Dang, he couldn’t even look her in the eye when he let her down. This was bad.
So, so bad.
Hallie blinked several times, fighting the hot tears that threatened behind her eyeballs. She really shouldn’t have done this. Now everything was going to be so awkward. She glanced around at the group of friends she was so involved with. Shewas one of the guys when she was out with them. None of them treated her any differently just because she was a girl. And either no one had noticed she liked Jacob as something more, or they didn’t care.
Well, that was all about to change.
Internally cursing herself, Hallie plastered on the brightest and probably fakest smile she had the strength to muster. “Well, now that’s all out of the way, I have somewhere to be. I just…” She shut her eyes tight and turned away just as the first tear fell. Her voice trembled and she prayed he didn’t hear it. “Have to be somewhere.”Anywhere but here, she amended in her mind.
“Hallie,” Jacob murmured. If she didn’t know any better, she would have thought it sounded like a plea.
But she did know better.
They were friends. And she might have just ruined that. This was killing her.
“It’s fine,” she insisted. “Sammie and I were going to… watch a movie tonight. So I’ll catch you later?”
“Hallie—”
She waved her hand in the air, not bothering to lift the tailgate up before she threw herself behind the wheel and drove out of there like a bomb was about to go off.
The drive to Sagebrush was a complete blur. She managed to get to Sammie and Caleb’s small house before losing her vision to her tears completely. She wasn’t sure how she managed it, but one second she was in her truck crying her eyes out and the next she was on the couch in her cousin’s house seated next to her best friend. They hadn’t spent a great deal of time togetherlately. Sammie was busy with taking care of her kids and Hallie was still interested in staying out late with her friends. But with Wynter, Faith, and Serenity settling down, Hallie wasn’t sure if any of them would be able to keep making time for her.
That dismal thought had her tears falling more freely.
“What’s wrong?” Sammie’s quiet voice yanked her to the present.
“Tell me who hurt you, and I’ll?—”
“Caleb!” Sammie admonished. “You’re not going to do anything but get your cousin something to drink.”
Hallie glanced from Caleb to Sammie and that was when it hit her. She wanted what they had. More than she’d even realized. Her heart had been coaxing her into making the biggest mistake of her life and all because she was selfishly seeking something with someone who didn’t feel the same.
These two were perfect for each other. They’d had their ups and downs especially in the beginning. But they’d made it work because their love ran deeper.
A love she thought Jacob might be capable of sharing with her.
Her insides felt like they were rotting, crumbling, and deteriorating as the stark realization of what she’d said to Jacob came whooshing back. Her face bloomed with what she could imagine was a deep shade of red when she turned to Sammie and whispered, “I told him.”
Sammie had the good sense to look confused. “What?”
“I told Jacob how I felt. I told him that I was interested in dating him and he… he…” Her face crumpled and she shook her head.“I’m such an idiot. This is what everyone warns against when you fall for a friend.” Her words were coming out in gasping sobs and she wasn’t even sure if Sammie could understand what she was saying. “Sure, the recommendation is always about marrying your friend so you have a good foundation. But what happens when that love is one-sided? Then you end up losing everything. That’s what I’ve lost, Sammie, I’ve lost everything.”
“You haven’t lost everything,” Sammie insisted. “You still have your family. And you still have your friends?—”
“But I won’t have him. I lost him, Sammie.”
She didn’t argue that point. They both knew she’d irrevocably changed the dynamic between herself and Jacob. Things would be weird now. How could she show her face with the guys anymore? All he was ever going to do was see the girl who fangirled too hard and fell for him. It might be a boost to his self-esteem, but their friendship? That was in tatters.
“You know what I think you need?” Sammie offered in the next moment. “A makeover.”
Hallie stiffened, her tears drying up. Then she let out a huff of a laugh. “What?”
“A makeover. A change. Something to distract you.”
She leveled her friend with a flat look. “I’mnotgetting bangs.” Her eyes lifted to Sammie’s cute curtain bangs. “No offense.”
Sammie laughed. “None taken. But… maybe we could put some color into that hair of yours? What do you say? Want to be a brunette? Or go darker? Maybe you want to turn into a ginger?”
