Page 56 of If You Dare

I stiffen. Did Violet tell her about what I’ve done? She should’ve known better than to open her mouth. Or maybe she means the redhead I was basically ignoring while she groped me. “Hurt who?”

“Don’t play dumb with me, boy. Violet’s a sweet girl. Sensitive. And she’s already heartbroken. She doesn’t need you breaking her heart too.”

Jesus Christ. She’s not worried about me literally hurting Violet—she’s worried Violet’s in love with me. She’s worried about something as inconsequential as heartbreak.

I force a smile, even as the charm is slipping away. “No need to worry about that. It’s not like that between us.”

The librarian rolls her eyes again. “Oh, please. I see the way you stare at her. The last time a man stared at me like that, he married me.”

Chapter22

Before

Violet

I don’t realizeI’m on a double date until the four of us are already at the carnival, stars barely visible above the yellow and purple lights and the fully illuminated Ferris wheel.

Ahead of me, Chloe laughs flirtatiously at something Luke says, her head tipping back. At my side, Wes stays quiet, the air between us charged. I bet he didn’t have any idea about Chloe’s surprise double date either.

I loop my arm through hers and pull her away from the guys toward the cotton candy stand. “What happened to ‘don’t date my brother’? Now you’re playing Cupid?”

Chloe rolls her eyes dramatically, pulling out a few crumpled bills for cotton candy as if that’s actually why I brought her over here. “Who did you want me to set you up with instead? Trey?”

My stomach twists. Definitely not Trey.

She reads my expression. “That’s what I thought. You know Wes, and you’re comfortable with him. I figured you wouldn’t betotallymiserable hanging out with him.”

I don’t know how she can think I’m comfortable with Wes. I’m on edge every time I’m around him, palms slick and stomach twisted into knots.

But I guess she’s right on some level. I’m comfortable enough to talk to Wes. I don’t worry over every word that leaves my mouth the way I do with nearly everyone else. I even flirt with Wes, and I’ve never successfully done that with anyone before.

Maybe I’ve become more comfortable with him than I realized.

“But why do we even need to be here? Wouldn’t you rather be alone with Luke?”

“No, I want my best friend with me, silly.” She flashes me her winning smile. “But I didn’t want you to be a third wheel.”

“What can I get you?” the pimply teenager asks from the cotton candy stand.

“A pink and a blue, please,” Chloe tells him.

“I hope you’re not planning on paying for that yourself,” Luke says, stepping up beside Chloe.

I smile. I still don’t know him well enough, but if I had to pick someone whomightbe good enough for Chloe, it would be Luke.

A hand flattens against the small of my back.Wes.

Warmth radiates from him. He’s so handsome with his clean-cut, onyx hair, bright blue eyes, and hockey jacket emblazoned with his number three.

Chloe has no idea the trouble she’s causing. If she wants to keep me and Wes from falling for each other, she’s doing a pretty terrible job of keeping us apart.

His hand on me is at once comforting and arousing. I love when he touches me like he owns me. I long to be his. To belong to him.

To my surprise, Luke pays for Chloe’s cotton candy and Wes pays for mine.

“You don’t have to do that,” I object. This isn’t a real date. We were both tricked into being here.

“Yes, he does,” Chloe corrects, ripping off a chunk of her cotton candy and feeding it to Luke, who opens his mouth with a grin. They’re already so cute together.

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