Page 47 of Fall Fake-Out

Not like the woman who just grabbed my face in front of her family to prove a point.

She looks hurt, which is a side of her I’ve never really seen before.

My chest feels something with that. Something akin to caring.

That’s new.

Ari tilts her face toward the sky for a second before letting out one short puff of laughter. “Sorry,” she mutters, turning to me with a guilty grin.

“You never have to apologize for kissing me. That’s a firm personal policy of mine.”

“Do many women kiss you unexpectedly, enough that you have to make a personal policy on it?”

“It’s a new policy that only applies to you.”

Another laugh escapes her, this one more real. And then the laugh morphs into a groan as she drags both hands down her face. “I cannot believe I just did that. It was insane.”

“Freaking awesome, is what it was.”

“Because I publicly claimed you in front of my entire family?”

“No.” My eyes go softer without even meaning to. “Because you stood up for yourself…and for me.”

No one has ever done that for me before.

Before this moment, I didn’t even know I liked that sort of thing. Or maybe I only like it because Ari was the one doing it. Hard to know.

With that in the back of my mind, things feel more charged than they should, so I strive for some levity. “And because now I’m basically one step away from being added as your emergency contact.”

That earns me an eye roll.

Good. She’s recovering.

Ari folds her arms tightly across her chest. “My mom just…” She exhales hard. “She makes me so angry sometimes.”

I nod once, because I get it now. Not fully, but enough to notice how differently Barb talks to Landrie. Enough to notice how Ari slowly folds into herself every time she feels criticized. Enough to know she’s heard versions of that same conversation so many times they’ve started sounding true to her, and I hate that for her.

“You know what the worst part is?” she says quietly. “She’s not entirely wrong. My life is a string of bad decisions just waiting to implode.”

I don’t answer immediately because today I’m the bad decision in question, but also because I don’t think Barb is completely wrong either—at least, not about me. I get why her mother is upset. I’m not a solid bet for her daughter.

The truth behind that feels depressing.

Ari looks back toward the house. “So…” Her lips flatten as wind lifts a strand of hair across her cheek. “I guess we’re really doing this fake-dating thing?”

“Feels like we crossed the point of no return when you grabbed my face like a stress ball.”

A reluctant laugh escapes her, but she fights it quickly. “This whole charade was your idea, remember?”

“Yeah, but it’s going to benefit you more than me.”

“How?” Her expression twists. “My reasons are a family disagreement. Yours is jail time.”

“True.” I tilt my head toward her. “But you’re no match for Ashtyn.”

That hits her exactly how I knew it would.

Her eyes narrow instantly. “I’m sorry, what?”