My Aussie Guy - Liz Lovelock Page 0,46

rush more words out before he can speak. “I know you’ve ended a relationship not that long ago, but I like you. I really like you.” And I could almost love you, but I leave that off.

“I really like you, too,” Aiden says, but he sounds so uncertain.

A sharp pain stabs me in the chest. “Okay, well, I’ll leave you with that to do with what you want.” I scurry away down the nearest corridor. Damn, he’s so hot and cold.

I rush off to class, having a schedule full of classes to distract me for most of the day. My phone vibrates in my back pocket. Pulling it out, I purse my lips and sigh at Aiden’s name on the screen.

Aiden: I’m sorry if I upset you. That’s all I seem to be good at lately. I have to tell you something before anything can be official. Meet me tonight at the basketball court.

I chew my bottom lip, wondering what he could possibly have to tell me. I hit reply.

Elsie: Okay…

It’s all I can manage to write for fear of reading something I don’t want to see.

Hours later, it’s time for lunch, and I head to the café to meet Addison.

“Hey,” she greets me. We find a table and drop our butts into the only spare booth. It’s one of the busiest times to eat here.

“Hey,” I reply, placing my bag by the side of my chair.

Addison leans forward and rests her head on her hands with her elbows on the table. She’s giving me a raised eyebrow, what-went-on-last-night kind of look. “So, tell me what happened last night and this morning,” she says in a singsong kind of voice.

My cheeks heat up. “Not much to tell…”

She pushes back in her seat. “Oh, don’t you hold out on me. Give me details.”

I grin stupidly before saying, “Okay.” Then, I fill her in on the night with Aiden. Butterflies tickle the inside of my stomach as I recall and think about everything that happened last night.

When I finish, all Addison manages is a breathless, “Wow,” and I nod.

“So, what happened this morning with your grumpy attitude?”

“Well, he typed a message to me but didn’t hit send. Rookie mistake. All is forgiven. But now he’s acting weird, and after I told him I liked him and was implying that I’d like this thing between us to be more, he went funny, and now he has something to tell me.”

Before Addison can respond, Parker slides in beside her. “Tell you what?”

I wave my hand. “Don’t worry. Just Aiden and his secret—”

“Oh, so he told you that the girlfriend he told you about isn’t real. Never was.” Parker reaches for a fry on Addison’s plate while my stomach plummets to the floor, and my heart cracks.

“What did you say?” Addison turns toward Parker, her eyes becoming slits.

“What? You said he’d told you,” Parker replies through a mouthful of fries.

“No, I didn’t. You came in on half a conversation. I said he has something to tell me. Is that it? He never really had a g-girlfriend in the first p-place?” My voice cracks, and my chin starts to tremble. Surely, this can’t be happening.

I start analyzing the conversations we’ve had about his girlfriend. He always seemed to go weird when I brought her up. I guess this would explain why. He lied.

“Wait a second, how long have you known? Because you came in as if you’ve known for some time.” I point an accusing finger at Parker. He’s supposed to be my friend. I turn to Addison, and my eyes narrow. “Did you know? You two share everything, so you must have known.” My chest feels as if it might explode, while breathing physically starts to hurt.

Addison’s hands go up in defense. “I promise you I didn’t know.” Her fiery gaze lands on Parker, whose face clearly has paled. “You’ve known this? For how long?” She pokes a finger into Parker’s chest while I watch the exchange.

“The night we went to the movies.” Parker’s face screws up, and my mouth drops open.

“I can’t believe this,” I whisper. My head hangs while I try to focus on the half-eaten plate of food in front of me. A million things are running through my head. I want answers. What am I going to do?

“Elsie…” Addison’s tenderness causes me to look up. She’s blurry as tears are filling my eyes and threatening to fall over my lids. “Why would he lie?” I ask breathlessly.

Addison reaches out and takes