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“No.” She shakes her head, uncertainty written across her face. “I can’t do that, right? I won’t.”
I snicker at her losing her composure over a boy. I remember twenty-three, being so twisted about a boy that you begin to doubt everything. As a big sister I look forward to offering advice to her in this area, that is right after I figure it out myself.
“Let’s just keep it to the three of us. I want to get to know the man who has finally won over my sister,” Adrienne says with a finality that lets me know that the battle of Lucas is retired for another day.
“I can’t wait,” Hunter says as I tug on his arm again. “Pleasure meeting you, Adrienne. See you tomorrow.”
Rather than wave, Adrienne rushes toward us, wrapping her arms around Hunter again. She buries her head into his chest, squeezing him tight. Pushing back, she tilts her head up to look him in the eye. “Take good care of my sis. She’s kinda special but I’m sure you know that already.”
My throat catches and I feel like a fraud. Our little short-term arrangement is going to have long-term consequences.
“More special than I think she even realizes.” Hunter’s words force my feet toward the exit. I can no longer process what it is happening. Our intent coming here was to see if our little game would hold up under the scrutiny of someone that knows me. It did. It worked too damn well. I hadn’t fully thought out this plan, my vision blurred with the short-term goal of wiping that smug look off Palmer’s face. An impulsive plan hatched in emotion and not thought through, the opposite of how I’ve led my entire life.
The blazing sun greets me as I step onto the sidewalk. The comfort of the air-conditioned shop wiped away in seconds by the warm wave of desert heat. I plant my feet and refuse to shield my eyes, the discomfort well deserved.
I don’t turn when I hear the chime of the door when Hunter steps out. I sense his presence as his words reach me before he does, “That went extremely well.”
I bite my lip and turn to him. He must read the expression on my face as his smile melts away quicker than a dropped scoop of ice cream in this heat. “What’s wrong?”
Emotions may drive my words, but they come from a place of logic. A quickly revised plan. “Hunter. We have to break up.”
