Page 64 of I Could Never

She froze and turned to face me. “Yeah?”

“You sure you’re okay? You’ve been quiet most of today. And you usually say goodnight before you go to bed.”

Carly played dumb. “If I’m quiet, it’s not intentional.”

Bullshit.“This doesn’t have to do with me choosing not to sleep in there again, does it?”

Her face turned pink. “No, of course not. Why would you think that?”

“Swear on Bubba-Hank.”

“What?”

“Swear on our former dog.”

Her eyes widened, and she gave me a horrified look. “I’ll do no such thing.”

She then turned around and escaped into her room, slamming the door shut.

I didn’t know which was worse: the fact that I’d used Bubba-Hank’s life as a pawn to get Carly to tell the truth, or the fact that she was indeed mad at me.

CHAPTER 17

CARLY

AS I WASpreparing my coffee the next morning, I noticed a note on the counter.

A Thank You from The Trappist Monks of St. Francis:

Roses are red.

Violets are blue.

I dreamed I was choking on a lemon.

And thought of you…

I looked over at Josh. He smiled from behind his coffee mug.

“Did you really dream that?” I asked.

“Strangely, I did.”

I pressed start on the coffeemaker. “Maybe it was symbolism.”

“Symbolism?”

“You were feeling guilty after you used Bubba-Hank to trick me last night. You knew I wouldneverswear on his life.”

“I guess I know how to get anything out of you, huh? That’s a pretty powerful tool.”

Of course, my behavior yesterday had everything to do with Josh choosing not to share the bed with me again. My staring had freaked him out—I knew it. I’d analyzed that to the gills yesterday but vowed to move on today. Quite simply, I was over it. I had to be.

“Scottie is still in bed?” I asked.

“Yeah. Shh...” Josh placed his index finger over his lips. “He doesn’t usually sleep this late, but I’m sure as hell not gonna wake him.”

When my coffee had brewed, I carried my mug over to where he was sitting. “Look, do me a favor, Josh?”