“Of course he is,” she mumbled under her breath as she looked down at the ground.
I wasn’t sure why she’d said that, but I still wanted to know how they knew each other. “How did you two meet?”
“Um…on an app.”
“So, you two are dating?” I was ninety-nine percent sure that I knew the answer, but I wanted to hear it from her.
“No.” She shook her head. “We’re not…I mean, yes, we were sort of, but…now we’re not.”
“That’s too bad.” I tried not to smile, but the corners of my lip twitched. I felt like a dick for being happy that things hadn’t worked out between them. Especially since she looked upset about it but I couldn’t help my reaction. “He’s a nice guy.”
“Yep.” Her smile was tight. “A nice guy that’s out with my sister right now.”
“Molly?”
She pointed. “That’s the one.”
“So, wait…he was dating you and now he’s dating Molly?!” It sounded like a storyline on Sunset Bay.
“It sounds worse than it is.” She sighed as her shoulders dropped. “It’s not that scandalous.”
Her energy was off. She wasn’t her usual sunshine self. I took a step forward and noticed that she had dark circles under her eyes. “Are you okay?”
I’d been asked that question so many times after my fall that I’d promised myself I would never ask anyone if they were okay.
“I’m fine. Just tired.”
Her smile was forced and didn’t reach her eyes. I wanted to reach out and pull her into my arms. I put my hands in my pockets to stop myself from breaking even more promises to myself. I swore that I would never cross that line with her again.
“It’s been a long night,” she sighed. “I’m just ready for it to be over.”
I’m not.
She started to turn and I asked, “Do you want a drink?”
As soon as the cheesy line came out of my mouth, I wished I could hop in a time machine and go back thirty seconds just to not say it.
Her head turned slowly back to me. When she looked at me her forehead was creased in confusion. She just stared at me for a beat before asking, “What about Kenna?”
“What about Kenna?” I repeated, putting my emphasis on the word what instead of Kenna like she had.
“Don’t you think she’d be upset if I came in for a drink?”
“I have no idea, but it’s not really any of her business.”
“Aren’t you two…” She waved her hand. “I saw her sitting with you and your family tonight.”
I didn’t kiss and tell, but I did not-kiss and tell. “My mom invited her. I didn’t know she was going to be there.”
She turned around all the way so she was facing me. “What about Luciana?”
It took me by surprise that she even knew who Luci was. I’d never brought Luci back to Wishing Well. But then again, Bentley knew about her so she’d probably found out from him.
“What about her?” I asked.
“Is she still your girlfriend?”
“She wasn’t ever my girlfriend.”
“Oh.”
I took a step toward her, needing to be closer to her. “Did you think she was my girlfriend?”
“Bentley mentioned it, and then you were so…after we…hooked up,” she explained without actually explaining.
“You think I would have had sex with you if I had a girlfriend?”
At that moment I realized just how much Olivia’s opinion of me mattered.
“No…I mean…I don’t know.”
As much as it hurt me that she’d think I’d cheat on a girlfriend, I knew I only had myself to blame. She knew me as a kid, but she’d never known me as a man.
That felt wrong to me. Very wrong.
“Can we go inside?” I asked, knowing full well that if she agreed, another promise would definitely be broken.
“Okay.” Her answer was tentative, which I knew was my fault as well.
As we walked to the door, I thought about the things I could tell her to explain my behavior and make her see that I wasn’t the sort of man that would cheat on a girlfriend. I would never have been with her if I was in a relationship. I also wanted to try and explain my feelings for her and why things were so complicated. I was busy formulating a mental bullet point presentation to present to her when we stepped inside and I shut the door behind me and was struck by a feeling I didn’t recognize.
It took me a second to realize that it was home. Not the physical building, but rather the feeling of being home. Maybe