Page 40 of Holidate Fail
Heat gleamed in his eyes from behind the counter. Oh, yeah. That was a point.
She narrowed her eyes at Heath, who had followed Kelly, and folded her arms across her chest. One finger tapped against her forearm as she gripped tight to keep from pelting Heath with foam alligators from the bin beside her before she got the whole story. Ice dripped from her voice. “You were saying?”
“You were next on my list to find.” He opened his arms as if for a hug, like at their first meeting.
Dahlia took a step away from his embrace with a hand held up to stop him. He froze where he was.
“You didn’t want to go out with me.” Huh. That didn’t hurt as much as it should. She expected her chest to tighten and to be reminded that she wasn’t anyone special. She snuck a glance at Kelly, who stared at her with a wild hunger in his eyes.
Her heart thumped so loudly in her chest she was surprised it didn’t echo in the large building.
“I hadn’t even heard of National Scavenger Hunt Day. And Kristy set up my profile on the Holidates app.” Heath shoved his hands in his back pocket. Lacole joined them and put a hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry. For the deception. For everything.”
“You brought us out to the middle of nowhere. Nearly drove us into a river. There’s no reason I should forgive you.” She turned to Kelly, forced herself to meet his eyes from across the counter. “I thought it was you.”
“I know.” His voice was whisper tender.
“I’d be at my parents’ and Wayne would mention you. Sometimes I had to leave the room because I was so pissed.” She took a moment, tested herself. Yeah. Her heart was on board with Kelly not being the reason for her Holidate fail. “I’m sorry I didn’t give you a chance to explain.”
“But you’re here now.”
Heath cleared his throat. “What can I do to make this right?”
“Right now,” Kelly said, his eyes never leaving Dahlia, “you can leave.”
“Oh, come on, man—”
“Heath.” Lacole tugged his arm. “It’s not about you.”
Dahlia barely heard them exit Georgia Adventures over her sizzling blood. Kelly’s piercing gaze left her unable to move.
She cleared her throat. “I’ve known you for so long. You’re Wayne’s best friend. At the least, I should have considered your side of the story.”
Kelly’s body stiffened. “Is that why you gave Alana my name? Because I’m Wayne’s friend?”
“Oh, she called you? Good,” Dahlia said. “No, I gave her your number because what you did was completely at odds with the person I knew you were. I’ve thought a lot about it these past couple of weeks. You’re a good person, Kelly. You always have been. Even with the years of teasing and torment, you always pulled back if you saw me getting upset. And my brother, though he has many questionable tastes, would never be friends with a douchebag.”
A touch of a smile graced his lips. “Well, at least there’s that.”
“So, I’m sorry.” She gestured around the building. “Since I don’t have to focus on my testimony anymore, I came here to figure out what had happened, for closure. Getting a full confession was a nice benefit.”
Kelly’s voice went impossibly lower. “Is that what you wanted? Closure?”
Why did her throat get boa-constrictor tight and tears form behind her eyes? She nodded, unable to speak.
“Is that what you want now?” The suppressed emotion in his voice made her breathing hitch.
A million thoughts raced through her head. Why was he asking? After what she’d put him through, would he want to be with her? Would he have stayed with her after the Dash?
She wouldn’t be able to handle the rejection, not now. But…this moment was what all her introspection and improving herself and putting herself out there was all about. It had to mean something.
Dahlia shook her head.
Kelly took her in with those moss green eyes and she held her breath, her hands curling into fists as she struggled to keep calm. If he didn’t say something soon, she was going to have to do something drastic. Like call Wayne and ask his advice.
But Kelly didn’t say anything. Instead, he placed his palm on the counter in front of him and vaulted over the top. One minute there was three feet of particle board and a cash register between them, the next she was in his arms.
“Are you going to walk out that door?” His voice growled, sending a shiver through her.
