Page 76 of Party Favors

I had been trying to keep our friendship light and easy for my own emotional health, but I was failing in every way imaginable on that front. My defenses had been built out of straw and sticks and it had taken one big gust to knock everything down.

Everything between us had deepened. I’d become even more attached to him.

The problem was I didn’t know if Max felt the same.

I might have faced one fear last night, but I wasn’t sure if I was ready to try to conquer another.

The day flew by in a blur because I had so much to do. Vella was in and out all day shooting me annoyed looks, probably due to my supposed cluelessness when it came to Max. I had my phone glued to my ear as I tried to make so many last-minute arrangements.

I stayed up later than I’d intended and wondered whether I should just remain awake the entire night until Princess Chiara’s wedding at four thirty in the morning, or if I should try to get a few hours of sleep before it began.

My mom texted me while I was debating.

IT’S ALMOST TIME! MOM SEND

When my phone had buzzed at me, I’d had a momentary hope that Max would be the one texting me, and I was disappointed that it wasn’t from him. He hadn’t texted or called all day and I didn’t know what to make of it. His radio silence was odd, given that we had been texting and calling on a daily basis. How could he be so sweet and hand-kissy one minute and then ignore me the next?

While I knew that I could have reached out to him first, I needed some kind of sign from him. Something to let me know that I wasn’t in this alone.

I awoke with a start on the couch after I heard someone knocking on the front door. I had meant to stay up, but I must have drifted off. I looked at my phone with bleary eyes. It was four fifteen in the morning. I hadn’t set an alarm—I would have overslept and missed the wedding.

Had Vella gone out again and forgotten her keys? She’d never done it in the past, but I couldn’t figure out who would be knocking so early in the morning.

I padded over to the door, looking through the keyhole.

My heart slammed against my chest when I saw Max standing there, holding bags and a tray.

I looked terrible. I hadn’t showered in a couple of days and was wearing my rattiest sweats and a T-shirt of a band my mom had liked when she was younger called Duran Duran. There were so many holes in it that it could have doubled as swiss cheese.

But my curiosity was too great and I had to know what he was doing here at a time when even the sun was still asleep.

I opened the door. “Max?”

“Everly!” He looked fresh and clean, and as he brushed past me to get into the apartment, I noticed that he smelled amazing.

I wondered if I could sneak off and put on some deodorant and brush my teeth without him noticing.

Basta came inside, sniffing every available surface. She nosed me on my leg, and I scratched her ears, still in shock to find them here. She went over to a corner and curled up, quickly falling asleep.

“What are you two doing?”

He gave me a funny look. “We’re here to watch the wedding with you.”

“We didn’t arrange that,” I said, watching as he set his bags down on what little counter space he could find in our kitchen. I was pretty sure I would remember if he and I had decided to have our own viewing party.

“That’s why they call it a surprise. I thought it would be fun.”

What would have been more fun was being able to prepare myself, maybe put on one of my Kat dresses before he came over.

He mistook my silence. “I can go if you want.”

“No! I mean, no. I want you to stay. We just can’t wake up Vella or else she will do something terrible.”

My phone beeped.

ARE YOU WATCHING? MOM SEND

I texted her back.

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