm this stuff up twice already. If we do it again I don’t think it’ll be healthy. Too much microwave…waves or whatever.”

“At this point, is it still lunch?” she snorted, then sighed. “No, it’s fine. We should just eat. I’m not going to starve myself over this, if I won’t even do it for the sake of losing weight.”

“You don’t need to lose weight,” I said patiently. “I’ve told you hundreds of times already, you look just fine. You’re a little curvier than me, but that’s not exactly a bad thing.”

For the first time in a long while, she cracked a smile. It was a small and almost painful looking, but it was a smile, and it made me feel relieved.

“Whatever you say,” she said with a sigh. “Why don’t we eat, and then I can deal with the whole wedding thing. It’s been called off already, but I haven’t made the calls to cancel anything…”

I watched until she started eating before I did the same. We were both subdued, throughout the meal. At least we’d thought to call for take-out instead of trying to make anything ourselves, because I didn’t think it would have been edible. Afterwards, we stood side by side at the sink and washed the dishes.

Just as Nora was about to go lock herself in the bedroom to make the calls she needed, when my cell vibrated. We both guessed the message was from Abe, and Nora froze, her eyes going to my cell.

“Is it him?” she asked, drifting closer.

I unlocked the screen and read the text. “Yeah, he’s asking how we’re doing.”

I typed a quick reply back, “We’re fine. Any news?”

“I’ve got a lead on him, but I wanted something else. Fancy going out? Both of you.”

I pursed my lips and showed Nora the second message so she could make the decision for herself. She deliberated for like a second, then she gave me a determined look.

“Let’s go,” she said. “We might as well. It’s better than just staying here doing nothing.”

“Don’t you have calls to make?”

“They can wait a little longer,” she said with a wince. “I’m honestly not against putting it all off. I don’t know how I’m going to face all those people, and how much money I’ve sunk into all this…”

She sighed, then headed for the bedroom, and I followed after her as I texted Abe back so he could pick us up. We were both in t-shirts and sweats for comfort, but now that we were heading out, we needed to get changed. It was particularly cold outside, so we dressed up in jeans and tops, with jackets and scarves. Nora let me borrow a pair of her boots.

By the time we made it outside, Abe was already parked and waiting for us with Maria in the front seat. The rolled the window down and waved at us.

“Get in.”

“Can I ask where we’re going?” I asked, stalling. Nora jumped right in without hesitation, though, so I followed after her.

“Don’t worry, it’ll be some place you’ll all love. I hope.”

The car was already moving, so I decided to trust him. We were all quiet, with the radio on some rock music station to fill up the silence. It wasn’t that late in the evening, but we still came across some traffic. Then we pulled into private parking of what looked like a club.

“What are we doing here?” I asked as we stepped out of the car.

He arched an eyebrow at me. “What do you think it’s for? I brought you ladies here to get wasted. It’s the best way to forget a scumbag, right? But all you ladies better know right now that you’ll be taking care of your hangovers on your own.”

Nora snorted. “As if I’d need you for that.”

Maria just snickered and followed after Nora. Abe was behind them, and I was behind him, looking at him with new appreciation. That he would go out of his way to invite Nora out for this when he didn’t even like her made me happy. I didn’t dare think that he was doing it for my sake, but my heart still stuttered.

We stepped into the club, and suddenly it was a lot darker. There were strobe lights various colors swirling around the room, tasteful, heavy beat music beat from the speakers. The place was a little crowded even this soon, people out on the dance floor, waiters walking around with trays carrying drinks and empty glasses.

“Follow me,” Abe called out to us.

He led us to a set of stairs pressed close to the wall that had a rope and two bouncers standing at the foot of it. The moment they saw Abe, the rope was pulled back and he was allowed to go through. We walked up to the second floor that was a bit less crowded. There were comfy looking seats set up in groups, and Abe led us to a free area. A couch and two seats circled a coffee table, and we were right against the balcony with the best view at the first floor.

“I come here often,” Abe said, settling down on the couch and pulling Maria down with him. Nora took the single seat opposite the balcony, and I took the one opposite Abe. “Drink up, ladies. Whatever you want to order, I’ll pick up the tab. You can do whatever you want, and I promise to get you all home safely. That means, no picking up guys.”

That last bit was said with a glare shot at his sister, who just rolled her eyes.

“Can I dance with a guy?”

“No heavy groping and no going out of sight or I’ll have people follow you,” Abe said immediately.

“Whatever,” Maria muttered, turning away from him and looking around. “Where are the waiters around here…?”

Abe raised a hand and one materialized immediately. We gave our drink orders, and I could tell Maria and Nora appreciated it, even with the rules. And, so did I. the entire time, I had my eyes set on Abe as I saw him in a totally different light.

He…was a lot more reliable than he’d been even six years ago, and I was starting to think it would be okay to trust him.