Slowly, he moves closer, and my eyes close.
My stomach lets out the loudest rumble, startling me. A blush steals up my face.
“You're hungry. I’m sorry I took you away from your cupcake.”
I’m not. I was before, but my belly feels too fluttery right now to eat. “It’s nothing. Let’s get your hands taken care of.”
Boyfriend Trouble
Fiona
“I thought he’d never leave.” Hope watches as her father walks across the street with Dash in his arms. “Dad is so overprotective.”
What I wouldn’t give to have a father who cared enough to protect me. “He loves you.”
Hope sighs. “I know. It’s just exhausting. Especially when I want to have a private conversation.” She puts down the rag that she was using to wipe off the tables and stares at me.
Ruh roh. I pull out a chair and nod for her to join me. “What’s on your mind?”
“Canyon.”
Huh? “My boyfriend?” I almost slipped up and said fake boyfriend. That wouldn’t have been good.
“Yeah. How long have you known him?” Hope is as blunt as her father.
This conversation is going to get me in trouble. “Since we were teenagers. Canyon grew up on Willow Street.”
“You two only started dating recently, though?”
Why is she being this nosy? “Yes?”
“How did you know?”
Huh? “Know what?”
“That you love Canyon?”
Did she guess that we aren’t a real couple? She can’t know. Canyon wouldn’t tell. “That’s a very personal question.”
Hope tips her head and stares at me for a very long time.
She reminds me so much of her father right now.
“I didn’t mean it that way. People in love usually brag about being in love. But also, I asked because…” She stares down at the table. “…I’m in love.”
Um what? That took an unexpected turn. Though I really should have expected it. All teenage girls think about is falling in love. Well, not all of them, but most of them at least.
Max is going to hate this. No…he’s going to get positively homicidal. “Are you sure about this?”
“I’ve been sure since I knew the difference between boys and girls. We are meant to be together.”
The certainty in her voice makes me want to believe it too. But very, very rarely does a teenage romance really work. “Then why did you ask me how I knew?”
“Because I need to know if he loves me.”
Oh. Oh, this isn’t good. Generally, boys aren’t good at hiding their emotions. “It’s really easy to tell if they like you. They spend time with you. They get to know about you.” How many times have I had this conversation over the years? And how many more times will I have it? Love is always on kids’ minds. “What’s important—”
“I’ve heard all this. Just like I’ve had the birds and the bees talk over and over again since I was like eight. Everyone seems to think I’m a child. How do you know if a man loves you? The enduring way. The passionate way that lasts forever when you’ve been friends for your entire life? Where they’ll die for each other? Like in the books.”
