Better If He Goes (Always You #1) - Allie Everhart Page 0,52
that calm, easy voice of his that somehow puts my nerves at ease.
"My mom and Dave making out. That's not the reason I want you to hurry back. I mean, it's one of the reasons, but..."
"What's the other reason?"
"You." I look away, then back at him. "It's like you said. It's usually not the two of us. Alone. But I want that. I mean, I'm looking forward to it. So um, hurry back."
"Will do." He smiles and nods toward the trailer. "Go get ready. I'll be back before you know it."
He drives off, and I'm left feeling like I'm fifteen again and just found out my secret crush likes me back, all giddy, butterflies fluttering in my stomach. It's so ridiculous. I'm 22, almost 23. I shouldn't be this excited over a guy, especially one I shouldn't be dating. Even if he wasn't Nate's cousin, why would I date a guy who will be moving away in a few months? It doesn't make sense, but none of this does. Nothing the last few weeks has made any sense. Nate saying he loves me. Me falling for Brad. Brad liking me back. It's all so unexpected and confusing. Maybe that's why I find it so exciting. My life up until now has been boring and predictable, but now it's suddenly not, and I have no idea how this summer will end.
As I'm getting ready to go out, Nate calls.
"I thought we weren't talking tonight," I say when I answer.
"That was the plan, but I need to ask you something."
I hope he's not going to ask if tonight is a date. If he does, what do I say? I told Brad it wasn't, so I guess I'd tell Nate the same, even though it already feels like a date. I'm wearing a dress and I straightened my hair and put on makeup, which I wouldn't do if I was just going to the movies with Nate.
"What's the question?" I say.
"Tara just called me."
"Yeah? What about?"
"I think she just asked me out."
"And? What'd you tell her?"
"That's it? You're not surprised? This is Tara. From the pool?"
"Yeah, I know, but I'm not surprised. I always thought she had a crush on you back in high school."
"You never told me that. You never even talked to her in high school."
"Sure I did. We had algebra and English together. You weren't in those classes with me so you didn't see me talking to her."
"You never said anything about her. If you guys talked back then, you would've told me."
"So what'd she say? When she called you?"
"She said she wasn't doing anything tonight and asked if I wanted to meet her for dinner."
"If you're meeting her, then maybe it's not a date. Maybe she just wanted to go out and thought you might be free."
"That's the other thing. Why would she think I'd be free? She knows I spend all my time with you. Did you tell her about our fight?"
"No," I say, not wanting to tell him the truth. He'd be embarrassed if Tara—or anyone—knew he proclaimed his love to me and I turned him down. "But she did ask me if you were seeing someone."
"Why didn't you tell me that?"
"Because we're not supposed to be talking."
"When did she ask you? Today?"
"Yeah, after work, when we were in the locker room."
He sighs. "I wish you'd told me, or at least sent me a text. I wasn't prepared for this. Tara took me totally off guard. I didn't know why she was calling. She had to ask me out like three times before I finally figured out she asking me on a date."
"So what did you tell her?"
"I told her I'd call her back."
"Why? You don't want to go out with her?"
"I don't know. I've never thought about her that way. I haven't thought of ANY girl that way since—" He stops.
"Since you decided you like ME that way."
"Yeah," he mutters.
It makes me wonder when he realized he had feelings for me. When did it start? And why didn't I ever notice?
My phone dings with a text. It's from Brad, saying he's on his way over.
"Nate, what's your question? Why are you calling?"
"I don't know what to do. I wouldn't mind going out with Tara. I mean, she's definitely attractive. She's also really smart, and she's not as serious as she used to be. She's lightened up, which is good."