Page 13 of The Flirty Forward

“Honestly, we’re thinking Hawaii,” Brielle says with a glance at Aiden. He smiles at her. “We kind of thought that would be perfect.”

“Then let’s do it,” I say, already writing things down in my planner.

“I love Hawaii,” Sebastian says.

“Have you been there?” Brielle asks.

“Nope,” he responds. “I just have always wanted to go.”

I roll my eyes. “I think it’s going to be great. What else do we need to talk through?”

“I would like to just take a moment to acknowledge this very important moment in history,” Sebastian says.

“And what would that be?” I ask.

“That Aiden acknowledged that I’m his best friend. I can’t wait to tell all the guys.”

“Don’t,” Aiden says.

Sebastian grins. “We’re totally BFFs now. Can I call you Bestie?”

“No.”

“Best friend?”

“No.”

Sebastian opens his mouth, but before he says anything, Aiden gives him a hard look. “No. Whatever it is you’re going to say, the answer is no.”

Brielle hides her smile. I turn to Sebastian. “What?” he asks with a grin.

“You’re like an overgrown toddler.”

“Thank you.”

I shake my head. “That wasn’t a compliment.”

“When are you coming to a game?” he asks, completely throwing me off.

“What?”

“When are you coming to a game?”

I stare at him a moment before I start packing up my stuff. “I’m not.”

“Don’t you come to the games with Brielle?” he asks in confusion.

“Nope.” I stand up and pick up my plate to take into the kitchen. “That was really good, Brielle. Thank you.”

“You don’t have to pick up,” Brielle says, waving me off. But I do anyway. I put my dishes in the sink and then start the hot water. “Don’t worry about dishes, Stephanie.” I ignore her and rinse the dishes and put them in the dishwasher. When I’m finished, I head back out to the living room and slide my bag onto my shoulder. “Thank you guys for dinner; it was great. I’ve got papers to grade, so I’m going to get going. See you tomorrow, Brielle. Bye Aiden.”

“Bye, Stephanie. Thanks for coming over,” Brielle calls out.

I let myself out the front door, but before it can close all the way, a hand stops it. “Hey, what about me?” Sebastian asks, stepping outside. “Were you just going to ignore me?”

“That was the plan,” I tell him as I walk down the front steps.

“Wow, you certainly don’t like me.”

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