Page 37

“Who’s that?” Tea interrupted, listening to Rhonda cough out a laugh.

They paused, following Tea’s gaze.

Rhonda tutted. “Ah, Janelle. Wondered when she would turn up. Her grandparents have a cabin on Angel Creek Lake. I think it’s, what, a twenty-minute drive from here?”

Tea turned to the two of them and watched as Steph nodded, her eyes on Tea instead of her wife. Tea’s face flushed at the silent examination—and the words unspoken.

“She certainly looks chummy for a woman who broke his heart six months ago,” Rhonda continued.

“That bad, huh?” Tea whispered.

“Not like he would admit it. Archer is always hiding behind that mask of his. Metaphorically and literally.” She tutted again. “According to Austin, things weren’t nearly as bad as…”

Tea remained silent through her pause, watching the way Rhonda’s cheeks flushed as she reached for her beer.

“Well, you know,” Rhonda muttered.

She looked down at her hands, then up at Steph.

Steph nodded, then cocked her head in Archer’s direction.

She nodded back, then got up from the picnic table and sidled up next to Archer, not allowing herself a moment to second-guess herself. Not when she heard Rhonda mumble “You’re playing with fire, hon” as she walked away, and not when she stepped behind Archer and slipped her hand in his.

His head whipped around, and the look on his face was shock before it smoothed into something relaxed but undeniably confused. He finished his niceties and then she dragged him away, making sure he sat close, keeping a hand on him in case Janelle came back. She hadn’t a clue what his situation was like with Janelle and if she’d made a huge mistake by advancing on him like that, but by the way he relaxed under her touch and his eyes softened with gratitude at her saving him, she had a feeling he didn’t want to give her another chance where he was alone.

Rhonda and Steph left to grab another round, but Tea remained, hand on his leg.

Archer loosened his clasped hands, slipping one underneath the table. He brushed her knuckles delicately with his thumb, and her stomach somersaulted. “You didn’t have to pretend to be my girlfriend, you know.”

“I know.” She liked the way his hand felt on hers, his gentle touch and soft voice. “You looked like you were sinking out there.”

“I was.”

She lifted a brow. “Wow, you actually admitted a feeling to me.”

The corner of his mouth dipped into his cheek, his eyes on their hands. “I have feelings.”

“Not like you allow anyone to see them.”

Archer peered up at her. “Maybe I find it easier that way.”

“And then you sink and drown.”

He removed his hand and didn’t say anything.

Feeling bold, Tea grabbed for it before he could pull away further and squeezed his palm between her two hands, pressing them into the top of his thigh. “Allow me to see them, Arch.”

He sighed, and for those couple breathes, Tea wondered if she’d stepped too far. Then he looked down at their joined hands and relaxed, brushing his thumb against hers. “I’ve missed you.”

The frog hopped back into her throat. “Me too,” she whispered.

“There’s so much I’ve wanted to tell you over the years, but I—” His exhale was deep and long. “I couldn’t get myself to do it, and I’m sorry.”

“You’re not the one who needs to apologize, you know that.”

His eyes were soft as he looked up at her and scanned her face. He opened his mouth, like he was going to actually invite the conversation, then snapped it shut. She decided to push it a little further.

“I’m sorry. About all of it.” She looked away from him. It was too painful to see the expression on his face. The hurt that was all her doing. “I ran and I didn’t talk to you and I let you think that I didn’t care. I lost our friendship that day, and I would do anything to get it back.”