Absently, I sipped the champagne, but my mind wandered. Something about the big windows and the view of the river set my imagination in motion.

Her home, just like her marriage, is picture perfect, her love of the finer things evident in every detail. But her pristine house is hiding terrible secrets, and her life is far from what it seems.

I turned the idea over in my mind. The killers in my books were always men, and the husband could be the primary suspect. But what if the twist was that the wife was the murderer? Would he be covering for her? Or would she have him fooled, too?

“But what’s her motive?” I asked out loud.

“Whose motive?” Gavin asked casually, as if I hadn’t just blurted out a random question completely out of context.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to say that out loud. I just had an idea for another book, maybe with an unreliable narrator. I’ve never written something like that before.”

“Sounds awesome,” he said.

“A book idea popped into your head just now?” Cara asked.

“Not a fully formed idea, but I think I know what I’m going to write next.”

When was the last time that had happened? Usually it took weeks of pondering once I’d finished one novel before I knew what the next book would be.

“Oh my god, you just made me even more excited for tonight,” Cara said, then turned to Grace. “Grace, how many kids do you want?”

Grace broke off from Asher and walked over to stand next to her. “I’m still working on the first one, so maybe ask me again in a couple of years.”

“No, I don’t mean with Asher. With me. We have Fiona, but is it too soon for another?” She glanced at me. “She’s such a precious little teacup. I like her.”

“Oh,” Grace said with a smile. “As many as you want.”

“Well let’s not get ahead of ourselves. You know I hardly like anyone besides you. And our Fiona, but she’s such a sparkly ray of tattooed sunshine, how could I not?” She slipped her arm through mine and tugged me close. “But I really like this one. Can we keep her?”

“Definitely.”

Cara let out a long sigh. “This makes tonight even more meaningful. Speaking of…”

“Speaking of what?” Grace asked, but Cara had already swept away.

I wasn’t quite sure what had just happened, or where Cara was going, but Gavin’s arm brushed against mine and suddenly that was all I could think about. He didn’t move away and for a second, the little bit of my skin touching his captured every bit of my focus.

The music quieted and Cara held her hands up to get everyone’s attention.

“Ladies, gentlemen, and…” She paused for a second, her eyes briefly landing on Logan. “Others. I invited you all here tonight for a very special watch party, dedicated to my newest cupcake, Skylar. With, of course, a special shout out to my boo, who’s my one and only true love.”

Grace and Cara raised their glasses to each other.

“Tonight’s show requires context,” she continued. “I recently learned that our Skylar comes to us after the demise of a long-term relationship with a man who was not only her boyfriend, but her literary agent. It also came to my attention that her relationship ended due to the fact that he’s a lying, cheating, piece of maggot-infested dog shit who was sleeping with another one of his clients, a married author named Pepper Sinclair.”

Gavin slipped an arm around my shoulders and I wanted to shrink into him. Even better, bury my face in his chest and hide. A few people murmured their surprise and displeasure.

“I’m not bringing this up publicly to make you feel worse about it,” Cara said, looking at me. “He’s the asshole here, and you have nothing to be ashamed of. I think we can all agree you’re much better off right where you are.”

Gavin squeezed, pressing me closer to him.

“And he deserves everything that’s coming to him.” Her tone remained light, but her smile grew cold, and there was something in her eyes that sent a chill down my spine.

“Cara…” Grace said.

She waved us closer. “Have a seat.”

Gavin put his hand on the small of my back and led me to one of the couches. The others took seats or stayed standing nearby where they had a view of the large TV. Cara got a remote out of a drawer and turned it on.

“The show aired earlier, but I assume you didn’t watch,” Cara said, and I wasn’t sure who she was talking to. Me? Or maybe everyone. “I recorded it. I haven’t watched yet either and I’m absolutely dying.”

“Cara, what show?” Grace asked.

She didn’t answer. Just pressed a button on the remote and the screen came to life.

It was a national morning show that featured in-depth interviews with celebrities. Sometimes they featured authors if they were big names, and right there on the couch was freaking Pepper Sinclair.

Her hair and makeup were flawless, as usual, and she wore a stylish blouse and slacks. A small table next to her white upholstered seat held a stack of her latest book. She’d made a name for herself writing inspirational women’s fiction, but her new release was a memoir.

Barf.

But the perfectly tailored, smiling Pepper wasn’t what made my stomach drop. Seated next to her was Cullen.

Double barf.

I could see the foundation and eyeliner they’d used on him to make his face camera ready. His hair was poofier than usual, styled in a slick pompadour, and he wore a light gray suit.

I met Cara’s eyes, wondering why she would possibly think I’d want to watch this interview.

The corners of her lips turned up ever so slightly. “Just wait for it.”

I leaned into Gavin, not worrying about whether or not it was a friend thing or a girlfriend thing to do. The interview began and after thanking Pepper and Cullen for being on the show, the host started in on questions about her new book.

The book was titled The Marriage Secret, and Pepper claimed it was both a story about her journey—whatever that was supposed to mean—and a reflection on how to have a happy and fulfilling marriage. Cullen had been invited to the show to talk about how he’d helped take her career to the next level and the big publishing deal he hoped to secure for the follow-up to this release.

A follow-up? How many books was she going to write about herself?

“Pepper, this book delves into your ingredients for a happy marriage,” the host said.

“Wait, I have a question.” Fiona held up a hand, like she was in a classroom, and Cara paused the show. “Let me see if I have this straight. He’s your ex?”

“Yes,” I said. “Unfortunately.”

“And he’s banging this bitch.” She gestured to the screen.

“Yeah, he left me for her.”

Was it just me, or did Gavin just growl?

“But she’s married to someone else?” Fiona asked.

“She was. I thought she was leaving her husband for Cullen.”

“But she wrote a book about how to have a happy marriage?” Fiona asked. “Was she writing about her actual husband, or that guy?”

Cara produced a copy of Pepper’s book, seemingly out of thin air. “Oh it’s about her husband, all right. It’s a bunch of absolute fucking bullshit. She wrote an entire book about how to be a good wife and have a blissful marriage, all while she was being a goddamn home wrecker and sleeping with another woman’s man.”