Page 83 of The Love Playbook

“Does that mean you’ve changed your mind about his mother and your father?” Brynn asks, her expression bordering on hopeful.

I shake my head as guilt winds its way around my heart. “No. I mean, his mom is great. But I meant what I said. This isn’t about her. It’s about my dad, and I won’t support something I know is bound to be a disaster and will also hurt my mother in the process.”

“So, when’s the date?” Samantha asks, wiggling her brows, and bringing the conversation back around to me and Chris.

“This weekend is a wash because the team is traveling, so we settled on next Friday.”

“Ahhh!” Brynn squeals, covering her face with her hands before she shouts. “I can’t believe you two are actually going out on a date.”

“Me neither.” I laugh.

“Do you think you’ll get a replay of the kiss heard around the world?” Liz grins.

I snort. “‘The kiss heard round the world’? And what did it sound like, exactly?”

She flaps a hand at me and groans. “You know what I mean.”

I really do because I’mstillthinking about it. And all the kisses on Sunday, too, which only proved the first one wasn’t a fluke.

“Look! She’s blushing.” Brynn points while Samantha grins knowingly. “Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh!” Brynn gasps. “You kissed again already, didn’t you?”

“Maybe?” I scrunch my nose, and the girls all squeal.

“You dirty little bitch. Why didn’t you lead with that!” Brynn play-smacks me in the arm, and I laugh.

“So was the first a fluke?” Liz asks, reading my thoughts. Leaning forward, she rests her chin on her clasped hands, waiting as I groan.

“It definitely wasnota fluke.”

Brynn jumps up from her spot on the bed, nearly toppling our food as she points and yells, “I knew it!”

I laugh and tug on her arm. “Would you get back down here and stop doing a victory dance before you spill everything, and my bed permanently smells like a Chinese restaurant?”

“It’s so satisfying, yet so weird to me that Chris is such a good kisser,” Brynn says, sinking back onto my mattress. “I mean, he’s basically become like a brother to me since Jace and I started dating, so to see him kissing you like he wanted to burn the room down was kinda cray cray, but I’m so here for it.” She beams.

“I would agree with you if I hadn’t experienced his mouth firsthand.”

“Who knew?” Elizabeth mutters with a dopey grin before she flops back on Samantha’s bed. “Ugh. I need a boyfriend. I hate being the only one without a man. Watching all of you with your super sexy men is so unfair.”

“You’ll find one soon enough.” Samantha reaches out and squeezes her hand.

“And Chris is not my boyfriend,” I remind her.

“Yet,” she says with a wink.

I say nothing, mind wandering to what it would be like to have a boyfriend. I haven’t dated anyone exclusively since high school, and even then, I’m not sure I’d call those real relationships. I’d been so busy navigating life after my parents’ divorce I didn’t have much time to devote to any one person. It was more a label and a front for my peers than anything.

I hum under my breath, aware of all three sets of eyes on me, waiting for my reaction to the idea of me and Chris being together for real. I can’t say it’s an unpleasant notion. In fact, the butterflies in the pit of my stomach say quite the opposite.

“Let’s see what Mother Fortune says.” Liz wiggles a brow as she snatches a fortune cookie up and hands it to me.

“What? You know, this means nothing, right?”

“I don’t know,” Samantha drawls. “My older sister once got a fortune that saidA fresh start awaits you in matters of the heart,and a week later she met her fiancé.”

I eye Samantha with a healthy dose of skepticism while I bite my tongue and tear through the wrapper, removing the hard cookie. The sugary vanilla scent hits my nose as I snap it in half, then pluck out the little rectangle of paper and read:Expect the unexpected.

“Oooh,” Liz croons. “Chris was certainly unexpected.”

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