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“Okay.”
I sigh, frustrated, and look toward the back door. “Caroline?” I call out.
Mia’s grinning again. “I saw Andi in here earlier. She’s really cute. Kind of got that rogue, Disney princess vibe to her. I was half expecting songbirds to come fluttering through the window and land on her shoulder, or flowers to sprout in her wake or something. Honestly, I sort of wanted to hate her for a second. But she’s not really easy to hate. Sweet girl. Don’t you agree?” Mia takes another sip, eyes locked on me.
“What’s your goal, here, exactly?”
Mia’s lips curve up around her straw. “You know everybody hated to see you get hurt when things ended with Sarah. I know you don’t talk about it or whatever, but everybody just wants to see you happy again. Maybe I’m inclined to think the best medicine for a broken heart is to start trying to use it again.”
“You shouldn’t use things that are broken.” My voice is more flat and harsh than I intend, but Mia knows by now that Sarah is a touchy subject with me.
“Hearts don’t literally break, though. I mean, what are they having you do for physical therapy on that shoulder of yours?”
I clench my teeth. I can already see the point she’s planning to make. “You know the answer to that.”
“Mhm,” Mia says. “So something on you got hurt and the cure is to…” She fake gasps, lifting manicured nails to her rounded lips. “Carefully use it again?”
“It’s apples to oranges.”
“Unless it isn’t,” she says, shrugging. “Just saying, Jesse. I think hearts don’t get better if you lock them up. They just wither away, shrivel, and get weird. You keep staying in your grumpy little cave and in a few years, girls like Andi aren’t even going to want you to notice them.”
“You’re my sister’s best friend, so I’ve let you talk about this more than I want. But I have my limits. I’m done.”
Mia just smiles and twinkles her fingers in a little wave. “See ya around, Jesse.”
At this particular moment, I can’t help thinking I don’t want to see Mia around. The crueler parts of me want to ask her what was going on at my cabin the other day. I want to see how she likes being put on the spot and questioned about personal things, like whatever was unspoken and thick in the air between her and Nolan. Unlike her, I’m not cruel, so I keep my mouth shut. Instead, I grunt and head into the back, where Caroline falls away from the door she was clearly just pressing her ear against.
She blushes and folds her arms. “Oh, hi. The door was… making a weird sound.”
“Yeah,” I say flatly. “A sound like a conversation you forced your brother into with your best friend, I imagine.”
“Anyway,” Caroline says. “I actually need a favor, now that you’re done farting around out there. We’ve had a lot of early check-ins because of that snow storm they’re predicting. I’m going to need more hot chocolate and milk. Could you run to Liana’s and grab me some?”
She holds out two twenty-dollar bills for me, which I ignore.
“On it,” I say. I pause, though, looking around the back room, where I kind of assumed Andi was. She isn’t in the lobby, out front, or back here. So where is she?
Caroline, who’s annoyingly perceptive, laughs at my moment of hesitation. “Looking for Andi?” she asks, her smile entirely too sly for my liking.
I shrug.
“She’s running an errand for me.”
“Alright,” I say. But what I’m really thinking is “good”. Andi on an errand is an Andi I can avoid. If she was back here, I wouldn’t have put it past her to ask if she could tag along.
As much as part of me would enjoy her company, another part of me feels so damn conflicted around her that I can barely stand it. Maybe if I’m lucky I can make it the whole day without running into her. After that shit with Mia in the lobby, I feel like I need the day off from anything complicated.
15
ANDI
I’m exhausted, but in a good way. I had a snowball fight with some local kids, got in a touch of gossip with their moms, and even managed to ambush Jesse with a snowball attack on the sidewalk when he was heading toward Caroline’s with groceries. He didn’t seem to appreciate the humor in it all, but I had a great time today.
Honestly, I’ve had a great time all week. I know I’m kind of running from what I left behind in New York and still refusing to face it, but for now, that’s alright with me. I can face it eventually, and that’s enough.
Caroline drops me off at the cabin, thanks me for my help, and hands me an envelope with cash in it for my day’s work.
I spot Nolan, Maddox, Liam, and Carter all waiting in Jake’s car in the driveway. Carter rolls down the window and flashes a peace sign toward me. “Sup, Summers. Might want to roll with us tonight. Jake’s just in there grabbing his wallet. That means you’re gonna be stuck with Jesse if you stay in. He’s grumpier than usual. Just a warning.”
