AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Fuck.” I sigh heavily. This is what I was afraid of.
“Oh, shit. Did you just swear? It must be really bad.” Jonas chuckles.
“Sometimes I swear,” I grumble, shutting some of the lights off in the building. “Are you coming or not?”
“Yes.” He chuckles. “I’m already in my car.”
We hang up and I finish closing the place down before going outside to wait for Jonas.
He pulls up five minutes later, parks the car and gets out, jogging over to me. “What are you doing?” I ask as he scoops me up in his arms, giving me a big hug.
“I’ve missed you,” he murmurs against the side of my head. “And, it sounds like you could use a best friend hug.”
I grin against his shoulders and drop my skate bag so I can wrap my arm around his waist. “Thanks,” I sigh, settling into the hug. “I’ve missed you too. I’m sorry we haven't hung out much the past week.”
“It’s okay,” he says, pulling back from the hug. “You're working on your crush with Bishop, and I’m making progress with his sister.”
My eyes widen. “W-what? I don’t have a crush on Bishop.”
Jonas barks out a laugh. “Yeah, okay, babe.” He pats me on the head, giving me a sympathetic look and bends over, grabbing my bag.
“I don’t!” I insist as I follow him to the car.
He opens up his back door, tosses my bag in, and then opens the passenger door for me.
He gives me a look and tilts his head to the side.
I glare at him as I slide into the car. He closes the door behind me and walks around to his side.
“Okay, maybe I do,” I mutter as we pull away from the rink. “Is it bad that I do? Even though I’m still hung up on Toby?”
“It’s okay to like more than one person.”
“I know that, but did it have to be my stepbrother and my best friend?” I groan, rubbing at my face. “I feel like I’m coming between them. I can see it, too. It’s only been a month since school started and already I see a rift between them. And it all started when I came back into the picture.”
“Don’t.” He shakes his head. “You are not to blame. I’m not sure what's going on between them exactly, but I have noticed Toby has been changing. He’s always in a shitty mood and he snaps at people if they look at him wrong. He’s a fucking goalie, but he’s been getting into fights with his own teammates. Your dad looks ready to kick his ass, too.”
My gut twists and my eyes fill with tears. It’s hard to stay mad at Toby when my heart aches for him in more than one way. There’s more going on with him, and maybe instead of pushing him away, I should try being there for him, to help him through whatever it is that’s causing him so much stress.
I would hate myself if I found out there’s something bigger going on with him and I abandoned him.
“Why does everything have to be so fucked up?” I sigh, leaning my head against the window.
“So, about that crush on Bishop.” Jonas chuckles.
I close my eyes and smile. “I like him. A lot. He makes me laugh, smile, and feel so damn good about myself. He goes out of his way to bring me my favorite coffee every day. He makes sure to text me good morning and goodnight, but he also messages me all damn day.” I open my eyes and look over at Jonas. “And tonight... we kissed.”
His eyes widen, and he huffs out a surprised laugh. “Well, shit. How was it?”
My nose scrunches and there’s a brief pause. “Why isn’t this weird?”
“Why isn’t what weird?” he asks, brows furrowing.
“Me and you, exes, talking about me kissing a different guy.”
He chuckles. “Because we’re best friends, Lilly, and always will be. Now, stop avoiding the question and spill like I’m Bee, because we both know you won’t be gushing about this with her.”
Guilt hits me. I know Bee wouldn’t hate me if I ended up dating her brother; I think she would be happy because her brother has had shitty taste in women in the past. But I feel bad because I haven’t told her about my feelings for Bishop yet.
