Page 65 of The Dating Game

I messaged him right back and we ended up texting for another twenty minutes before my eyes got heavy and we decided to call it a night.

Spoiler: I may have also fallen asleep with a blissed out smile on my face.

Again, nothing to do with Will.

If I say that enough, maybe it will start to be true.

Our group is responsible for making and serving breakfast this morning, which means I had to set my alarm for extra early. I make quick work of brushing my teeth and gathering my hair into a messy bun on my head. It’s not the most glamorous look, but I hit snooze on my alarm a few too many times to have time to do anything more.

On the plus side, maybe if Will sees me like this, he’ll change his mind about me. Then I won’t have to worry about adamantly denying my growing attachment to him.

I lead the group of sleepy girls over to the kitchen, where we silently get to work prepping food. Thankfully breakfast is simple: fruit, bagels, and cereal. All we really have to do is chop the fruit and set everything out.

Reagan and I chop up strawberries and watermelon, while the other girls set everything else up. We work well together, and everyone gets more chatty the longer we’re awake. Apparently the soccer game they played before capture the flag was pretty epic.

“So where did you disappear to before capture the flag, Brooke?” Reagan asks slyly, as we move bowls of fruit to the serving area. I don’t have to look around at the other girls to know they’re all listening. Did Silas and Lee tell them they spotted me and Will kissing?

Will told me last night when we were texting that it wasn’tthatbig of a deal. Everyone on the trip knows we’re dating, and he is going to talk to Lee and Silas about it. Plus, it’s not like we purposefully started kissing in front of the kids. But I still feel a bit funny about it. Probably it has something to do with what happened with Hannah and Luke. The people of Grace Canyon may start to think the Garza sisters are a wild bunch.

“I heard Will was helping you with your serving,” Marley sing-songs.

“Uh, yeah. He was. You guys saw me yesterday. I need all the help I can get.” I let out a self-deprecating laugh, as they all nod their agreement; their expressions sympathetic over my serving ineptitude.

“Oh that is so cute, though!” Raegan squeals. “Like something out of a romance movie. The guy teaches the girl something only in the middle of the lesson they forget all about the actual teaching part of things and end up, like, making out!”

Okay, that is unnervingly close to what happened last night. Slash it’s exactly what happened last night. My cheeks burn with the truth of that, luckily the girls are all too busy chattering away about what Raegan just said to notice.

Carmen is talking about some book she read where the guy taught the girl how to golf. Then Maeve starts talking about how this guy from their school taught her how to fix her locker that kept jamming.

“His hand totally brushed mine in the process,”she says proudly.

“You know, girls can teach guys stuff too,” June declares from her spot next to the bagel platter. “I think you should teach Will something next,” she suggests, one hand on her hip.

“Oh, yeah!” Carmen enthuses. “That’s a great idea!”

“Do you have any impressive skills?” Marley asks, staring at me as if expecting me to announce I’m a woman of many hidden talents.

“Um,” I begin uncertainly. I’ve somehow gone from receiving romantic advice from middle-aged Belinda Lagman to receiving romantic advice from a bunch of 15 and 16-year-olds. Interestingly enough, the two are remarkably similar. In fact, I bet these girls would think her and Sydney’s blindfold idea was genius. “I’m not sure what you consider an impressive skill,” I tell my eager posse.

“How about dancing?” Carmen suggests.

“Will already knows how to dance,” Marley points out. “Remember the youth group square dance we had. He helped the caller teach all of us the steps.”

“Oh yeah.” Carmen frowns in thought.

“Cooking?” Maeve comes up with. “Although that might be hard since the groups are assigned to meals this week.”

Plus, I add silently, Jill is the cook in the family. I mean, I knowhowto cook, but I’m a very basic cook. Nothing fancy. I am a good baker, though. And he does like apple pie.

Not that I’m actually entertaining this crazy idea of theirs. I don’t need to teach Will something just to satisfy their romance-loving hearts.

Or mine, for that matter.

“Do you speak any other languages?” Carmen asks.

“Maybe French?” June adds with a wink and a giggle. Honestly, what is it with these kids and French kissing? Did they all just get their braces off and realize that it was finally a possibility?

“No other languages,” I say, pointedly ignoring the innuendo. “Although I do know the alphabet in sign language.”

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