Page 69 of Ask No Questions

Brandon nodded and moved to stand up. “That’s cool, just let me know.”

I went back to my book, and about fifteen minutes, later my phone rang.

“Hi, Luke.” I tried not to sound too excited, but I was surprised he even called. That was a good sign, right?

“Hey, Aubrey, I’m sorry, but I have to cancel tonight. I had something come up.”

Disappointment flooded through me. “Oh. That’s fine. I guess I’ll see you tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I’ll be there. I promise. Have a good night.”

“You too.”

After hanging up, I stared down at my phone. Why did I feel like this? I knew there was a slim chance he would even call. I didn’t know who the boy was that taught me to surf and showed me a secret shake spot went, but I missed him.

Brandon stuck his head in my room again. “I didn’t mean to eavesdrop, but it sounds like we’re both dateless. Sorry, sis.”

“It’s okay. I didn’t think he would come through anyway.”

“Let’s take ourselves out then. Get dressed, and we’ll go out.”

Were all big brothers that awesome? Probably not. I got up and changed into the outfit the girls dressed me in and put my hair up in another bun. Too bad Talia wasn’t here to do my makeup. I couldn’t find the desire to put any on since I was just going out with Brandon.

Big mistake. Brandon drove us to a restaurant that specialized in wings and had dozens of TVs surrounding the tables, so every possible sport had coverage. Carter was there saving us a seat. I almost died when I saw him. I felt my heart stop beating. I swear.

He waved us over and winked at me as I slid into the bench across from him.

“I heard you got stood up. Sucks.”

I fought the urge to laugh but gave in. Between him and Brandon, I never had the opportunity to be sad.

“It does suck, and it’s super awkward since he’s my formal date tomorrow night.”

“Ouch. There’s no way to play it cool then.”

Brandon hit him in the arm. “It’s not a big deal.”

I nodded and looked around for the waiter. We needed to speed up this meal before it got uncomfortable. Finally, our server caught my eye and walked over. After he took our order and brought out our drinks, I tried to sit back and go unnoticed. I didn’t know how long I could sit across from Carter without saying anything. Was I sweating? I put my hand on my forehead, no fever. I was just losing it because I was sitting within kissing distance of him. Ah! Don’t even think about the word kissing. Panic was taking over. Could this trigger another panic attack? We were about to find out.

How could he sit there talking to Brandon like everything was normal? Obviously, Brandon didn’t know about what happened since Carter wasn't sporting a black eye. How could he keep something like that away from his best friend?

Carter caught my eye and smiled. “Are you okay, Aubrey? We’re not boring you, are we? Sorry, we can stop talking about work.”

My brain was struggling to remember how to speak. Seconds passed. “It’s fine.” Ha! I did it!

Brandon gave me a weird look. Could he read my mind? “You feeling alright?”

“Yup.” Score two for Aubrey.

I was saved when our server brought out the wings, and I pretended to concentrate on my food. There was no eating contest tonight which was disappointing since I could have used the distraction, but thankfully, the sports and wings kept the guys from focusing too much on how weird I was being.

When we were ready to go, I stood and made my way to the door, weaving a path through the customers waiting for their table. I needed to get outside. Fresh air would clear my mind. When I got outside, I turned and collided with Carter’s chest.

He smiled down at me. “Whoa there. You’ve been quiet all night. Is something wrong?”

I looked around for Brandon, making sure he wouldn’t overhear us. Carter noticed and told me he went to the restroom.

“It was just a little surprising to see you here. I thought it was just Brandon and me.”