Page 43 of Chasing After You
Mirabelle rolls her eyes, but her smile grows. “Just accept the compliment.”
“Thank you, Mira,” I say, smiling.
“I think I prefermon cœur,” she teases, using a perfect French accent.
I feel my cheeks flush because I’m not sure why that was the name that came out of my mouth. There are a thousand different pet names I could have gone with, but it felt like an accurate way to describe her.My heart.
“I don’t want people questioning the validity of this. It seemed like the right thing to say.”
The sparkle in her eyes dims as she blinks, as if she’s surprised, and immediately, I regret saying that’s the only reason. Rationally, I know it has to be the right reason, but there are a million reasons why I shouldn’t like her. Fuck, maybe there are more than a million.
Would it be such a bad thing if this weren’t fake?
The thought seems like a joke to even consider, but I’m starting to lose the internal battle against my attraction toward Mirabelle.
“Of course,” she says, painting on a smile that might be the saddest one I’ve ever fucking seen.I hate that I put it there.“I know that. You’re getting better at faking it—you were pretty believable, and Dave ate it up.”
It was believable because I’m not sure I’m faking it.
“Mirabelle . . .” I say her name, trailing off because I don’t know what to say next. I want to take the opportunity to kiss her, and see if I’m imagining the connection between us, but over the top of her head, I can feel the weight of her parents’ stare. If looks could kill, I’d be buried six feet under.
It’s enough to snap my brain back into reality.
I need to keep my focus on football, not on a girl—no matter how she might make me feel when I’m around her.
She parts her lips, drawing my attention to them before I flit my gaze back up to meet hers. “What, Henry?”
My phone rings in my pocket, breaking the moment. I pull it out, but immediately decline it at the sight of the name, sliding it back into my pocket. I’m not letting her ruin today.
“Who was that?”
I shake my head, my mind racing a mile a minute. “No one,” I lie, taking a step back from her, my hands slow to let go of Mira’s waist. I run a hand through my hair, offering her a half-smile. “You’ve done an incredible job with all of this. Thank you for what you’re doing.” My mouth feels sour, but it’s the right thing to do.
I only wish it didn’t make me feel so shitty in the process.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Mirabelle
I’VE SPENT A good portion of today stealing glances at Henry when I knew he wasn’t looking at me. On the flip side, I’ve also felt my parents’ eyes on me, but not once have they approached.
Do I want them to?
Absolutely. I miss them.But I’m not in the wrong here, so stubbornly, I refuse to make the first move. Maybe that’s a mistake, but I’m hurt by how they reacted, and they owe Henry and me an apology.
Professionally, I know it’s great that they’re here today. Their presence is great publicity for the charities, in addition to everything else the team is doing for the event.
Personally, though? I feel like crawling into a hole and never coming out.
Hunter already suggested I go talk to at least one of our parents. I guess things have not been going well with Bailey over the last few weeks, and with JJ at college and me in Charlotte, he’s feeling lonely.
I considered it, but after Henry walked away from me, I saw the look they gave him. They’re not over it. They’re punishing him for no fucking reason.
I never thought they’d treat Henry this way. I thought they’d be happy to see us together. I imagined Mom saying age is only a number, and Dad welcoming him to the family.
Apparently, that’s another fantasy I had to go with the one where Henry actually liked me instead of pretending to be in a fake fucking relationship. It’s the delusional part of my brain that thought maybe Henry wasn’t faking earlier while Dave was interviewing us.
It felt almost real, if that makes sense? It doesn’t at all, but I’m pretty sure he was smelling me too. Holy shit, when he pulled my hair, I’m glad I didn’t moan, especially when Henry told me he’d like to see me try out his name.Jokes on him, I’ve been doodling Mirabelle Price in notebooks for years.
