Faked - Karla Sorensen Page 0,78

groaned. "And I can't believe I'm going to say this, but Bauer has never had anyone refuse to give up on him."

A faded picture on a wall of a cabin came into my head. "He's had one person. But I get what you're saying."

Lia's fingers tightened around mine. "If this man is as important to you as I think he is, then show him what it feels like. Refuse to give up on him if he feels what I think he does. He never would've gotten so upset if you hadn't dug your cute little claws into his emotionally stunted heart."

I sighed. "So just ... ignore the bullshit he spouted and tell him I'm not going anywhere? That sounds healthy."

"Noooo way. If he knows what's good for him, there will be copious groveling. But you don't have to decide anything right now, okay?"

Curling into my sister, I let her hug me. It felt like I could sleep for a week after that one conversation. "Okay."

"I know what will cheer you up," she said.

"Alcohol and a week at the beach?"

"No." She laughed. "I think you should go somewhere with me this weekend."

I sat up with a sigh. "Where?"

Lia was quiet for a second. "Adele and Tom are doing a big celebration party at the center on Saturday night, and I think ... I think you should come and see."

The face that came to mind now was the one I'd lied to, and I found myself grimacing. "Richard Harper will have quite the surprise seeing the two of us."

"And you will explain it to him, and he'll be fine. Finn told me he's been amazing with how involved he wants to be at the center."

I nodded. "I'd feel better if I could apologize to him."

"Not that you really have anything to apologize for," Lia pointed out.

Unwilling to hash that out, I let her think whatever she wanted. "What would I have to wear? Because if it requires another fancy dress, I'm out."

"Cute casual will be fine. It's a community center, not a ballroom."

"Will Bauer be there?" I asked carefully. "It's not that I'd ... I don't know, avoid going if he was, but I don't know if that's the place I want to see him for the first time."

Lia gave me a squeeze, and my heart gave a weird hiccup thinking about Bauer doing the same thing. "I'll check with Finn, but I've never, ever known him to show up at an event there. Ever."

"Okay." I yawned. "What would I do without you, Lee?"

She was quiet, and I looked at her face.

"What?" I asked.

"Nothing. What?" she said too quickly.

"Lia," I warned. "You paused. Why did you pause?"

She scrunched up her face. "Did I?"

I sat forward. "Oh my gosh, what is it? Are you moving out? Are you leaving? Are you sick?"

"Slow your roll, crazy," she said on a laugh. "I'm not sick, good grief."

My heart settled back into a normal rhythm. "Well, it's something."

"I didn't want to say anything with all the feelings." She gestured to me. "But I might be going to London."

"What?" I shrieked excitedly. We'd done a bit of traveling over the years, but we'd never been to England, and for someone like Lia, it was her dream to visit. "When? With who? For how long?"

Lia laughed. "Margaret Atwood sort of ... invited me to study there …" She paused, gauging my face. "For a semester."

My face fell. A semester away from Lia. We'd never been apart for that long. "Lia," I whispered. "That's incredible."

Her eyes filled, and so did mine. "It's a long time, I know."

The other half of me across the ocean for months. It sounded like an eternity. But oh, the elation I could feel coming from her made me so happy.

She let out a watery laugh. "I haven't said yes yet. I wanted to make sure you'd ... be okay."

I grabbed her hands. "If you don't say yes, I will really never forgive you."

Lia wrapped me up in a tight hug. "Nothing we need to worry about right now. Let's get some of that alcohol that will make you feel better, okay?"

Chapter Twenty-Four

Bauer

"Well, that was stupid."

I rolled my eyes at Scotty's tone, wincing as I poured hydrogen peroxide down the road burn on my calf. It hissed and bubbled, and Scotty leaned in to look at the damage.

"It wasn't stupid," I told him. "I've biked that trail a thousand times."

His gray eyebrows, bushy and out of control, rose incrementally on his wrinkled forehead. "A few