“You could go without the pants. I wouldn’t mind.”
She tried to throw a glare at him, but ended up laughing. “Can you help me, please?”
After they were both dressed—her in yesterday’s clothes—she tossed her hair up in a messy bun, and they quickly made their way down to the hotel restaurant. They were already twenty minutes late to breakfast, so when they walked in, it wasn’t any surprise that Brent’s parents and both Travis and Jessica gave them raised eyebrows.
“Good morning, you two,” Rick said. A broad smile graced his face. Jan elbowed him in the side.
“Morning!” Brent said cheerily, as if he was delighted they were all questioning things between them.
Jessica leaned over to Candace as soon as she sat down. “We need to talk later.”
Candace gave her a tight smile.
“Go dish up, you two,” Jan said.
Everyone already had plates in front of them. There was a buffet set up around the perimeter of the room.
“Yeah, go dish up. You two must be starving.” Travis bounced his eyebrows up and down suggestively.
“Jessica, smack Travis’s arm for me,” Jan said.
Jessica turned and slapped Travis on the arm.
Candace’s face flamed as she stood back up with the help of Brent. Then they made their way to the closest table.
“I’ve got your plate.” Brent held a plate in each hand while Candace dished them up.
“They know what happened,” she said, glancing over at Brent.
“Theythinkthey know.”
“But they’re right,” she hissed.
He chuckled. “Oh, come on. Is it so bad?”
“Yes!” The response came out immediately before she could think about it. She looked over at Brent, who was no longer smiling. She sighed. “I didn’t mean it like that. I mean, it’s just weird. This wasn’t something I expected. I didn’t think we’d hook up or ever like each other, for that matter.”
He furrowed his eyebrows. “I’ve always liked you.”
The hole she dug consumed her. “I’m sorry. I’m not making this any better.”
He didn’t say anything as they continued to fill their plates and made their way back to the table. She threw him an apologetic look as he helped her back into her seat. If he noticed, he didn’t acknowledge it.
The breakfast felt tense and longer than anything she ever expected. Everyone around them carried on a conversation, including Brent, but he didn’t look at her. She didn’t engage unless she was spoken to directly, but the fact that he didn’t give her attention struck her as odd. She must have hurt his feelings.
But why did she care if he gave her attention? She shouldn’t. They weren’t a couple. It was just a friendly romping after realizing their past was a miscommunication.
What happens on the mountain stays on the mountain.
But their trip was ending. The roads were supposed to be cleared before the end of the day. Their extended trip would endas soon as that happened. They would pack their bags that night, and go their separate ways tomorrow. She would see Brent at family gatherings that they would inevitably invite her to, but that was it.
But they weren’t friends. Sure, they had a breakthrough during the trip. Sure, they shared things with each other, but it didn’t change anything. They weren’t a couple.
So why did her heart hurt? Why was she so concerned about why he wasn’t giving her attention? She didn’twanthim to give her attention. She didn’twanthim to act like they were a couple.
Right?
She sighed loudly, forgetting that they were still at breakfast. Five heads swiveled in her direction, and she grimaced.
