on her hips, she begins pacing back and forth in front of me. “The chamber of commerce dude is set to finish his speech soon, and that’s when things are going to get really nuts in here, not to mention the traffic you’d have to endure.”
“Fuck, River.” I blow out a breath. “I’m such a moron.”
She waves off my words as the truck door opens and Caroline pokes her head out, taking in River’s worried strides.
“Hey,” she says softly, approaching us. “No luck?”
“No,” River says. “It’s my fault for not putting it with the other boxes. I was hoping you would change your mind. I was saving that spot for you and set that box aside just in case.”
Oh, fuck.
This is perfect. This is my chance to get Caroline’s work on display.
“Caroline has pieces in my car.”
Her head whips toward me, and I can feel her angry eyes boring into me.
“I can go grab them,” I offer, willing myself to not look at her.
“You brought them?” River asks Caroline, hope lighting up her face.
Caroline’s eyes dart back to me, and I can see she’s torn between helping her friend and wanting to murder me for putting her on the spot.
She might be mad at me now, but she needs the push. She’ll never go anywhere with the one thing that brings her joy if she keeps turning down opportunities like this.
If it makes me the bad guy for wanting her to be genuinely happy, I’ll wear that name tag.
She drags her eyes back to River. “Apparently.”
“Can we sell them?”
“I—”
“Please, Caroline. Please. I’m in a bind here. If you’re worried about the money aspect of it, don’t. I’ll cut you a check as soon as we get back to the shop.”
“It’s not the money,” Caroline says. “It’s…other things.”
“Look, you’re nervous—I get it. I was nervous too when I took a chance on starting my own business. But if I hadn’t taken a chance on it, I wouldn’t be here today. You wouldn’t be here today. Sometimes you just have to have a little faith that things are going to work out and go for it.”
Caroline brushes a curl behind her ear, her nerves loud and clear, but I also see her wavering just the slightest bit.
River folds her hands together, tucking them under her chin, begging Caroline with her eyes.
Please, she mouths.
And Caroline caves.
“Okay.”
“Yes!” River wraps her in a hug, squeezing her tightly. “Oh my gosh, thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!” She releases her, clapping her hands. “This is so huge! You just saved us so big.”
Caroline shoots her a shaky smile.
“You.” River points to me. “Go get the stuff. We still need to put everything on hangers and set up displays and—whatever. You don’t have to know all the details. I just need them ASAP, so run.”
I nod, and she turns away, muttering about everything she still needs to do.
She disappears into the truck, leaving me alone with Caroline.
She turns to me, and I see it.
It’s written on her face clearly.
Betrayal.
She’s hurt.
And I fucking hate when she hurts.
A pang I wasn’t expecting hits me square in the chest.
“Hey! Come on, Caroline,” River says, poking her head back out of the truck. “We need to get this stuff moved around.”
Caroline turns to go, and I reach for her.
“Care…” I say, grabbing her wrist.
She pulls out of my grasp, shaking her head. “Just go, Cooper.”
She leaves me standing there without another word. Not even a backward glance.
And I know in that moment that I fucked it all up.
16
Caroline
He lied.
Cooper lied to me, and I can’t stop thinking about it. Even as the day rolled on and we got busy with the event, I couldn’t push it out of my mind. It was all I could focus on. I was moving through the festival like a robot.
There hasn’t been a time in our friendship when he hasn’t been completely honest with me. I know this because I know him. We’ve always been able to trust each other wholly…until now.
He said he’d drop it. He said he’d let me work through my fears on my own. Said he’d respect my decision.
And he didn’t.
Cooper lied to me.
“You sold out.”
River’s words snap me from my fog.
“Huh?”
“You. Sold. Out.”
“I…did?”
She nods enthusiastically. “All of them. Gone. I just did the count. Checked it three times. Congrats, you’re officially a sellout!”
Cooper occupied my mind so much today, I paid little attention to my designs on display. Didn’t fret over it. I thought for sure when River