he used was a big fat finger in your most tender bruise, but Makoa isn’t like Nathan. Okay?” She smiled. “He likes you. And I know you like him, too.”
I sighed, trying to ignore the way my stomach twisted in a knot at the truth of her accusation. “It doesn’t matter. It’s good that it happened the way it did. I was getting caught up in the fantasy and I forgot reality.” I shook my head, cementing it. “Three-date rule, Gemma. Our time is up.”
Gemma glared at me, and then she swiped my water bottle off the counter, popped open the lid, and held it over my head.
“What the—”
“You’ve got approximately ten seconds to stop being stupid before I pour this water all over your head.”
“You wouldn’t.”
Before she could argue that she very much would, we heard commotion on the other end of the phone. We were muted, but we could still hear Makoa, and he was currently fighting hiccups as he talked to someone.
“I’m toast.” Hiccup. “That’s it. It’s over. I fucked up and I don’t even know what I did.”
“She hasn’t hung up yet. Keep talking. Tell her what you want to tell her,” another voice said.
“Is that Dave?” Gemma asked, looking at me. “I swear, that sounded like Dave.
“Why did I say that? You’re a good time,” Makoa said in a deep voice, mocking himself. There was the distinct sound of a hand slapping a forehead. “What an idiot.”
I bit back a smile as Gemma cocked a brow at me. Then, she tilted the water bottle until a trickle hit my head.
“Hey!” I swatted her away, but she just smacked my hand and held the water bottle even higher out of my reach.
“I am not messing around right now, bitch. I will drown your ass.”
I had to laugh at that, because I was having flashbacks to when Gemma was trying to ignore her feelings for Zach when the poor guy was so wrapped up in her he couldn’t see his way out.
My stomach free-fell at the comparison.
“I’m scared,” I admitted, quietly, almost too soft for her to hear.
Gemma’s expression softened, and she lowered the water bottle to the island, wrapping her arms around me in a hug. “I know.”
I leaned into her, heart racing in warning of what I was considering.
“Just give him a shot,” Gemma said, pulling back to frame my arms. “Okay? For me. Just… talk to him, hear him out, and give him a chance.” She shrugged. “I know you’re getting tired of playing all these games, Belle. And I meant what I said. You don’t have to play this role forever. Maybe… with Makoa… it could be different.”
“Or I could end up an even bigger mess than when Nathan left me.”
“That is a risk,” she agreed, which did nothing to make me feel better. She shrugged. “But I’ll be here to pick you up off the floor, if that’s the case. And isn’t he worth it, to take that chance and find out?”
I chewed my lip, hating the way the butterflies in my stomach took flight at the thought of seeing him again.
Could Gemma be right?
Was I an absolute idiot to think that maybe, with Makoa, I could be more than just the fun girl?
Before I could overthink it, I grabbed my phone, hitting the unmute button. “Where are you?”
“Oh shit, she didn’t hang up!” I heard Makoa say, then there was a rustling of the phone before his voice came in clearer. “You didn’t hang up.”
I chuckled. “I didn’t.”
“That’s good. I like when you don’t hang up.” Hiccup.
“Where are you?” I asked on a laugh.
“I’m at the dirty trivia bar. Except there’s no trivia tonight. But good ol’ Dave here is keeping me liberated.” A pause. “Er, libated.” Another pause. “That’s a funny word. Liiii-bay-ted.”
Gemma giggled. “Sounds like Dave, alright.”
I was smiling, too, and I knew it was less from how adorable Makoa was when he was tipsy, and more from the fact that my entire body was afloat with the hope and possibility I’d been suffocating all week.
Now that they could finally breathe again, they were all I had.
“Don’t move,” I said to Makoa.
Then, I hung up and grabbed my keys before I could wise up and change my mind.
Makoa
My head was swimming when Belle walked through the door of Doc’s, but as soon as she did, everything cleared.
She stood in the doorway, her unreadable eyes scanning the crowd that had formed as it got later. Her auburn hair was swept