“Flowers don’t mean he’s dating someone. He could—”
“Pink roses.”
“Oh.”
Oh, exactly.
“So ask him.”
Was she out of her mind? “I can’t ask him! He’ll know that I snooped on his receipt, and he’ll think I’m jealous.”
“Areyou jealous?”
Yes. “No.”
Callie chuckled. She obviously wasn’t taking this seriously. “Okay, how did you find the receipt?”
“It was sitting on the kitchen island this morning.” Mocking me.
“Interesting.”
“What’s interesting?”
“Well, it’s just a very obvious place to leave it. Maybe hewantedyou to see?”
“Why would he want me to see that he bought someone flowers?”
“Maybe he wanted you to be jealous.”
She snorted. The sound was so unladylike that it was lucky only Callie heard. Not that she would care if a certain six-foot-four hunk of gorgeous heard. “He didn’t. We’re friends.”
“You keep saying that.”
“We are. We’ve gotten into this really good routine where he cooks and tells me I’m welcome to his food. Sometimes I throw his laundry in with mine. We even make each other coffee when the other’s up.”
That all screamed friends…right? Exactly how she wanted it…how sheneededit.
There was a small pause before Callie’s voice softened. “Would it be so bad if—”
“No.” Aspen shook her head. “I mean, no, I can’t date him if that’s what you were about to suggest. I can’t date anyone. I need a break from…that.”
“That” being men. Or trusting men on a romantic level. After Dylan, she wasn’t sure she’d ever trust another man again.
His name made a shudder course down her spine. Once upon a time, she’d thoughthewas a good guy. Sweet. Charming. But it just showed, you never really knew a person unless they wanted you to know them. Unless theychoseto show you all their sides.
It was a lesson she’d learned the hard way.
She forced her nails out of her palm and her breathing to even out.
“Aspen.”
Oh no, Callie was using her soft, hard-talk-for-her-best-friend voice.
“You’ve moved away from Dylan now. He’s your past, and the next guy you date will be nothing like him.”
It wasn’t just about the other guy though. It was about her. About her readiness to jump into another relationship. About her new inability to trust her own judgment. About how far she’d deviated from the person she’d been before Dylan.
She sucked in a sharp breath. “I know you believe that. You’re with your soul mate.”
