Pamela knew she had to prevent Melissa from reaching the logical conclusion at all costs: that she was doing everything in her power to sabotage her relationship with Josias.
Taking a deep breath, Pamela stood up, approached her best friend, and took her hands in hers. She adopted a pleading, soft tone, layering on sincerity.
“Melissa, I swear to you with all my heart: I was only worried that Josias would hurt you.”
“So you admit you lied?” Melissa jumped on the detail. “Did Josias actually tell you at the construction site that he wanted to take me to bed, or not?”
Pamela bit her lip, cornered by her own web. She couldn’t retract the statement without collapsing the whole charade. “He did say it, honey.”
“But that’s just not like him!” Melissa pulled her hands away and began pacing t
