“But I am sorry,” I said. “I snapped at you guys without giving you a chance to—”
“No.” The word came out firm. “We’re the ones who should be apologizing. We shouldn’t have kept something this big from you.”
“We had every intention of telling you,” Boomer added. “It’s just… We didn’t know…” His voice trailed off, and he pushed hishair back. “There was no good way. We were going to say something yesterday when we got to your house, but then you showed us the letters, and it didn’t feel like the right time.”
I stared up at the house’s decorative red trim as I processed his explanation. “I get it. I mean, I wish you hadn’t been so afraid to tell me, because I really am happy for you.”
“You weren’t this morning,” Boomer pointed out.
“Yeah, well—it was a shock.”
“For us too. Both our relationship and…um, you catching us.”
Our relationship.As in the two of them dating. This would take some getting used to. “So…” I said slowly. “How did it happen?”
Boomer shrugged lazily. “Dunno. It just did.”
Asha frowned at his response. “Felicity, don’t take this the wrong way, but between studying, working at the diner, and all the volunteer hours…you haven’t had much time to hang out. Do you remember the last time we did Monday movie night, all three of us?”
I flinched. “Earlier this month?”
“Not since May.”
God. Had it really been that long?
“I’m a shitty friend,” I said, hanging my head.
“No, no!” Asha exclaimed. “We understand, Fel. Really, we do. Getting into Stanford is your top priority right now, and while you being busy all the time majorly sucks, Boomer and I started hanging out solo, and…I don’t know, things just happened.”
“How long?” My voice was thin with apprehension. I wasn’t entirely sure I wanted to hear the answer.
It was Asha’s turn to flinch. “Since June.”
I blinked at the two of them. “You guys have been dating fortwo months?”
“Technically, we didn’t start dating until a few weeks ago. Fourteen days to be exact,” she said in a rush. “Before that we were casually making out and stuff.”
I held up a hand. “Okay, stop.” I didn’t need to hear about the two of them making out andstuff. “Too much information.”
We all stared at one another until a sheepish grin tugged at Boomer’s lips. He laughed, and then, without any volition on my part, I was laughing too. Like a thawing lake, the tension separating us cracked and dissolved. Asha got up from her spot on the steps and pulled me into a hug.
“Are you sure we’re good?” she whispered. “I don’t want this to ruin anything between us.”
I gave her a tight squeeze before pulling back. “Of course, Asha. I could never stay mad at you dorks forever.” She grinned in response, and I quickly added, “But maybe keep the kissing on the DL until I’m used to everything.”
Normally Asha dished about whomever she was dating, but I wasn’t sure I could handle details about Boomer…
“But I’ve been dying to talk to you.” She lowered her voice so he couldn’t hear us. “He does this thing with his tongue that—”
“La-la-la-la-la!” I sang, plugging my ears to block out the rest of her sentence. “Scratch that. I don’teverneed to know about the kissing.”
Chapter 12
Twenty minutes later, after thanking Kelsey for her hospitality and her help, we were on the road again. According to my phone’s GPS, it was going to take us twelve and a half hours to reach the forwarding address Rose had left behind. The boys decided to drive in shifts, and Alec took the first leg. Although the scenery was beautiful, the initial stretch of the trip was uneventful. Asha and Boomer were watching movies again. Meanwhile, I passed the time by poring over my ACT prep book.
Miles stretched on.
The boys traded places. And traded places again.
