“Yes, you are, babe.”
Just like the kiss, the word “babe” just comes out of me, unplanned.
“We should totally plan something.” I remember Hudson is still there, having fallen into Hazel’s eyes and dropped off the earth. “Right, Juniper.”
His son smiles and nods in that way kids do when they’re just going with it, trying to keep their parents happy.
Hudson laughs. “Well, hey, I really am so happy for both of you, but I need to get going. Juniper has a birthday party at the community pool, and we need to finish grocery shopping.”
“Thanks.” I give him a smile and another brotherly shake. “I’ll text you some good times for all of us to hang out.”
“Yes, perfect. Do that.” He nods, stepping away with Juniper toward the other end of the store. “Catch you later.”
I hold up a hand in a wave. “Yup!”
After a moment, it’s just Hazel and me again, and I slowly extract myself from her, too many emotions and memories swirling through my head.
Hazel’s cheeks are even redder now, and she’s staring down at the cart full of food.
“I’m sorry about that.” I keep my voice low. “I wanted to make it believable.”
Nodding, Hazel reluctantly drags her stare back up to me. “Totally. I understand. You don’t need to apologize.”
Her smile is tight, but she turns back toward the cart and starts pushing it down another aisle.
“Let’s finish up so that we can find Jade and head home.”
My heart skips when she says home like that, and damn, is it confusing with the rest of me still reeling from kissing her and calling her babe.
Oh, and going over that first night with her in my house again. The one where wedidkiss, for real, and all signs pointed to us doing more.
I don’t say anything, though. We just finish up shopping and snag Jade out of the book section with a new paperback in her hands that she begs me to buy.
It’s a only a single book, so of course, I say yes. And then, before I know it, we’re walking out to the car, ready to drive back to my place and relax.
Unspoken words and dozens of questions linger between Hazel and me as we pack up the truck bed with our stuff and then clamp down the tarp cover so nothing blows away.
I volunteer to return the cart to the corral so I can have a few more moments of fresh air before being trapped in the car with Hazel for the next fifteen minutes.
Trapped is harsh, Easton. It’s not Hazel’s fault you’re a walking pile of live landmines.
I nearly laugh at my own inner monologue, the comparison apt. But instead, my mind fills with questions I don’t have the answers to.
Did I make the right choice by asking Hazel to pretend to be in a relationship with me?
There’s something there between us, and we’ve already blurred that line significantly. What could this do to our tenuous relationship?
Do I evenwantthis to be fake? Or…more?
FIFTEEN
Hazel
A few more days have passed since I moved in with Easton, and the only good thing I can say about a concussion and color-changing black eye is that they’ve helped me to keep my distance.
I promised Olivia I’d be careful, and in so doing, I’d promised myself.
But every moment in Easton’s house makes it so goddamn hard to keep that promise.
