Page 51 of Wish Lists and Road Trips

“Sorry,” he said, smiling as he pressed his hands to my shoulders and shuffled around me. He hung his backpack, then put his hands on his hips, looking like he was coming to the same conclusion about whose bed was whose and how close we would be for the remainder of this trip.

“I, um . . .” I tugged at the hem of my wet T-shirt. “I think I’d like to change.”

“Oh. Right, yeah.” His eyes fell to my chest then flew away. “I’ll go take a walk so you can settle in,” he said, jutting a thumb over his shoulder toward the door.

“Okay.”

He didn’t move and his teeth sawed over his lip. He was nervous now, after last night. I got it now. I’d let him have this.

“I won’t leave the room,” I promised. “Give me ten?”

“Of course. Sure.” He took a step backward then stopped, reaching a hand out to cup my cheek. “I’ll be close.”

I bobbed my head in reply, suddenly mute.

Nick closed the door behind him and I stripped my T-shirt over my head like it was on fire, my chest heaving from holding my breath.

What had started out as a harmless—and let’s face it, typical for me—crush on Nick had recently turned into a thing where we held hands and he touched my face and said things like “I’ll be close.” A simple crush I could deal with, but I didn’t know what to do with that.

I decided to call Meri. The ticket agent had warned us we may not have cell service for large chunks of this trip. Since we were leaving in twenty minutes, I should probably check in.

After I pulled on some shorts and a tank top from my Target haul, I climbed onto one of the plush seats and propped my feet on the windowsill. It was dark out now, and there were only a handful of people on the platform who hadn’t boarded yet.

The phone only rang once before Meri picked up. “Brit. What state are you in?”

“Georgia. I’m on the train.”

“Oh, thank God.” She sighed in relief. “Has your itinerary changed?”

I laughed softly at the spectacular implosion of Nick’s itinerary. We still made the train, though, even if a sliver of my heart was disappointed by that. “We’re on schedule,” I said. “We go to sleep tonight and wake up almost in New York.”

“Wego to sleep,” Meri repeated.

I’d said it that way on purpose, nudging open a door. She’d dutifully taken the bait. “Me and Nick.”

“Mm-hmm.”

I heard water sloshing and I knew she was in the bath reading. Probably a textbook or an autobiography or something super-smart. The bubble bath was Meri’s most cherished ritual, and it was a rare night that she didn’t fit it in. Justin would catch up on sports news for the day and she’d spend an hour reading in a cloud of bubbles. She swore that hour apart was what kept them together. Maybe she was right because I had a tendency to stick like glue to guys and look where it got me. Except Nick didn’t seem to mind. He was stuck to me too.

I’ll be close.

I shivered, my eyes darting around the bunk like someone might hear me reciting Nick’s words in my brain.

“So, howarethings going with your hot travel partner?” she asked.

My jaw dropped. “Um, when did I say he was hot?”

“I can hear it in the way you say his name. ‘Me andNick.’ ” She changed her voice to that of a seventh-grade girl—fluttery, a little out of breath. She was right. I’d absolutely said it like that.

There was no sense in denying it. Not to Meri. “He’s so hot, Mer,” I groaned. “You should see his jaw line, it’s not even fair. But more than that, I don’t know, he’s just . . . good.”

That was what got me the most. I guess I’d kind of always wondered if that existed. People in my world were mean, calculating. But Nick? He drove me mad with his hovering and worrying, but it seemed that every intention he had was solid gold.

I hadn’t just attached myself to Nick’s side because he knew how to get home. I liked him from the minute we met. I liked how his deep-set eyes and full lips made him look dangerous and sweet at the same time. I liked his sarcastic comments that were always softened by that sparkle in his eye. I liked how steady he was, how he didn’t sway with the wind. That had always been my biggest flaw, getting tugged by everything that caught my eye and forgetting my destination. Nick let me hang out of the window and feel the breeze, while making sure I never fell.

Though, it certainly felt like I was falling now.

“Definegood, Brit. A nice jaw does not make a good man.”

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