I nod once.
“Fuck, you have to text her back. She is hot.”
“Sounds like you might have something for her,” I state suspiciously.
Finn scoffs. “She’s Ivy’s best friend, man. That would be fucking weird.”
Right. Of course. Just like how Ivy and I would probably be weird, but the damage has already been done.
He settles back into the sofa. “You should text her back.”
My eyes are glued to my phone, gazing over the words again. I mean, yeah, she’s cute, but something inside me isn’t pushing to reply.
Any guy would jump at the chance of going out with her given her confidence, but I’m not interested. I only gave her mynumber because I didn’t want to seem rude. She’s a nice girl, but I like a little more chase.
I lock my phone without replying and focus on the football instead.
CHAPTER 11
IVY THOMPSON
“Come on, Daisy,” I huff as I chuck a pillow at her across the living room. “These job applications aren’t going to write themselves.”
She rolls her eyes, long lashes fluttering against her cheek. She glances away from her phone and exhales a low grunt. I mean, I don’t want to be helping her with her gap year job applications either, but I’m being a good friend because I know she won’t do them herself.
“Iv,” she grumbles with a frown. “Why hasn’t JJ messaged me back?”
Now she has my attention.
I open my mouth, and it turns bone dry. “You texted him?”
Daisy nods and shuffles closer to me on the sofa. “Yeah, after the party. He gave me his number and I dropped him a text the day after, but he still hasn’t replied. It’s been days, Iv.Days.”
My heart pangs for her because I know she struggles to take rejection, mainly because she’s rarely rejected, and when it happens, it hurts her a thousand times harder.
I have no right to dictate who she can speak to. I know I can’t be with JJ, so I can’t gatekeep him. For all I know, they mightwork out and end up happily ever after, married with two kids in their semi-detached house in the city.
God. What am I even thinking?
“Maybe he’s busy, or he hasn’t been on his phone,” I say with as much optimism as I can give. “I don’t know.”
“It’s been four days. Ugh.” She stares down at her phone screen and blows out a morbid sigh. “Where is he today? Is he in?”
I shake my head. “Went out with Finn earlier.”
“Do you think he doesn’t like me?”
“Dais, I have no idea. You met him once. Maybe he’s trying to settle first. Let’s focus on these job applications. I said I’d help you. Not gossip.”
She narrows her eyes at me, and I look back to the laptop, praying she hasn’t seen through my sudden defensiveness. But when she moves to sit next to me, I release a silent sigh of relief.
“Fine,” she grumbles. “But only because I really need a job so I can save up and go travelling after university.”
“Exactly.” I point at her. “So put your phone away.”
For thirty minutes, we scroll through potential jobs and highlight pages for her to come back to when she’s ready to apply.
The front door opens, and I already know who it is without looking, but Daisy glances over my shoulder, her eyes lighting up like fireworks.
