“I know, but I’ve always liked him. James is James. And everybody acts like I’m crazy because I have this awful tendency to talk too much. He doesn’t act that way. He makes me feel like I can be myself.”
“Yeah, but—” I shook my head.
How could Poppy chase after someone who was incapable of feeling things like decency, common sense, and respect for others? He was at her home and another girl was following him around right under her nose. Then she looked at me. Maybe he could play mind games with people, but he couldn’t with me. I wouldn’t let him.
“I did what I could. I got the stains out of the carpet, then we vacuumed it. It should look like new.” William’s melodic voice carried over to us.
“Thanks, Will,” we both said.
“I’m gonna check if there are any stragglers,” added Poppy, getting up.
I understood that she wanted to leave me alone. Finally, a breath of fresh air.
“How’s your evening going?” asked William, sitting next to me.
His actions were jarring. First he kissed me, then he chased me out of his house, then he kissed me again, then he left without any explanation, and now he was acting like nothing had happened.
“Eh, my night’s been weird. How about you?” I looked at our reflections in the water.
William was wearing a gray cardigan over a white linen shirt that was a bit wrinkled, and a pair of dark pants. Being the quintessential essence of elegance, I wore my big hoodie and an old pair of jeans.
“June, if your invitation still stands, I think I should consider it now.”
I was a proud person, and I had a bone to pick with him.
“Oh, so we only talk when you decide to, William Cooper?” I wasn’t mad, but I needed to establish boundaries for an equal relationship. “Will, you told me there were things you needed to tell me, and then you kissed me. Is that how you tell people stuff?”
He hinted at a smile. “I’m embarrassed by how I acted with you, June.”
I stiffened as tight as a drum.
“I was pissed off at James and myself, and I took it out on you. You were so close to each other, how could I not misunderstand?”
He jerked his head at James. His white T-shirt was soaked, almost see-through. I immediately averted my gaze from the scene in front of me; he and Becky were making out particularly passionately.
“So you think we were doing something?” I asked.
“No, I mean . . . I thought you—”
“I what? I was furious with him, Will. I still am. He locked me in your basement to get back at me for punching him. And for that matter, he deserved it.”
William shook his head, fixing his hair. “I’m sorry about what he did to you, but most of all for thinking badly about you.”
“Be honest, you thought badly of him.” I egged him on.
“No. James has a moral code, in his own way.”
“I was in the school bathroom with him because I spilled coffee all over his uniform, and he pulled me in with him. Same thing with the nurse’s office. I just gave him one piece of advice.”
“June, I believe you. You don’t have to explain yourself.”
“I don’t want to explain myself. I want you to trust me.”
William held back a smile as if a pleasant thought had just crossed his mind.
“It really was great this morning. Of course, it would’ve been better without an audience.”
I bit my lip, as if I wanted to feel his lips’ softness again. “When you said you’d never had a girlfriend, is that because of James?” I whispered.
