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Sav shrugged. “I don’t know. I dated here and there, but I’ve never really met the right guy, I guess.”
“Hey, I was only teasing.”
“That’s okay. You know, I’ve never really even had a boyfriend. Big shocker, huh? How are they missing out on all thisfantastique.” She gestured up and down at herself, but her smile didn’t quite reach her eyes.
I blew out an incredulous breath. “That’s impossible. How could you have never had a boyfriend?”
She stared at me for a long moment. “There was someone else I liked for a long time. I’d always hoped he’d see me for who I was and want me back, but that never happened.”
I stared back at her, unsure what to say. Suddenly, her confession shifted how I’d seen the interaction all those years ago.
I felt unsteady as if my entire world had just tilted.
Back then, my feelings for her were buried so deep because of my distrust and hurt that I hadn’t seen it for what it was. My fear of letting down my best friend had kept his little sister firmly on a pedestal in my mind.
Untouchable, even though I’d wanted her.
In seconds, I realized how wrong I’d been. Our interactions since we’d reconnected through the Sparks were more and more like the ones we used to have. And I started to wonder how I’d ever thought Sav could have used me. All the signs had been there, for years, that she felt something for me.
I’d been tipsy, but not enough to blame my stupidity on alcohol. I thought back to Katelyn, and I honestly hated her a little more for stealing my trust, for making me so damn paranoid about getting hurt that I’d been mistrusting of Sav of all people.
I still wanted her.
And in rational moments when I wasn’t getting so lost in her eyes that I tried to kiss her, I still thought of her as untouchable, deep down, because of Sean.
I wasn’t sure if that was a good enough reason anymore.
“Sav—”
“Excuse me,” someone said, breaking the spell between us.
“Yes?” Sav answered.
Mrs. Sharp stood a few feet from us. “Sorry to interrupt honey. Could you help me find a book for Beth? She turned twelve this year, and I don’t know what the kids like nowadays. Her mother says she likes to read, but I don’t want to get the wrong thing.”
Sav smiled brightly at her. “You’re in luck because I love middle-grade books. I can help you find something.” She gave me an apologetic look, and I smiled, gesturing for her to help Mrs. Sharp. She lived just a few houses down from Jackson and Sav and made the best fudge cookies in the word. She had always made an extra batch for the neighborhood kids when we were growing up.
I watched Sav walk away, staring at her ass in her skirt and wishing I could hold it in my hands.
I felt a thick knot in my stomach, pulling me toward her like a magnet. I did want our friendship back, and I was feeling lighter every day we got closer.
But I couldn’t pretend that I didn’t want more than that. I knew I couldn’t keep getting away with making up fake reasons to see and be around her.
I needed to sort my shit out soon.
I glanced over my shoulder and noticed Jackson stacking books nearby.
Was he there the whole time? It’d be embarrassing if he heard me gushing over her favorite books and asking her personal dating questions. He didn’t seem like the type to tell Sean, but I wasn’t sure.
He glanced up at me with a little smile that didn’t give away whether he’d heard or not. If he had, he clearly didn’t mind my flirting.
Maybe Sean wouldn’t either?
With a shake of my head, I grabbed my notebook and headed for the stairs, ready to get some actual work done to get ahead for tomorrow.
10
SAV
