Page 63 of Sweetheart

"What other Sam?"

She crossed her arms. "You told me there was a different Sam. When I asked about yourcrush, you said it wasn't your friend Sam but someone else. They just happened to have the same name."

I shook my head. "Still can't believe you bought thatone."

"Scarlett!"

"What?"

"I can't believe you lied to me."

"Is it really lying though…if it's so obvious you should've known it was a lie?"

She scoffed, but a small smile played on her lips. "So, just to be clear, there were never two Sam's?"

Piercing blue eyes flashed through my mind, and I couldn't hold back a smile.

"There's only one Sam Bishop," I said.

"Oh, Scar."

When I looked at her, Charlotte was giving me this look, half-concern, half-pity.

"You still like him. Don't you?"

"What? No, I got over that a long time ago. You know how I feel about guysand romance, in general. They're just—"

"—a distraction," she finished. "And yet, you smiled when you thought about your 'fake' boyfriend."

"Must've been a twitch," I said.

She kept staring at me.

"We have a deal, Lotte. It's all about my list and his ex.The relationshipis pretend.Period."

"Hmmm."

I wasn't sure I wanted to know what that sound meant, so I didn't ask.

"And you said you're meeting him later?" she asked.

"Yeah, in about"—I checked my watch and felt a thrill roll through me—"twenty minutes."

"For kissing lessons."

I tried to stay cool, but it was hard. Warmthand sparks filled my heart like fireworks. Inside, I was lit up like the Fourth of July.

"It's no big deal," I said.

"And whose idea were the lessons again?" she asked innocently.

"Don't go there, Lotte."

"I'm just saying, maybe you're not the only with a crush."

I dismissed that idea immediately. "He wants Brisa. That's why he agreed to this in the first place."

My sister met my gaze head on. "And what do you want?"

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