Page 33 of Harmony Island Gazette
My first reaction was to tell him not to go. I wasn’t sure about Meaghan, but I knew she wasn’t right for him. I also knew it wasn’t my place to ask him to stay. I hated myself for not being happy for him. These feelings were confusing me, and I shouldn’t drag Boone down with me. If he wanted to go, he should go.
I scoffed and said, “I’ll be fine.” I forced a smile. “I’ll probably just stay home and eat pizza and watch reruns. You don’t need to be a part of that.” I waved my hand at him to show how much I didn’t need him around—even though I wanted him to stay.
He frowned. He was silent for a moment before he said, “You want me to go out with Meaghan?”
“Of course,” I said, probably a little too quickly. I cleared my throat. “You’re not going to live with us forever. Makes sense that you are finding a future.” Then I hurried to add, “Or just testing the waters.” I nodded. “It’s good for you. I’m happy for you.”
Those felt like the right words to say. I wanted him to know that I was supportive of his choices. He shouldn’t be waiting around my parents’ house. I knew he was new to town and probably needed a distraction. I wasn’t the best of company right now, with Kevin hiding around every corner. I wanted Boone to find some peace, and I knew my situation wouldn’t give that to him.
“So, you want me to go out on Saturday?” he asked.
“Of course.”
We stood in silence for what felt like an eternity. I could feel Boone staring at me as if he were trying to figure me out. I gave him a wide smile before I turned and logged him out of the register and logged myself back in.
Boone didn’t say anything as he walked past me. He didn’t say anything as he came back to ring up his lunch of crackers and cheese. And he didn’t say anything after lunch as he walked past the register and nodded at me to let me know that he was done.
His silence had my head whirling with thoughts as I spent the rest of the afternoon wondering if I’d said the wrong thing. Should I have told him that I needed him to stay? That I didn’t want him to go? That thought confused me.
By the time I signed out of my register so Jordan could sign in, I still had no answers. Boone had managed to avoid having any more conversations with me. The only acknowledgement I got from him was when my line got too long again and he opened the far register to help. All he sent my way were a few head nods before he disappeared to the back.
“Do you have fun plans for dinner?” Jordan asked me, drawing me from my thoughts.
I startled and turned to look at her. “Huh?”
Her eyes widened as she studied me. “Dinner. Tonight. Do you have fun plans?”
Dinner. Memories of Boone wanting to cook me dinner rushed into my mind, and suddenly, I had a plan. “I have to go,” I said as I hurried past Jordan.
I felt bad for leaving her there, sputtering at my retreat, but I needed to grab some ingredients if I was going to cook Boone dinner tonight. I had no plans to see Kevin—and I didn’t want to. Boone wasn’t going out with Meaghan until Saturday night. If I was going to fix the friendship that had blossomed between me and Boone, I needed to act.
I hurried through the aisle, grabbing stuff to make chicken Parmesan and spaghetti. Once my arms were full, I made my way to the register. I apologized to Jordan for leaving her so abruptly, but she just laughed and waved my apology off, saying she knew what it was like to have an ADHD moment. She was not offended.
I smiled and we engaged in small talk while she rang up my items. She asked me how my parents were doing, and I told her they must be busy because they hadn’t reached out to me other than a few texts letting me know that they’d landed, they were with Aunt Christi, and they had a sea of doctor’s appointments to take her to.
Jordan smiled and told me to wish them luck as she grabbed the receipt from the register and handed it to me. My hands were full, so I lifted my forefinger and thumb to take the receipt from her, and called a goodnight over my shoulder as I headed to the back.
I pushed through the swinging door to the back room and heard a “humph.” I yelped and stepped around the door to see Boone standing there, rubbing his arm.
“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry,” I stuttered, my face flushing with embarrassment. I moved to set the bags down only to have Boone raise his hands.
“It’s okay,” he said as he bent down to meet my gaze. “I shouldn’t be standing next to a swinging door.” His fingers grazed mine as he moved to take my bags from me. “Here, let me carry these.”
Electricity shot across my skin from the feeling of his skin brushing mine. My gaze snapped to his but he wasn’t looking at me. I felt the weight of the bags leave my fingers as he slipped the handles off my hooked fingers. All I could do was breathe a soft, “Thanks.”
He flicked his gaze down at me and nodded. “Of course.”
“I want to make you dinner,” tumbled from my lips.
His eyebrows went up.
“I mean, if that’s okay with you.”
He studied me before a soft smile spread across his lips. “It’s okay with me.”
My cheeks warmed as I whispered, “Great.”
He kept a few inches behind me as I walked through the back hallway to the exit. I went to push on the door release, but Boone leaned forward, beating me to it. My shoulder brushed his chest once more, but instead of pulling back, I glanced over to see him staring at me.
