Song: Gossip Girl playlist by Jane

Lilah groaned, adjusting her white towel as she flopped onto the wooden bench. Her muscles were screaming in agony from the intense workout she'd been forced to endure. All she wanted to do was nap in bliss for the next twenty minutes while the heat of the sauna cooked her alive.

With her chattering friends, however, such plans were simply unobtainable.

The sound of sizzling forced her eyes open. She turned her head to the side, watching as Lacey splashed the heated rocks with water. Steam rose upwards, spreading throughout the room and clinging to the wooden interior. Lilah fanned herself, quietly dying as the temperature creeped past 150 degrees.

"Remember what I told you about Vivienne?" Alyssa asked, leaning against the wall with a tight grip on her baby blue towel. One wrong move and her ample bosom would bust out and greet them all. "Last time we saw each other at the farmers market."

Lilah nodded weakly, resting her head on Lacey's thick thighs when she came to sit beside her. "Mhm. She's pregnant by that idiot Calum. What happened now?"

"Her mom isn't gonna pretend the baby is hers." Alyssa's hooded hazel eyes pinned Lilah with a look that let her know all the tea was truly coming out now. "Apparently Mrs. Sullivan had her tubes tied and legit all of the moms know about it. Nobody's gonna believe she decided to randomly untie them now just to have a baby."

"Isn't she, like, forty eight? I wouldn't buy that shit either," Lacey huffed, running her fingers through her fresh pixie cut. The very same one that nearly gave her mother a heart attack. In the end she could only be soothed by three full glasses of brandy. "So, when's the baby shower?"

Alyssa snorted. "She's not having one. Everything's gonna be on the low until they're eighteen. Then they'll get hitched to save face. Mr. Sullivan was so pissed when he found out that he decided Mr. Coldwell would pay for everything."

Lilah sighed, wiping her sweaty face with the back of her hand. "What is she, like, five months now? Pretty soon everyone will know."

"My mom said they're gonna play it off as seasonal weight gain since the holidays are coming up. But I think they're second guessing the severity of the nosiness of our circle." Alyssa rolled her eyes, heart shaped lips twitching into a playful grin. "Wanna bet on when things will come out?"

Lacey straightened up, jostling Lilah from where she rested. "Always." She smirked, lighting up her Tinker Bell face with glee. "Rules?"

"None of us can spill. But if it gets out organically then it's fair game," Alyssa replied. "I say we bet on our next vacation spot. Winner gets to choose."

"No." Lilah glared at her. "Everytime you pick a vacation spot I find myself in a situation where it's life or death. I'm not going through that again."

"It wasn't even that bad last time," Alyssa muttered, picking at her pristine nails.

"Oh, because almost getting kidnapped in Columbia is nothing to write home about." Lilah deadpanned. "My bad."

"I say," Lacey interrupted their bickering, beaming, "we stick to something simple. Money."

"Five months. Five hundred?" Lilah offered.

The other women agreed and the betting began.

"I say they're found out by Thanksgiving."

"I pick Christmas time," Lacey said.

Lilah's chubby cheeks puffed out with air while she thought. "I'll take a risk. They make it past New Year's Eve. First week of January and they're through."

They linked pinkies three ways and the deal was sealed.

The remaining ten minutes were spent gossiping about Wilhemina Abbot. A woman three years their senior and an heiress to one of the biggest hotel chains in America. She'd been discovered cosying up to a middle school teacher that worked for a public school. Now her parents feared he was using her for her wealth and she was too stupidly in love to see it.

Lilah piped up that it could be real love. Her friends reminded her that not all love stories were like her grandparents. Some people were really just users.

Candace Bonavich was discovered having an affair with the pool boy. Not that anyone was surprised there. She was new money and new money people were always so damn trashy.

"Will they get a divorce?" Lilah asked, clutching her towel as she followed her friends out of the sauna.

"As if!" Alyssa shouted over the water as it poured out, echoing throughout the showers. "Her husband's having an affair with Catherine Harding and Dorothea English! They hate each other so much that they're literally staying together just to see who can hurt the other one more."

Lilah shook her head, washing her body clean of all sweat. "Poor kids." she whispered, sympathetic to the teenagers forced to endure such a shitty situation. "Old lady Gertrude is getting a divorce!" she called out, wringing her hair as warm water cascaded down her body.

Alyssa's gasp was so loud that Lilah heard it from two stalls down. "Not Mrs. Hearst! Why?! They're so cute together!"

"She got cancer! Husband found out and filed for divorce a week later."

"That fucking pig!" she screeched. "I hope he falls down the stairs and can't get up and there's no one around to help him!"

"You know," Lacey interrupted from the stall between them, "that's actually not uncommon. When married women get diagnosed nurses have to warn them about these situations. When married men get cancer their wives are more likely to stay with them through everything. But when married women get cancer their husbands usually end up divorcing them. Or cheating on them. Or both."

One by one the showers turned off. The three women emerged, drying themselves off with identical sour expressions.

"I'm never getting married," Alyssa insisted, pulling on her golden one piece swimsuit with a huff.

"I don't think your family would allow that." Lilah laughed, nudging Alyssa.

Her fair skin was flushed rose red and her blonde hair almost looked brown when wet. She glared at Lilah but didn't say anything back. They both knew she was right.

Lacey adjusted her rose gold bikini in the mirror, making sure her ass was covered. "Ezra Thornton got caught with a hooker," she said, tugging the fabric to its limit. "Phineas Wood got caught stealing money from his grandpa, the one that has Alzheimer's. It's a whole scandal."

Something unsettling filled Lilah's stomach as she pulled on her sky blue bikini. Her grandpa had Alzheimer's. His memory was so bad that he'd forgotten most of his family members' own names. On good days he remembered her grandma. On bad days he didn't even know who he himself was.

He'd never forgotten Lilah, though. His empty eyes reflected clarity whenever he saw her face. He called her Bumblebee because she went as a bee once for Halloween. She'd sat on her stinger and ruined it, spending hours crying and refusing to go trick-or-treating. If he hadn't fashioned a sturdy new stinger out of newspaper and painted it, Lilah never would've gone out that night.

She couldn't even imagine stealing from him while he was in such a vulnerable state. The thought alone made her sick.

They entered the pool, swimming leisurely. Thirty minutes passed discussing Winifred Irvine's winter wedding. They were all invited to it but no one was excited to attend. She was a bridezilla before the wedding. Now she was a full on monster.

Not even her own mother could stand her.

Her intended, Wallace Kline, was also a bit of a man whore so no one had faith in that upcoming entanglement.

When they were done Lilah dressed in a cream turtleneck sweater with high waisted jeans and leather boots. Her chocolate brown princess coat was slung over her arm, covering her emerald ring. She wrapped her hair into a low bun and left her face bare besides a light sheen of chapstick on her full lips.

"I did hear something weird though," Alyssa said, fixing her long sleeve olive dress. Her black knee high boots clicked against the floor. Unlike Lilah, she actually took her time to do her makeup and curl her hair into soft golden ringlets. "My aunt said she saw Lucas Hawthorne talking to Judge Pedi a week or so ago."

Lilah thanked the server after he showed them to a table. Once he was gone and they were reading the menu she asked, "Lucas Hawthorne, as in, my mom's ex husband?"

Alyssa hummed, flagging another server down and ordering a bottle of Merlot. "My aunt said she had to do a whole double take when she saw him. What's it been, like, twenty years since anyone last saw him?"

"A little more." Lilah ordered the caprese salad with a side of focaccia bread. She held her wine glass delicately, dark eyes narrowing as the red liquid swirled inside. "I wonder what's so important that he dared to even come around these parts. He had to have known someone would see him."

"Want me to have my dad ask around?" Lacey asked, ordering a juicy steak with asparagus. A daring choice considering she wore a winter white silk button down shirt. If Lilah knew her, and she did, something was definitely gonna drip onto her top or her fitted black trousers. Or her black pumps. It sounded odd but Lacey really could get food anywhere. "You know he wouldn't mind."

Lilah nodded, people watching as the elegant room filled with the afternoon rush. "Text me. I'll check on my mom. Make sure she's ok."

They waited for Alyssa's salmon to arrive before digging in. Their peace came to an end when Lacey's round blue eyes widened like saucers. She hastily wiped her hands with a napkin and smoothed down her dirty blonde hair. At first she didn't mind rocking the Einstein look. But then Simon Darcy walked through the door and all that changed.

"Mr. Doctors Without Borders is back in town and we're not talking about that?!" she hissed, jerking her head towards the tall, dark, and handsome man. "Did you guys know about this?!"

Lilah shook her head, gnawing on a slice of mozzarella absentmindedly. "Nope."

Dread filled her when Simon's peridot green eyes sparkled like gems as they met hers. Recognition dawned upon his chiseled face. He raised a hand in greeting. "Hey there, Delilah!"

"Fuck my life."

Lacey's mouth curled into a mischievous grin when he left his group to head towards theirs. "Oh, yes."

Lilah kicked her underneath the table, forcing what she hoped was a natural smile as she stood. "Hey, Simon."

The hug they shared took the air out of Lilah's lungs. She had to go up on her tippy toes to rest her chin on his shoulder. Her nose crinkled as she breathed in his cologne. It was... spicy. His black hair tickled the side of her face. She cringed when he held her a little too tight.

So maybe his feelings for her hadn't completely gone away in the past three years he'd been gone after all.

Lilah went to pull away but stopped when a stormy stare of glaring blues met her dark gaze. There he was, Ambrose Montgomery, dressed in a long sleeved white shirt and black slacks. His clothes clung to him like a second skin, drawing the eyes of every starving cougar in the room. He wore thick black glasses. His hair was styled and swept out of his face.

He looked like a wet dream with his dashing customer service smile and bulging muscles

A stupid, rude, unbearable wet dream that she still hadn't apologized to.

Simon's hand slipped to the small of her back, breaking the spell that captivated her. She remembered where she was, gracefully maneuvering out of Simon's embrace.

"It's good to see you!" he said, smiling so wide she thought his face would crack.

"Yeah," Lilah breathed, heart thrumming wildly in her chest, "it's good to see you too."

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QOTD: Why do you think Lucas came out of his exile to seek out Judge Pedi? How do you think Lilah's upcoming apology will go now that Ambrose is working at the country club? Are you ready for the distraction that is Simon Darcy??