“Speaking of depression and poverty, guess who I saw?” Courtney raised her brows. “Eric Shelby. Remember him, always creeping around wherever we went? Figures he’d worm his way into our Homecoming party.”
Caro’s cheeks flushed. “Heworkshere. And you should be nicer to him.”
“I need a drink,” I announced, to no one in particular, then dug my heels out of the dirt and hurried in the direction of the bar.
My plan was unraveling. No one was reacting the way I’d thought. I hadn’t anticipated Caro ambushing me so quickly, hadn’t expected to be shoved into Courtney and Mint, to feel the claustrophobic pressure of Eric somewhere out there, circling us. I hadn’t in a million years expected my own reaction to seeing Coop again.
It changed everything. What chance did I have of showing everyone the newer, truer me—brilliant, beautiful, successful Jessica—if I had to spend all weekend avoiding him? How would I secure my triumph if, at every moment, I had to focus on pushing memories away, acting like I didn’t care?
I thought I’d already beaten this, the stirring in my blood, the prickling awareness of real, flesh-and-blood Coop, only yards behind me. My body was so alert, and he’d barely glanced at me.
I had to leave. Put as much distance between us as possible. The bartender filled my glass to the brim with wine, somehow sensing my need. I shoved money into his tip jar and fled out of the tent, heading toward the velvety blackness of the trees. Tonight was ruined, but I’d recover tomorrow. All was not lost. The important thing was staying away from—
“Running away?”
I froze midstep.
“I guess your brand hasn’t changed much, either.”
I turned slowly, hoping against hope, but there he stood, tall and lit by the glow from the tent, his face half-shadowed.
I straightened. He watched the movement closely, following the way the straps of my dress pulled over my skin. I cleared my throat. “Coming in swinging. That strategy always worked so well for you.”
Coop grinned. A rare thing.
“Why are you here?” I asked.
“Why wouldn’t I be? I graduated from Duquette, didn’t I? No matter how hard those bastards tried to stop me.”
I tipped my glass back, letting wine slide down my throat.Talking to him alone is a bad idea. Walk away, Jessica.
“Cheers,” he said, lifting his glass.
I tried not to look at his eyes, but I couldn’t help it; his gaze dragged mine up from the ground. Eyes vivid green, dark-lashed, looking at me like he always did—too intense. Goose bumps crawled across my arms. “If I recall, the old Coop thought Homecoming was stupid.”
“Maybe the new Coop is full of school spirit.”The new Coop—of course. It had been ten years since college. A full year since we’d even talked. Like me, he was different now. It wasn’t just that he was a lawyer, which had always seemed so improbable in college. Or that he lived in a new city, wasn’t joined at the hip with Jack and Frankie and Mint. He wasengagednow. He belonged to someone else. To my best friend.
I repeated it to myself, over and over.
“Well,” I said, starting to step around him. “I’m glad you came. If you’ll excuse me.”
He caught my arm. “What… We’re not going to talk about it?”
A chill ran the length of my body. His hand was warm, the fall air cold. He was so close. I opened my mouth to speak, but he shook his head.
“Don’t you dare saytalk about what.”
I didn’t move. “I don’t think there’s anything to say. It’s been a year.”
He clenched his jaw. “Can we have an honest conversation for once in our goddamn lives?”
I laughed—I couldn’t help it. “Having an honest conversation is what ruined things in the first place.”
A light sparked in his eyes. His fingers flexed on my arm. “I thought you said you were drunk at the engagement party.”
A memory: my heart, shattered into pieces. My body, unsure how to function without it. Unable to put one foot in front of the other, swimming in pain. The beautiful brass bar, the bottles of red wine, Caro, resplendent in white. The desperate thought:I have to tell him.
We were crossing into dangerous territory. I could feel the ghosts starting to stir. “I was,” I said carefully. “Very drunk.”
