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“I don’t know.” Her lips purse as she thinks. “I kinda thought he’d be a little more hurt than he was, especially since he’s never really been single. He went from dating Maddie Aldroid when he first moved in, then immediately to you.” She says it like I was just some short blip in his dating life, which I guess I was, but that’s not how I view it. “Then one month after you two broke up, we started dating.”

Yeah, I remember.

“So I’m sure he doesn’t even know what to do with himself. Plus, he left for Cal Poly this morning. I feel bad. It’s a lot of new stuff. Newly single, moving away, starting college. I hope he handles it okay. Or maybe he’ll immediately start dating a girl there that’s more like him. That’s what he really needs. So, in the end, the breakup will be a good thing for him.”

Juliet keeps talking, asking Blair to set her up with an older guy that works at her mom’s grocery store, but I stop listening.

My heart races as I sit back in my chair.

Vinny and Juliet broke up.

Even though he just moved away to college, I can’t stop thinking about how maybe I can finally have another chance with him. Right my wrongs from the past.

Should I text him?

My fingers itch for my phone.

Except, Juliet just broke up with him last night.

I can’t text him today. That’s horrible. Even if she’s the one who ended things. Even if she doesn’t want him anymore. I can’t do that to her. I know from personal experience just how much it hurts.

I’ll give it some time.

A week, maybe.

Or maybe I should wait until he comes home. Christmastime perhaps.

Or even when he graduates.

Because, eventually, Vinny will come back. He’s way too loyal to his mom and little sisters to leave them for good like his dad did.

So, if anything, I just need to make sure I’m here and available when he returns.

I’ve waited this long. I can wait a few more years.

And then, we’ll finally get our timing right.

Present Day

“Oh, my gosh.” Carly walks into Camila’s kitchen, pointing back toward the family room. “Are you seeing our guys? They moved the coffee table and are wrestling. When someone gets pinned, a new guy jumps in.”

“Shane seems to fit right in,” Camila laughs.

We all watch Shane lunge forward, grunting as he tackles Nate to the floor.

“Not Vinny.” Juliet sighs. “Vinny would never wrestle on the floor. He’s too serious for something like that. Look at him.” She folds her arms. “Just sitting on the chair, watching while the other guys have fun.”

“Eh, there’s nothing wrong with watching,” Carly says.

Juliet huffs. “That’s what I keep telling myself.”

Camila’s eyes narrow. “What’s that all about?”

“I just…” Juliet glances over her shoulder, making sure the men are still occupied, then she takes a few steps closer, lowering her voice. “I just wish Vinny was a little more fun, like Nate and Hess.” She gestures to me. “Or even Shane.”

I twist my fingers, feeling a sharpening pain in my chest. My eyes stay on Juliet, because I know Carly and Camila are peeking over at me, gauging my reaction.

“Like at the club on Emma’s birthday,” Juliet says. “He barely danced, and when he did, it was only because I dragged him out there against his will.”