Contents
Chapter 8
Overview
Harriet wakes hungover beside Wyn, panics, and learns they did not have sex despite compromising proximity and her drunken antics. Wyn’s quiet caretaking and his pointed question about Harriet’s happiness expose unresolved feelings. Before she can answer, Parth’s chaotic “Grocery Gladiators” summons interrupts, sustaining tension and their ongoing ruse.
Summary
On Tuesday morning, Harriet wakes on the floor of the shared bedroom, pressed against Wyn and wearing his old rodeo T-shirt, and panics that they slept together. Disoriented, she catalogues clues—open window, goose bumps, his arm over her, his erection—before shoving Wyn awake and accusing him.
Wyn calmly reconstructs the night: Harriet puked on her shirt, insisted on wearing his, took four body shots off Kimmy, and performed pointed “vengeful grinding” whenever he approached. Neither took the bed; each refused it first, and Wyn stayed on the floor to watch her in case she got sick again.
Still nauseous, Harriet steps onto the balcony for air. Wyn brings water and ibuprofen, and his caretaking rankles her pride even as it reveals lingering intimacy. They trade barbs about her unusual drinking, then Wyn asks the loaded question, “You’re happy, aren’t you?”
Harriet freezes, torn between granting him absolution if she says yes and admitting lingering desire if she says no. Before she answers, Parth blasts an air-horn app and announces “Grocery Gladiators,” jolting the house awake and deferring the conversation, leaving their unresolved feelings and the engagement charade intact.
Who Appears
- HarrietNarrator; wakes hungover beside Wyn, panics about possible sex, recalls drunken antics, resists caretaking, and evades answering whether she’s happy.
- WynEx-fiancé; explains the night, cared for Harriet, refused the bed, and pointedly asks if she’s happy before being interrupted.
- ParthHousemate; DJed the party, wakes everyone with an air-horn and announces “Grocery Gladiators.”
- KimmyFriend; partner in Harriet’s four body shots, shrieks at Parth’s wake-up call.
- SabrinaFriend; partied late with Parth, oblivious to Harriet and Wyn’s tension this morning.
- CleoFriend; went to bed early, absent from the late-night chaos.