Page 35 of Make Mine Sweet
“You look very pretty.”
I hadn’t thought about it before, but she’s wearing a dress. It’s not totally unusual for her, but we mostly keep it business casual in here. Now that she’s slipped off her apron, the embroidered details on her navy mini dress stand out.
Mom smooths her blond hair over her shoulder. She’s brushed it out of the up-do she usually wears for work, and the gentle waves suit her. “Thank you, honey. I’ll see you girls at home.”
It’s a tiny thing, but it still sends a shard of guilt under my skin. One more reminder of how I shook things up by moving out.
She winces but smiles brighter to cover it. “I’ll see you tomorrow, Tess.”
Mom waves and heads out. I turn away, ready to clean. Organize. Do anything to stay occupied and keep my thoughts from spinning Ian’s direction. A big goal, since they’ve been stuck on him all day.
Wren nudges me before I can find something productive to do. “Okay, spill. Why are you so squirrelly today?”
I’ve debated this all day, too—do I confide in my sister? While I don’t love what I have to share, I’m not in the habit of keeping secrets from her. On the other hand, chances are high my story will lead her to a cliff perfect for jumping off into various romantic conclusions. Wren loves a good leap.
But I have to get it out. I’m too racked with regret to keep this to myself.
I sigh, sagging against the back counter. “I’m a horrible person.”
“Wow, okay. Dramatic. Who’d you murder?” She clasps her hands in front of her chest. “Please say it was Callahan.”
“Not murder.” I slaughtered every last ounce of my pride, but there aren’t any laws against that. Self-mortification is perfectly legal.
She groans. “Is this like that time you ran a red light in Bend and freaked out for weeks because you thought you were going to get a ticket in the mail?”
I still get nervous when I find anything official-looking in the mailbox, just in case their ticketing system was delayed. By eighteen months.
“Worse.”
She sidles closer. “You have to narrow it down. There’s a lot of options between traffic violations and murder. I can’t guess all day.”
My gaze cuts to the pass-through leading to Hope’s store next door. “You can’t tell anybody about this.”
I love Hope and trust her with my secrets, but not all of what I have to say is about me.
Instead of sobering Wren, this excites her. Of course she’d love the idea of me sharing anything secret or potentially scandalous. “I wouldn’t.”
I weigh her words, but if I can’t trust Wren, I can’t trust anyone.
“I saw Ian yesterday.” I let my ominous tone convey it was more than a neighborly visit.
She grins as if she can’t help herself. “Tell me more.”
“We were on the trail behind the duplex, and August and I came across him finishing a run…while he was shirtless.”
Her eyes widen, and I can tell she wants to combust from this news. But she manages to nod and hum agreement, my indifferent therapist mildly encouraging me to go on.
“I stared at him. A lot. Obviously and embarrassingly. I was like a cartoon character with my eyes stretching out of my head.” Hopefully, my tongue stayed in my mouth, but I can’t be sure.
“That picture I saw was pretty impressive. I can only imagine what it was like seeing it in person.” She fans herself exactly the way I did on the trail.
“I tripped over myself trying to talk to him and sound normal, and instead I just made my stupid crush completely obvious.”
My heart sinks even as Wren’s face shines like a beacon. I should not have said that specific word. It’s the match to the fuse for her joy explosion.
She splays her hands in the air as though any of that was worthy of celebrating. “Finally! You have a crush! Oh, I love this.”
I knew she wouldn’t take it as hard as I did. I’m tempted to point out she hasn’t been in a rush to jump into feelings, either. Jumping into everyone else’s is much easier.
