No Sweeter Love (Sweeter in the City Book 3) Read Online Free PDF Page B

turn around and look them in the eye. It was hard enough to skirt Hailey’s friendly inquisition, but to lie to her friends as well?
    “Claire’s going away for the weekend,” Hailey announced as she pushed through the kitchen door carrying a plate of blueberry muffins topped with crumbly streusel. “With Ethan.” Her lips twisted into a little smile.
    Claire rolled her eyes. “It’s not like that.” She slid the steaming mugs to Lila and Mary. “He has a family wedding. I’ve agreed to go as his date.”
    Mary’s eyebrows shot up. “His date?”
    “More like his babysitter,” Claire clarified. “There was some trouble with his family at his sister’s wedding last summer.”
    Lila stirred a packet of creamer into her coffee. “Tell me a time when Ethan isn’t causing trouble.”
    Claire laughed. It was all in good fun, she knew, and Ethan did have quite the reputation. And yes, he did cause his fair bit of trouble. But never with her.
    At least that was one thing she could count on.
     
    ***
    Two and a half hours later, Claire studied the contents of her suitcase with a critical eye. They’d be gone for four nights, returning on Sunday evening, and by her estimation she’d packed for a two-week vacation.
    Still, she thought, Hailey would be thrilled to have a little more closet space for a few days, so really, it was the right thing to do.
    Claire added another day dress to the pile and hesitated. It was just like Ethan to be so vague about the whole thing, only mentioning the possibility of a formal rehearsal dinner when prodded, and glossing over the wedding brunch as if it were nothing more than a trip to a diner. Claire added one last pair of sandals to the bag, wedging them in as best she could, and sighed.
    Better overly prepared than under prepared, she thought, closing it shut and yanking the zipper. She’d always been a bit Type A, always the one who studied in advance, not crammed for an exam. Always the one who made lists, scratched things off, set goals and met them. She was a planner. Right up until all her plans blew up.
    She pulled the zipper tight. Right, well, no use thinking about that now. Or the fact that the past week had produced no new leads in the career department. Or that she was running out of places to hide during the day when she was supposedly still at the jewelry store. Or that she felt sick to her stomach every time Hailey nicely asked how her day had gone. She was going away for the weekend, she would clear her head, have a few laughs, put some distance between herself and this city. And when she got back, she’d be ready to tackle her new life properly. And this time, well, this time she’d get it right. And that started with one promise: No more unsuitable men.
    Claire scribbled a friendly good-bye note to Hailey and tucked it under the fruit bowl on the counter, grabbing two bananas from the pile as she walked to the front door and slipped on her flip-flops, hoping she could manage the suitcase down the winding stairs without slipping. She hesitated only briefly, wondering if she should clear out a few items, and then decided there was no time, not unless she wanted to make the apartment a mess in her rush, and that wouldn’t be fair to Hailey, who Claire suspected was looking nearly as forward to having this apartment to herself for a few days as Claire was happy to be getting away from it.
    Ethan was already in the front of her building when she emerged, sweaty and a little exhausted, a few minutes later, the suitcase bumping along behind her.
    “I would have carried that down for you,” he remarked, stepping out of the car to pop the trunk, the hazard lights blinking.
    “And where were you going to find parking at this hour?” she replied, motioning to the cab that was struggling to get through the narrow, one-way street. He gestured with impatience and honked on the horn twice to underscore his annoyance. Claire turned to Ethan. “We’d better be on with