“And in the press,” Cameron adds with a knowing nod.
I let out a sharp breath. “Are you hard of hearing? It’s just like I told you before, we were faking it.”
They exchange a look, clearly not satisfied with my answer.
“Never mind,” I mutter, pushing my chair back. I haven’t even touched my food, but it doesn’t matter. It’s not like I could eat if I tried.
“She’s home,” Finn says as I’m standing up.
I stop mid-motion. “What?”
“She called Philip this morning,” Finn continues. “Said she wasn’t feeling well. Asked to work from home.”
I fix him in a glare. “See? That wasn’t so hard, was it?”
Finn just shrugs and leans back, eyes still locked on me. “You want to know what I think?” he continues. “You guys were faking it, but then it turned into something real.”
“I second that,” Archie says through a mouth full of food.
Cameron nods. “Me three.”
“You’re all mental,” I snap. “There’s nothing—”
“Cut the bull, Callum,” Finn says, suddenly all business. “She misses work for the first time, and you’ve been the grumpiest I’ve seen you since you joined this club. That’s not a coincidence, lad.”
“And I’ve seen the way you look at one another,” Cameron adds. “It’s pretty obvious.”
I scoff. “Says the guy who’s been on twenty-five dates this year alone. That makes you a relationship expert, does it?”
Cameron just shakes his head, but I can tell I hit a nerve, because he crosses his arms and looks away. Okay, that was a bit of a low blow. Poor bloke. He’s never had a chance with women.
“Lash out allyou want,” Finn says calmly. “We know what we saw. You love her, and she loves you. Now, whatever’s happened between you, you’ve got to fix it.”
I scoff. “Why do you all assume it’smyfault?”
The three of them give me a pointed look, as though I’ve just asked if the sky is blue.
Archie shakes his head. “Just go to her place and apologise.”
I cross my arms. “Why do you even care?”
“We were kind of getting used to Soft Callum,” Finn says, smirking.
“Yeah, we’re not big fans of Grumpy Callum’s return,” Archie adds, suppressing his own grin.
Cameron looks up from his plate. “Definitely not.”
I rake a hand through my hair. “I—never mind. Where’s François?”
Meeting up with François, I tell him something urgent has come up and I have to head home early. He’s not thrilled, but since I played a great match yesterday, he lets me go without asking too many questions.
Truth is, I have no idea what I’ll even say to Millie once I get there.
Sorry? I didn’t mean it? I’m actually crazy about you too?
None of it feels like enough. Not after the way she looked at me—defeated, embarrassed—before bolting out of my house.
A notification pings on my phone as I plug it into the car. A comment about my kilt on the Valentine’s Day post.
