Page 3 of Her Maine Squeeze

“He didn’t,” I point out. “No one did. Luke made sure of it.”

Charley’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise, and she forgets about her line of questioning about Oz.For now.“What do you mean?”

I sigh. “He was my twin brother, and he’s overprotective. Plus, he was a scary hockey player. He’d never admit it, but more than one guy in high school told me that Luke threatened to pummel anyone who dared to break my heart within an inch of their lives.”

A little smile plays on Charley’s lips. “That’s sweet.”

I glare at her. “It wasn’t sweet for me. I had to go to every dance alone.”

“So, nothing ever happened between you and Oz?”Guess she hasn’t forgotten about that line of questioning, after all.

“Nope.” It’s true. Mostly.Except for the pact that we made…

Her face lights up. “But that doesn’t mean he wasn’t interested in you.”

“If he was, he was over it by college.” I can’t mask the hard edge in my voice, and Charley hears it.

“What happened in college?”

I sigh. “You’re not going to let this go, are you?”

She gives me adon’t-you-know-me-better-than-thatlook. “Not a chance.”

I sweep the floor for a minute, debating how much to tell her. “So, I went to visit Luke in college, and, as you said, he was roommates with Oz. When I got to their dorm, I knocked on the door, and no one answered.”

“Go on,” Charley says, encouraging me to finish the story.

“So, I decided to try the door to see if it was unlocked, figuring that I could just wait for one of the guys to get back from class. I saw a sock on the floor in the hallway, but I didn’t think anything of it…” My voice trails off, and I feel the heat rise to my cheeks.

Charley’s hands fly to her mouth. “Oh, no! It fell off the doorknob?”

I nod. “When I walked in, Oz yelled, ‘Dude! Didn’t you see the sock?’”

Charley’s eyes are the size of donuts. “Was he, you know…” Her cheeks are pink now too.

I roll my eyes. “He was with a girl, but they both had their clothes on. It was still mortifying, especially after Oz yelled at me. And as I was turning to leave…” I stop talking abruptly. I hadn’t intended to tell her this part. It still stings too much.

“What?” she prompts.

I take a deep breath and release it. “The girl said, ‘Who’s she?’ And Oz said, ‘Just my roommate’s kid sister.’”

“Kid sister?! You’re the same age,” Charley exclaims.

“Right? And then the girl said, ‘She’s kind of pretty, don’t you think?’ and Oz said, ‘Her? Are you kidding?’”

Charley winces. “Ouch.”

“Yeah,” I say bitterly.

“It was a long time ago, though,” Charley says quickly, “and he was young, dumb, and with another girl. Most guys at that age probably would have reacted the same way.”

“I know.”But it hurt. A lot.

Her icy blue eyes bore into mine. “And you never saw him again?”

I shake my head. “Nope. Not long after that, Luke went to the major league.”

She bites her lip. “I should probably tell you that he’s in Fog Harbor now. He went with Luke to be fitted for his tux.”

---