Page 71 of Body Shot

“Afraid,” I finish quietly. “I was watching him flirt with some girls at the bar . . . I mean, not really flirting, it’s just the way he is, you know? He’s gorgeous and girls all swarm around him and he smiles at them . . . and Marco said something like, ‘Don’t worry, he looks at everyone that way, it doesn’t mean anything,’ and I realized, yeah, that’s true, and when he looks atmeit doesn’t mean anything either. And that kind of depressed me.”

“Oh.” Carrie’s face softens.

“But then he somehow convinced me to go home with him anyway, and really it’s just about having fun, right?”

“Um . . . right?”

“You sound doubtful.”

“Only because you do. Are you falling for him, Hayden?”

Am I?“No. I can’t. I don’t have time for a boyfriend. My aunt and uncle are still struggling, and this week at work we had a major setback with one of the vaccines we’re working on. And Beck’s very open about the fact that he’s not into getting serious either.”

“But you did go home with him?”

“Yes.” I sigh. “And again, it was amazing. He invited me to go skydiving with him today.”

Carrie’s mouth falls open. “Skydiving?”

“Yep.” I wrinkle my nose. “That was a big nope.”

“You’re afraid?”

“Hell no! It’s just that I’d already made plans with you.”

Carrie snorts. “Chicken.”

“Totally.” I grin. “No way in hell I’m jumping out of a plane. Even Beck admitted that was a little too much. He’s trying to teach me to be adventurous.”

“I like this man.”

“He’s crazy. I’ll never go skydiving. He does insane things like rock climbing and scuba diving and mountain biking.”

“Paddleboarding must have been pretty tame for him,” Carrie says dryly.

“True.” I pause. “That was probably for me.”

“Hmm. I like him even more for that.”

Something flutters in my belly. “Yeah, see, that’s the problem. I like him too.”

“Nothing wrong with that.”

“He’s not part of my plan, Carrie.” My voice comes out sounding a little desperate. “I have to stick to my plan. Aunt Gina falling and breaking her hip wasn’t part of my plan either. Everything is getting messed up.”

“You know it’s not up to you to do everything for your aunt and uncle.”

“They need help right now. I can’t blow them off because I want to risk my life skydiving.”

“Relax your foot.” Julia taps my instep, making me aware of the tension tightening my body. I sink back into the chair and Julia digs her thumbs into my sole.

I close my eyes and swallow a moan. “Sweet Jesus, that feels good.”

The massage continues up my calf, working at tight muscles there, too.

“Calm down, Hayden. Just because something happens that you didn’t plan for doesn’t mean your entire life plan is ruined. You can help your aunt and uncle and still have time to go out with Beck. And your work will get done. You can’t cure cancer overnight.”

“I know that,” I mumble. I stare at my feet being wrapped in a towel. I do know that. I know my goals are very long-term. I’ve had to learn patience. “But life’s not one big party either.”

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