And if I’m honest with myself, I could like him, too. Kind of. In that way you can’t help but love a golden retriever puppy who keeps bringing you the ball even after you’ve thrown it into the lake a dozen times.
I’m not saying Lucas is my destiny, but for the first time in my life, a guy has pursued me relentlessly, no matter how many ways I’ve shut him down, and no matter how many reasons I’ve given him to stop.
I know—it sounds like a red flag that he hasn’t gotten the picture.
It’s not: it’s the greenest flag that’s ever flown. Because I’ve said, “you wouldn’t last ten minutes with me, Fischer,” whenwhat I meant was “prove it,” and “keep dreaming,” when I meant “keep trying.”
But when he’s asked me out and I’ve said “I’m washing my hair,” he’s backed off immediately.
If I say no—a real, honest-to-goodness no—he’ll believe me.
I don’t want to say no.
And now, with this rumor about Jake and me going viral, what if he believes it? What if he stops?
My phone buzzes with a text.
Arch Rival
yo we need to talk about the photos
my agent thinks we should lean into it
I stare at the messages, my stomach twisting, and then glare at the man himself across the table. I knew he was going to do this. I knew the second the photos dropped he was going to ask.
Scottie
Absolutely not.
Arch Rival
Scott come on
Scottie
No. Find another Betty-guard. I’m done.
I pocket my phone and grab the dice. Jake’s staring at me across the table, and I can feel his eyes boring into my skull.
I don’t look up.
He clears his throat loudly.
“My turn,” I say, rolling the dice hard enough that one bounces off the table.
Jake grabs it and returns it to me, dropping it in my hand. He holds my gaze, and his eyes are pleading.
I glare and re-roll the dice.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jake sit, and his expression shift. I risk a look at him and catch a hint of it: guilt. He knows what he’s asking is huge. Maybe he even knows what it could cost me …
But then Dallas says something about longest road, and Jake’s back to being Jake, arranging his cards like nothing matters but the game.
I get another text from him a minute later, before I’ve figured out how to respond.
Arch Rival
i need this Scott
