“Cassie,” I say, stopping in the middle of an aisle full of random cereals I’ve never heard of before.
She takes a few steps forward and leans on the grocery cart, forcing me to look at her. “Just admit you like her.”
We stare at each other, each daring the other to break eye contact. And then it finally occurs to me. I don’t care. Tomorrow, Cassie will go back home, and I’ll probably never see her again. If anyone has to know, I guess it can be her.
“I love her,” I say, the words so true that I’m embarrassed it’s the first time I’ve said them.
Cassie smiles. “There. Now just tell her that.”
I already regret telling Cassie. “It’s not that simple. We’ve known each other our whole lives. She doesn’t see me that way.”
“But what if she did?” Cassie counters.
I shake my head. “She doesn’t.”
Cassie looks at me like she thinks I’m crazy. “Why did you agree to go out with me if you had feelings for Harper?”
I know the answer to the question, but I don’t want to admit it out loud.
Cassie seems to sense that. “Go ahead. Can’t do worse than my ex.”
“I went out with you so I could get over her.”
Cassie looks like she was hoping I would say that. “Did itever occur to you that Harper went out with that other guy for the same reason?”
I consider it.
“Have you ever even made a move?” she asks.
This time I laugh. “Like kiss her? No, of course not. Not unless I knew she wanted the same.” The almost-kiss on the beach won’t be happening again.
“If you wait around for Harper to ask you to kiss her, then you’ll die alone. And let me tell you, it’s not always a romantic move toaskto kiss someone. You gotta just... read the signals and make the move.”
I stare at her, skeptical. “And what are those signals?”
She rolls her eyes. “You’ve dated before, right? I wasn’t your first date?”
“Don’t you depend on me to pay for your groceries?” I say, getting more annoyed.
“Sorry,” she says quickly. “But you know what I mean. If you lean in, does she lean in? If you touch her hair, does she cringe away? If you put your hand on her back, does she lean into you or away from you? If you kiss her, does she kiss back?”
“Cassie, let’s just drop it.”
“Why? You clearly love her. Either you tell her, or I will.”
I stop walking. Would she be bold enough to walk up to Harper and tell her how I feel? Would Harper believe her? And if she did and Harper didn’t feel the same way, what would that mean for our friendship?
“Don’t you dare.”
Cassie rolls her eyes. “Calm down. It’s better if you tell her yourself. Though a kiss would communicate the same thing.”She gives me a wink, and I’ve just about lost my patience.
Chapter 30
Harper
Ican’t decide if I’m more angry or hurt that Luke went grocery shopping with Cassie. Though after confronting him about the text, it’s nice to have a little privacy to wipe my memory of what happened.
Once they drive off together, I find the nearest pillow and scream into it until the screaming turns into a sob. At some point, I shift from crying about how he said his “feelings” for me were a joke to crying over the fact that he’s spending time with Cassie again.
