“It definitely is, trust me.” He pulls me into him. “You spoil Emma, I spoil you. The world keeps turning.” I’m warm and comfortable, and everything feels perfectly right as I sigh, leaning my head into his chest. His fingers move through my hair, gently brushing it, before tugging a bit so I look at him. “Come on. Let’s brush our teeth, then head down. You can even share my toothbrush.” I grin, then nod, and we finish getting ready before stepping out of Jesse’s hotel room hand in hand.
“Good morning, lovebirds,” Wren says, and I shriek with a bit of surprised panic. She stands in front of us, hands on her hips, face unreadable. Adam stands beside her, back against the wall, scrolling on his phone. At this point, the man is entirely immune to her quirks.
“Oh, my god, Wren, you scared the shit out of me!”
“Told you it was creepy,” Adam says, but Wren glares at him.
“You used to watch me through my office window. I don’t think you have a leg to stand on.”
He shrugs as if he knows that, and Wren turns back to me.
“We have to talk,” she says, and my stomach drops. Then she turns to Jesse. “Everyone is downstairs for breakfast; we’ll be down in five.”
Jesse stares at her for a moment before he must conclude that there’s no point in arguing. He pulls me into him, giving me a soft kiss and a reassuring look before abandoning me with his sister, who is holding open the door to the hotel room.
With dread, I follow her inside, the door slamming ominously behind us.
“Oh, my god, it smells like sex in here,” Wren says, looking like she might gag.
“It does not, you’re so dramatic.”
“Are you denying you fucked my brother in here?” she asks with a raised eyebrow.
My pulse is pounding, and my throat is tight, but I force the words out before I lose steam.
“Wren, I’m so sorry, I?—”
She lifts a hand and closes her eyes as a mother at her wits’ end might do, and I stop talking.
“If you apologize for being the one to put that smile on my brother’s face for the past two months, I’m actually going to scream.” She steps closer to me, and I stand frozen, unsure and nervous. She stares at me for long moments, and I realize she’s waiting for me to say something, anything. I’m not sure what to say or where to start, so instead, I tell her the only thing I think actually matters in this moment.
“I love him.”
“I’m glad you can finally admit it,” she says pointedly, sitting on the edge of the bed. She must have read the look of utter confusion on my face, because she explained further. “Hallie, you’ve been in love with my brother for years.” I stare blankly, and she shakes her head, as if I’m being hardheaded. “You used to write his name in the margins of all your notebooks.”
“Yeah, but back then I was a kid.”
My best friend shrugs, reaching out to grab my hand, her eyes suddenly going so sincere as I move to sit beside her.
“And then you weren’t.” It’s as simple as that, I guess. And then I wasn’t a kid, and it wasn’t a cute crush, and we suddenly were…everything. “So, when did it happen?”
“When you were in Paris,” I whisper, and she smiles, then gives me an all-knowing look.
“All according to my plan.”
I laugh, rolling my eyes and pushing her shoulder. “You’re so full of shit. You didn’t even know you weregoingto Paris.”
She grins and shrugs.
“I mean, maybe not myplan,but I could hope.” She takes me in, tipping her head in assessment. The thing about Wren is that she can read people better than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s why she’s so great as a teacher and so great at helping everyone. “And last year? In Vermont? After, you two got super weird.”
I sigh, then explain. “We kissed, and then I ran off because I got scared. I avoided him, and he thought it was because I had a thing for Madden, so he let me have that space.”
A look of incredulity crosses her face.
“You andMadden?You’d kill each other if you dated.”
I laugh, loving that everyone but Jesse could see that.
