Fable turns to whisper-yell over her shoulder. “My face is red because I’m pissed that you’re here.”
Well, that may be true. She seems to operate in a constant state of pissed at me, but fuck me, I love every second of it. “You missed an epic dance party last night,” I say, following after her. “We were having so much fun that Ethan played the song twice.”
“Cool.” She rounds the corner, pacing quickly down the paint aisle.
“It’s okay. You can owe me a dance next time.”
She whips around fast, and I stop just in time for her finger to land in the center of my chest. “How is it possible you’ve gotten more annoying over the years?” Her hazel eyes spark as she glares up at me.
My heart beats faster. “How is it possible you’ve gotten more stubborn?”
Her eyes burn even brighter, and the air seems to vibrate between us. She’s all sass and freckles and fire, and it’s adorable. Irresistible. Her finger digs into my chest a little farther, and I’m not sure if it’s because I’m leaning closer or she’s pushing me back.
The bell over the door breaks our stare, and she shakes her head, dropping her finger. “Please go back to your own job. I’ve reached the maximum amount of time I can spend with you without losing my mind.”
Well, the flirting didn’t work, but it was the most fun. Noted.
The customer strolls slowly down the aisle, so I lower my voice. “There’s more I have to tell you.”
She crosses her arms. “You have one minute.”
“Um.” I grab a paintbrush, so I have something to hold as I stumble through my next words. Time to go all-in, I guess. “Arthur is selling the practice, and he was originally going tosell it to Garrett. Because I guess he doesn’t trust that I’m going to stick around long enough. He doesn’t think I’m planning to stay.”
“Okay.” Her tone asks,Why are you telling me this?
“Sooo.” I drag out the word, trying to find my angle. Imove closer, giving her my best smile—the one that I know brings out my dimples. They’ve worked to my advantage in the past, and I need all the help I can get for this harebrained idea. “This morning, Mom showed up with the picture, going on and on about how happy she is that you and I are together.”
“Together?!” she shrieks, so loudly that the customer a few feet away lets out a startledyelp.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper to the customer, who scowls at Fable. Then I see Mr. Garfield peering over the top of a shelf. Ireach for Fable’s arm and steer her toward the back corner of the store.
“Me and you?” She motions between us, a disbelieving look on her face.
“I mean, yeah.” I stop us beside the boxes of nails. “You saw it. That picture looks... pretty convincing.” She groans up at the ceiling, and I steal the opportunity to blurt out the rest of it. “So, here’s the thing. Ididn’t correct her and then kind of also let Arthur believe it. Sort of accidentally.”
There’s a silent pause where the earth stands still. Neither of us moves or breathes, and I’d bet Mr. Garfield and the other customer are holding their breaths to listen too.
Then the earth snaps back to life and Fable’s eyes go wide. “Together?!We aren’t evenfriends!”
“Ouch.” I pretend to pull something from my heart and hold it out to her on my open palm. “Here’s your dagger back.”
She stares up at me, unblinking.
“We’re... friends.” I rub my hand over the side of my neck. “Or at least friendly.”
“On what planet?”
Wow. This is going great.
“Okay. Jeez. Iget it.” I rack my brain for a time I might’ve done something friendly. “What about when I brought your favorite wine to your parents’ holiday party?”
She rolls her eyes. “That’s your mom’s favorite too.”
“What about when I drove you to the airport a few years ago?”
“Mia had a flight too. You were basically our Uber driver.”
I tip my head back and forth. “Unpaid, but I guess that’s fair since you both sat in the back seat anyway.” Shifting on my feet, I try, “Oh, what about last summer at your mom’s birthday party. We played Catan with your sisters and Finn? We were friendly then.”
