A/N: Thank you all for your continued love and support! I really do appreciate it. Hope you enjoy this next chapter!

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Chapter 6: When the plan backfires

It was Thursday, and of course Kate was running late.

Her shift at the hospital was supposed to end at around three, but there had been a car crash that afternoon resulting in two children being brought into A&E. Thankfully no one had died, but Kate had to stay several hours after her shift, helping doctors clean and stitch wounds while assisting in one of the surgeries. She normally kept a change of clothes in her locker for instances like this, but she had forgotten to do that today. She had no choice but to go home, but by the time she had gotten to her apartment to change and shower, it was a quarter past seven, meaning she was about fifteen minutes late.

Kate hated running late. She was anxious enough about tonight, with Anthony stopping by to help put her Edwina/Tom break-up plan into motion, but now she had to add this stress on top of that. Kate quickly sent Edwina a text to let her know she was running late before hurriedly taking a shower and putting on her makeup, constantly checking the time as she did so.

By the time Kate finished getting ready and got into her car, it was nearly eight o'clock. Edwina had texted her back to let her know she was already at the pub and to come by whenever, so Kate knew Tom was there too. Kate didn't know if Anthony was there yet, but she had forgotten to get his phone number during their lunch yesterday, so she had no way of knowing.

This night is already off to a fantastic start, she couldn't help but think sarcastically as she navigated through the London traffic.

Kate finally arrived at the pub, which was fairly busy tonight. She walked through the front doors and immediately started looking around the crowds of people for her sister, Tom, or Anthony. After a minute or so, she finally spotted Edwina standing near the back wall, chatting happily with…

With Anthony.

Kate blinked, feeling momentarily surprised. She had expected to see Edwina with Tom tonight, but Tom was nowhere to be found. But there Edwina was, talking and laughing with Anthony as they both held drinks in their hands.

Kate felt a bit sick, and her mind immediately cast back to that moment when she saw Edwina and Tom chatting together in the hospital cafeteria a couple weeks ago. Pushing away the odd feeling in her stomach, Kate approached the two of them.

"Didi!" Edwina's eyes lit up when she spotted Kate, and the two sisters immediately embraced. Kate couldn't help but smile as she held her sister: despite their arguments via text about Edwina's relationship with Tom, Kate still loved her sister and was always happy to spend time with her.

"Hey Eddie. How've you been?" Kate asked, still smiling as they let go of each other. "Where's Tom?"

"He got called into surgery," Edwina explained. "Something about a car accident. I thought that's why you had to work late too?"

Kate blinked. "Oh. Yeah, that's true, although I don't remember seeing Tom at all during my shift. I assumed he was off today."

"They apparently called him in like an hour ago," Anthony explained, and Kate looked over at him. "So you probably just missed him. That's okay, though." He gestured to Edwina with the beer bottle in his hand. "Edwina and I were just hanging out until you got here."

"Didi, Anthony mentioned that you work with his sister at the hospital," Edwina said, smiling brightly as she glanced over at Anthony. "Daphne, right?"

"Er, yeah," Kate said, looking between the two of them. The odd, uncomfortable feeling in her stomach hadn't gone away. "Where is Daphne, by the way? I thought she and Simon were meeting us here."

"Simon was flying in from a business trip this afternoon, but his flight got delayed," Anthony explained. "Daphne went to pick him up, so they're both running late too."

"Seems like everybody's running late tonight," Edwina giggled, looking over at Anthony. "Except for the two of us, of course."

"Cheers to our punctuality," Anthony grinned, holding out his beer to her. Edwina laughed, clinking her bottle with his before they both took a long sip.

Kate had had enough of this apparent camaraderie. "I'm going to go get a beer," she announced, turning to Anthony. "Anthony, do you mind coming along with me?"

Edwina looked amused as she gave her sister a skeptical look. "You need his help to get a beer?"

"Yes, I'd like his recommendation," Kate said firmly, grasping Anthony's sleeve and tugging him toward the bar. "We won't be a moment."

"What can I say? I have impeccable taste in alcohol," Anthony joked to Edwina, who giggled again. Kate ignored them as she practically dragged Anthony toward the bar.

"What the hell are you doing?" Kate demanded as soon as they were at the bar and out of earshot of Edwina.

"What are you talking about?" Anthony asked, looking dumbfounded by her anger. "I thought you wanted me to help get Edwina to break up with Tom."

"Well, yeah, but Tom isn't even here," Kate insisted. "The point of you chatting up Edwina was to do it in front of him and to make him jealous!"

"Well, it was just me and Edwina here at the pub. Did you expect me to completely ignore her until you arrived?" Anthony said defensively. "That would've been rude. I know you don't think much of my manners, but I'm not that mean."

He had a point, Kate begrudgingly had to admit. She didn't say it, though, as the bartender approached her. She ordered a lager. "And put it on his tab," she added, nodding to Anthony. He grimaced, but didn't argue.

"So why does Edwina call you 'Didi'?" Anthony asked curiously, taking a sip of his own beer.

"It's a term of endearment. It means 'sister'," Kate said, accepting the pint from the bartender. "She's called me that since we were kids. But I'm surprised she didn't tell you that – the two of you seemed to be really hitting it off."

"We were, yeah," Anthony said casually, glancing back toward where Edwina was standing. "She's very funny and sweet. I can understand why Tom likes her."

Kate felt rather surprised by that statement. "You're not actually interested in her, are you?" she blurted out before she could stop herself.

Anthony raised an eyebrow at her, his expression cool and unreadable. "If I was, what business would it be of yours?"

Kate blinked, staring at him. She honestly didn't know how to respond to that, and her heart pounded so loudly in her ribcage she was sure he could hear it. "I-I…" she stuttered, but her voice seemed to die in her throat. "Are you serious?" she finally eeked out.

"I mean, it would solve your problem, wouldn't it?" Anthony shrugged, still looking at her with a level gaze. "If Edwina decides she prefers me, she'll break up with Tom. It's a win-win."

Kate blinked again, realizing he was right. But why did the thought of Edwina and Anthony together leave a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach? "You and I are already pretending to be in a relationship in front of your coworkers. Wouldn't this just further complicate an already complicated situation?"

"It doesn't have to," Anthony shrugged. "If things work out with Edwina, I won't hold you to our agreement. Tom would be out of the picture anyway, so it wouldn't be fair to you to continue pretending we were a couple."

Kate pressed her lips together, realizing he was probably right. However, while the thought of Tom and Edwina as a couple pissed her off, imagining Anthony and Edwina in a relationship didn't feel much better. She didn't quite know why. "I suppose you're right," she said quietly.

Anthony didn't say anything as he continued to look at her, and Kate met his eyes. Something unspoken seemed to zing between them, but Kate barely had a moment to know what it was before they were interrupted:

"Hey!" Daphne appeared at their sides, and trailing behind her was a tall handsome black man. "Sorry we're late. Hope we didn't miss anything."

"No of course not," Kate said, hugging her friend in greeting. "I just got here myself. Hi Simon."

"Hey Kate, good to see you," Simon smiled, moving forward to hug her next. "Bridgerton. Looking ugly as always."

"Basset," Anthony greeted his friend with a smirk. "You look more haggard than usual. Lisbon didn't treat you well?"

"I just got off a flight, you prick," Simon snarked back. "What's your excuse?"

Kate didn't know what the hell Anthony was talking about: Simon looked impeccably handsome in a dark green collared sweater and jeans. But then again, the man was always infuriatingly good-looking.

Kate glanced sideways at Anthony, and she couldn't help but think he looked pretty good tonight too. He wore a dark gray jumper that fit him quite well, along with black pants and trainers that made him look effortlessly handsome. His dark brown hair was a touch long, but it suited his face quite well, Kate couldn't help but admit.

She blinked and looked away before he could notice her checking him out.

"Hey," Edwina appeared beside them, grinning brightly at Daphne and Simon. "Am I missing the party?"

"Hey!" Daphne greeted Edwina with a smile, and they hugged hello. Daphne and Edwina had only met a handful of times, but they always got along like the oldest of friends. "Edwina, this is my boyfriend, Simon."

"Hello," Edwina waved at Simon, who nodded back. "Tom was supposed to be here, but he got called into the hospital for an emergency surgery."

"Oh yeah. I heard about that car crash," Daphne said, turning to Kate with wide eyes. "You had to work late because of it, right?"

"Unfortunately," Kate smiled humorlessly. "Did you want to grab a table so we're not all standing around at the bar?"

"Sounds good to me," Simon said, glancing down at Daphne. "I'll get our drinks, babe. Vodka soda?"

"Thanks baby," Daphne smiled lovingly at her boyfriend before leaning up to give him a kiss.

Kate, Daphne, Edwina, and Anthony all began making their way toward a nearby booth. Kate glanced over just in time to see Anthony place his hand on Edwina's lower back as he guided them through the crowd of people.

Swallowing down the sick feeling creeping up her throat, Kate followed them.

A/N: Oh poor Kate… who could have seen that coming?

If you enjoyed this chapter, please leave a comment! I appreciate all your feedback. Also, if you'd like teasers and updates to this story, be sure to follow me on Facebook – I go by the username Straw Paj.