Page 5 of This Feeling

A bubble of laughter slipped out. “Why? And why would you even think I’d entertain that notion?”

Sean drew in a deep breath and exhaled. “When I told you I wanted to break up, it was because I didn’t see a future for us.”

“Thank you for the reminder, Sean. I, and everyone else who’d been at The Green that day, remember clearly.”

“Harper…I think I’m in love with someone else. And I have been for a while now.”

My eyes widened. “Who?”

“Caroline.”

“Stevens?”

He nodded.

“Wow. I mean, I guess I can see it; your mom and her mother are best friends.”

“That’s not the issue, though.”

“Oookay,” I said slowly. “Care to tell me what is?”

He drew in a deep breath as he pushed a hand through his hair. “As you said, my mother and Viola are best friends.”

I nodded.

“Did you ever get the feeling my mother didn’t…”

“Like me? Yes.”

“The reason is because she and Viola had always hoped thatCrystaland I would end up together. It was all they ever talked about when we were growing up. They had us doingeverythingtogether. Trick-or-treating, holiday photos. They went on vacations with us, and Crystal and I grew up as best friends. You knew that already, though.”

“I did. So, your mother wants you to be with Crystal?”

He nodded.

“But you love…Caroline?”

Once again, he nodded.

“For how long? She went off to college, then was working in Los Angeles.”

His face turned bright red. “She moved back to town about six months ago.”

“Oh, I see.” I leaned my arms on the counter. Now it made sense his break-up and the distance that had grown between us.

Sean nodded. “She was younger than us, and when we were kids, I always thought she was a little nuisance.”

I couldn’t help but smirk. “But she came back to town all grown up?”

He closed his eyes. “All grown up, and perfect in every way.”

I pushed back to a standing position. “Then just start dating her.”

His eyes snapped open. “She doesn’t know how I feel about her. And she’s dating someone.”

My heart sank for Sean, although honestly, I didn’t know why. He didn’t deserve any sympathy from me. “Oh, well…that sucks.”

He let out a defeated-sounding laugh. “Yes, it does. And now, since we’re broken up, my mother has started pushing me toward Crystal again. So much so that she’s planned a weekend in Boston for the two of us. She left a voicemail on my phone, telling me all about it. Then Crystal called me in a panic. She’s just like me—she doesn’t have the balls to stand up to her mother.”

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