anything from what she wrote.”
“You see? How am I supposed to know what she’s thinking? She said she cared about me, but what does that mean? Does she care about me as a friend? Like a brother? Maybe a distant cousin?”
“Or a stray,” Josiah suggested.
“Thanks for that. You’re not helping.”
“I’ve gotta say I have my doubts she’s really into you. Not if you’ve had a platonic relationship all this time.”
“Except for five minutes a day.”
“Huh?”
“We, uh… she let me kiss her once a day for five minutes.”
“Five minutes straight?”
“Only once a day.”
“And she was a limp rag? Or she kissed you back?”
“Oh, yeah.” Logan ached at the memory. “She definitely kissed me back.”
“Then you’re golden, man!” Josiah grinned.
“I am?”
“You are! Ellery works hard to keep her feelings hidden. No way she’d agree to kissing you for that long out of pity. It would be like sheer torture.”
“It was torture.” Bliss during the kiss, but torture when it ended. Every. Single. Time.
“A girl who shows this much control doesn’t get pushed into anything.” Josiah tapped the messages on the phone screen. “She’s not kissing a guy unless she wants to.”
“You really think so?”
“I’ll bet my Lamborghini on it.”
“Wait,” Logan said. “When did you get a Lamborghini?”
Chapter 20
Ellery took a bite of her tuna fish salad, forcing herself to chew and swallow. Nothing tasted good anymore. The past fifteen days without Logan had destroyed her once-healthy appetite. Even sweets didn’t appeal to her anymore.
Across the table, Kara was gabbing about something computerish. Ellery tried to appear interested in her roommate’s diatribe. She didn’t want to do anything to risk the tremulous peace between them… Kara hadn’t taken the news of the breakup well.
That’s the understatement of the year!
Ellery’s phone chimed with an incoming message. Could it be Logan? Had he changed his mind about communicating as friends?
Surprised to see the message was from Josiah, she quickly scanned it.
“Who sent you a message?” asked Kara, a jerk of her chin indicating the cell phone. “You look kind of green all of a sudden.”
“It’s from Logan’s friend, Josiah.” Ellery put the phone face-down on the table, as if she could un-see the words she’d read. “Said he thought I should know Logan’s dating Allegra now.”
“Why didn’t Logan tell you?”
“Logan said he can’t handle being friends. So if we’re not dating, he doesn’t want to talk to me.”
“Well, well, well. Are you happy now?” Kara’s tone lacked sympathy. “Logan’s dating Allegra. You got exactly what you wanted.”
“It is what I wanted. It’s what I told him to do. I just didn’t expect… I don’t know…” She hadn’t expected it to hurt so much.
Kara took a swallow from her water glass, sat back against her chair, her arms crossed over her chest. “This is what happens when you make a decision without engaging your brain.”
“I did engage my brain. I thought about this for two weeks before I decided to break up.” Ellery knew she’d done the right thing, but she hadn’t convinced Kara.
“I still say it’s pretty stupid to take Chester’s advice and not even ask my opinion.” She stuffed the last bite of her sandwich in her mouth, chomping with such angry vigor Ellery wondered if her roommate were pretending to chew her to pieces.
“Because I already knew what you would say.” Ellery tried to explain one more time. “I wasn’t following Chester’s advice. In fact, he wanted me to drop out of Logan’s life completely, but I refused. He even hinted at the scholarship again.”
“That alone should tell you not to trust anything he said.”
“I don’t. But he sent screenshots of his conversation with Allegra. She really did move back to Austin, hoping to reconnect with Logan.”
“Encouraging Logan to go out with her is like throwing him back in the lion’s den.”
“You weren’t there when he was interacting with his stepdad. Logan’s changed. He knows not to take anything Chester says at face value.”
“But they’re all awful! And Logan was glad to have escaped. Why does he have to go back to her to prove he wants to be with you?”
Ellery sighed, massaging her temples to soothe the pounding in her skull. “Here’s the thing… I’ve watched Logan make snap decisions way too many times. If he chooses me—knowing he could have Allegra, knowing he could have back the life he lost—then I won’t constantly worry he’s going to change his mind.”
“I get it. I know it’s hard for you to trust. And Logan’s impulsiveness makes it even harder.” Kara’s tone was softer,