Page 23 of Deadly Sins: Lust

I nodded. “We don’t know what they plan to do with him. For now, we’re still looking for answers about Marissa’s death. We met with someone you know last night—Leo.”

Val and Georgia looked at each other, confused.

“Who?” Val asked.

“The guy Layla slept with on her bachelorette night.”

“Oh,thatguy,” Georgia said. “I don’t think he ever mentioned his name. Not to me, anyway.”

“He said Layla made a comment about Marissa keeping things from Nick,” I said. “Do either of you know what she meant?”

“No idea,” Georgia said. “I’ve thought about Marissa a lot since everything happened. She was the best of us, you know?”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“She was accepting. She didn’t love with conditions. She was just ... you know ... she was so ...”

Tears pooled in Georgia’s eyes. Val grabbed her hand. I grabbed a napkin and offered it to her. She blotted her eyes. I found Georgia’s comments curious, especially after learning Marissa blew up on Layla at the nightclub. Lecturing Layla about having sex with another man wasn’t indicative of an accepting person. Perhaps, in death, Georgia saw Marissa differently than she was in life. I wasn’t sure.

“Sorry I’m such a mess,” Georgia said.

“Don’t be,” Maddie said. “Let it out. You miss your friend. It’s okay.”

“We should be focusing on Marissa’s funeral,” Val said. “Not the wedding. I can’t believe Layla is going through with it.”

I couldn’t believe it, either. “Val, you went after Marissa when she left the nightclub. What happened?”

“I hoped I could calm her down, explain that Layla had permission to have one last freebie that night.”

“Why would Layla tell you and Georgia but leave Marissa out?”

“Layla didn’t think she’d understand. She worried Marissa would see James differently if she knew he’d sanctioned it. Then she walked up and blurted it out because she’d had too much to drink and wasn’t thinking.”

“Georgia just said Marissa was an accepting person, though.”

“She was, with most people,” Val said. “With Layla, it was different. Sometimes she acted like an older sister to Layla.”

“Why?”

“Marissa spent most of her childhood keeping Layla out of trouble. They’ve known each other a lot longer than we’ve all known each other—since they were five.”

“How did Marissa take it when you explained everything?” I asked.

“Better than I expected, but she also felt left out.”

“How did she end up alone at the end of the night?”

“She said she needed to call Nick. She thought it would make her feel better. She seemed fine. I had no idea she wasn’t, or I never would have left her side. I regret that decision now.”

“We all have regrets,” Georgia said. “We all feel like shit over what happened. Even Layla, in her own way. I think she’s focusing on the wedding so she doesn’t have to deal with her emotions.”

Val’s phone vibrated. It was Layla, wondering why they weren’t at the house when she returned.

Georgia chucked her coffee cup into the trash. “Sorry. We have to go.”

CHAPTER 18

“Hey, isn’t that Shawn?” Maddie said.