So I swallow the words, bury them deep, and pretend I never even thought them in the first place.
“So,” she says when I open the door, “you wanted to talk?”
“Yeah, I?—”
“Well, if it isn’t the lovebirds!” Ethan calls from the couch, completely misreading the situation. “You two are getting good at this whole couple thing. Very convincing.”
“Ethan.” I warn, but he’s already pausing his game, grinning like he’s discovered buried treasure.
“No, seriously, the chemistry! The tension! Though speaking of tension...” He checks his phone with exaggerated casualness. “Might want to figure out exactly what story you’re telling before Troy gets back. You know, in about 72 hours.”
The color drains from Tara’s face. “What?”
“Yeah, he’s coming to surprise you for your birthday,” Ethan says, then freezes. “Which I probably shouldn’t have mentioned, but considering you two need to get your story straight...”
“It’s your birthday in three days?”
I knew it was sometime in the summer, but I didn’t know when. Tara won’t look at me, suddenly very interested in a loose thread on her sleeve. Her shoulders curl inward slightly, making her seem smaller than usual.
“It’s not a big deal,” she mutters.
“Not a big deal?” Ethan snorts. “Troy’s flying back from Camp Pinehaven. And Alex is planning this wholesurprise thing, and Freddie’s—” He catches himself. “Well, other stuff I probably shouldn’t mention.”
My head snaps to Tara.
Her birthday? Why didn’t she tell me? This is another reminder that whatever I thought was happening between us clearly isn’t what I imagined.
“How did I not know this?”
“You never asked.” She shrugs, but there's something defeated in her posture. “Besides, we're just pretending, right? You don't need to know everything about me.”
The words slice right through me. Before I can respond, Ethan makes an exaggerated stretching motion. “Well, this is super awkward. I’m gonna go... anywhere else. But maybe sort out whatever’s going on here before Troy shows up? Because this”—he gestures between us—“is giving off less ‘happy couple’ vibes and more ‘murder-suicide’ energy.”
Once he’s gone, the silence falls.
Silence with anybody else, I can handle. With Tara? It’s unnatural.
“Food poisoning?” I give in.
“What?”
“At the dinner. That’s what you’re going with?”
She crosses her arms. “It’s believable.”
“Right. Must have been something you ate before you even arrived.” I can’t keep the edge from my voice. “You know what’s not believable? Leaving me alone with my entire family without any real explanation.”
“I didn't realize you needed me there so badly,” she mutters. “I thought you Spencers were good at handling things on your own. Especially with the right kind of company.”
“Is that what this is about? My family?”
She finally meets my eyes, and there’s something raw there that makes me want to hold her. “We should focus on what we’re telling Troy.”
I pin my arms to my sides.
“Tara—”
“3 days, Alfie. We need a plan.”
