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“Why not?”
Her flat look was almost comedic. If he wasn’t absolutely certain he was the prospective boyfriend, he might have worn a similar expression.
Now that he knew he had everything he could ever want, his positive outlook had returned in full force. Rather than ask Brianne to keep their little meeting a secret, she could continue pushing Katrina to go on that date tomorrow and they would both surprise her.
Katrina continued worrying her lower lip. She shifted her weight from one foot to the other and let out a heavy breath. “I think she’s gonna be mad.”
“Why?”
“Will you stop asking me that? This is Brianne. She isn’t going to be thrilled that we’re…”
“That we’re what?” He bit back a smile when she glared at him.
“I don’t know what we’re doing.”
“You don’t?”
Katrina groaned. “Seriously, stop asking questions. She’s gonna feel like the third wheel if we start seeing each other. On top of that, whoever she just found for me is going to expect to go on a date and Brianne will be furious if I make her look bad and cancel.” She lifted her gaze to his. “What do we do?”
Simon took both of her hands in his and offered her the most reassuring smile he could muster. “I think you see what’s in your voicemail. Then I think you go on that date?—”
“Absolutely not!”
“Hear me out.” He caressed her face once more, absolutely loving how nice it was to not need an excuse to do just that. “If you go out with the guy, then you can say you’re not interested without being rude. Brianne won’t feel like you disregarded the hard work she put into finding him. And you can figure out if this is what you really want.”
There was a fleeting moment when he could have sworn he saw some pain in her expression. But just as quickly as it had appeared, it was gone.
“You want me to go on a date with another guy… someone who isn’t you?” The disbelief in her voice was only outshined by the ache just beneath the surface.
He cringed at the implication of her words. “Well, no. It was utter torture to watch you go out with Jackson—to see you with him at the bonfire.”
“Then why on earth are you asking me to?—”
Simon squeezed both of her hands once more. “Brianne is your friend. She might know you better than you think. Of course, if you don’t want to go, then don’t. I’m not going to make you do anything you don’t want to.” He shrugged. “But admit it. You’re a little curious.”
He’d expected to see the truth written on her face, plain as day. He’d figured she’d agree with him. Katrina had always been more than a little curious about most things in her life.
But for the first time in his life, she caught him off-guard. With a tone that was not at all humorous, she said, “No.”
“No?”
“I’m not curious. I don’t need anyone else. I don’t want anyone else.” She moved into him, forcing him to release her hands so she could wrap her arms around him. Her fingers dug into his back, and she rested her cheek against his chest. “I’ve been waiting for you to finally say something. I thought for sure you were hiding your feelings.” There was a pause and then she chuckled. “I was right.”
“Even still…” He pulled away. “Your friendship with Brianne is important, too.”
“Then I’ll tell her that I realized something tonight and I’m not going to need a date after all. Whoever it is?—”
“It’s me.”
Katrina’s mouth snapped shut and her eyes widened. A myriad of emotions flashed behind her eyes. “What?”
“Your date. The guy she wanted to set you up with. It’s me.” So much for keeping it a secret. Oh well. “You know, it would have been nice to be able to show up with a flower and tell you that Brianne was smarter than both of us. But you beingyou… I didn’t want to risk it.”
Finally, she reacted. Katrina gasped and whacked his arm. “You’re such a jerk. You were going to make me stress about how you felt about me going on a date with someone else, weren’t you?” While her tone was accusatory, there was a smile in her eyes. “And then you were going to show up all cocky and everything. I can’t believe you!” She let out a sharp laugh. “You’re so lucky that I’m in a good mood.”
Simon made a show of rubbing his arm, but he wasn’t getting any sympathy. He abandoned that move and chuckled, pulling her close again. “Honestly, I don’t think Brianne would be able to keep it a secret, anyway. How much you wanna bet that she spilled everything in that message she left you?”
Katrina considered his words. “I don’t know. I have a hard time believing she’d be on board with any of this. If I had to guess, I would say that she’s warning me to stay far, far away from you.”
