“Truly hoping he’ll just give up at this point and fly his fancy private jet back to wherever he came from.”
Becca stares at me, the flames dancing in her eyes. “He told you last week he’s still home-basing out of Nashville.”
“Did he? Weird. I’m trying to forget every single word I’ve ever said to him.”
“You’ve got to stop,” Becca says. “That man is not giving up. He’s broughtmecoffee every day this week just to see if I’d be willing to take him to you. I almost did. You should be glad I like you.”
“My firstborn child is yours,” I say.
Becca picks up a piece of grass and throws it at me. “Hard pass.”
I stare into the fire, questioning all my life decisions. Becca’s right. I do need to talk to Jaxon. I need to…tell him I was joking? And then had an emergency that caused me to have to leave for a few weeks? It’s not the most solid lie, but it’s…believable. Maybe.
Becca tilts her head to one side, reaching one hand toward the fire. “You want to know what I think?”
“Not really,” I say glumly.
“I think you’re using this as an excuse not to be his friend again. You hung out for a week, and your hatred started to crumble. Which is scary. Because you’re worried he’ll leave again.”
“I’m not afraid of that, I know that. He’s a world-famous musician. He’ll leave.”
“But that doesn’t mean your friendship would have to end.”
“It just feels like the risks outweigh the rewards for me.”
Becca’s eyes light up, the excitement in them highlighted by the fire. “Except if you even the scales…by fake dating him like he suggested.”
“I don’t even want a date,” I lie.
“You’ve complained about twenty times the last two weeks about being the only single Harper sister, and about how many times your mom has suggested you find someone as a date for the wedding.”
“That’s because she’s being relentless about it.”
Becca crosses her legs, leaning back in the large wooden chair. “She just wants you to be happy.”
“Going with Jaxon won’t make me happy.”
“Oh really? Is that why you’re always trying to hold back your smiles when he’s around? Is that why you stare at his ass every time he leaves the office?”
She’s not…wrong. And, fuck, I do want a date for Bryn’s wedding. Even if Jaxon and I know it’s not a long-term thing, my mom wouldn’t. And that alone would likely make the next few weeks better.
“What if he leaves and doesn’t talk to me again?”
“What if he doesn’t?” Becca says with complete confidence. “What if you two become friends again and your life gets just a little brighter.”
“He destroyed me last time. We were best friends, and he just dropped me. No goodbye. No contact. No nothing. Like I was nothing to him.”
Becca nods. “True. But you’ve decided to forgive him for that. Maybe you should try working on the ‘forget’ part of forgive andforget. Maybe this is a sign that it’s time for you to let go of the hurt and move forward.”
She’s right. Maybe Jaxon is back in my life for a reason. Maybe this is a sign from God, or Karma, or some other force out there telling me it’s time to let go of the past…and maybe get a date out of it.
“Fine,” I finally say, and Becca’s smile pulls higher at her victory. “But I’m agreeing tofakedate Jaxon Steele, not Jaxon Reid. And I’mnottaking him up on his other offer.”
“I mean, that seems like the more boring of the two options. But yeah, Jaxon Steele is a much more impressive wedding date, anyway.” She nods at my phone resting on the arm of my chair. “Text him now.”
I stare down at my phone, contemplating what I’m going to say.
“Do it,” Becca goads me. “You know you want to.”
