Magnolia Kasper agreed to date me for the better part of the next year.
Me. A guy who doesn’t date anyone for more than a week or two at a time. Her. A woman who hates my guts. Us. Like night and day.
Oil and water.
For better or worse.
6
Conditions
Noli
Istep out of the shower to the sound of my phone blowing up on the bathroom counter. I dry my hands on the towel and reach for it. I’ve got a bunch of texts from my sisters, and from the looks of it, they’ve seen the photo of Collin and me from the night before. I grit my teeth and read through the texts.
Poppy:Um, Noli, you wanna tell us why you’re cuddled up with Mack’s best friend on the front page of the paper?
Rose:Wait. WUT?
Rose:I didn’t know there was such a thing as the front page of the paper anymore…
Poppy:Look online, Rosie. Collin and Noli look like two lovebirds out for an evening stroll.
Poppy:I’m waiting for an explanation, Noli.
Rose:Just pulled up the article. Something fishy is going on. Spill, Noli.
I sigh, weighing my options. I could come clean with my sisters. Tell them I agreed to fake date Collin. But that would require me answering a whole bunch of follow-up questions. Ones that I really don’t want to deal with right now, starting with,why?and ending with,are you crazy?
Since Collin and I haven’t talked about how we want to officially handle this, I need to play it cool. I keep my response breezy.
Noli:Jeez, guys. Can’t a girl shower in peace?
Their responses are immediate and come in at the same time.
Rose:Not until you explain yourself.
Poppy:Don’t deflect. We demand answers.
I bite my lip, trying to decide on the best way to respond.
Noli:Fine. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but Collin and I are seeing each other.
Again, their responses are in-sync.
Poppy:No way.
Rose:Bull.
My shoulders creep up to my ears. Sure, it’s a fake relationship and all, but shouldn’t my sisters be supportive?
Noli:Wow. Thanks, guys. Really feeling the love….
Poppy:You hate him, Noli. What’s going on?
I grimace. I don’t like lying to my sisters. We’ve made it through the tough hand life dealt us, with a dead mom and a dead-beat dad, by clinging to each other. They’re my best friends, but I can’t let them in on what I’m doing. That would mean telling them about Nelson’s letters, and they would go into full-blown overprotective mode. I’m sick of being coddled, and I can handle this myself. Iamhandling it.
Noli:I don’t hate him.
