Page 37 of Written in the Stars
***
“To Elle!” Brendon hoisted his beer in the air. “For going with her gut.”
Darcy clinked her glass of wine against her brother’s bottle and nodded, smile small and conciliatory. But that was fine. There were still bright gold flecks of confetti stuck in her mussed hair. It was the closest Elle had ever seen Darcy to being amess, and she liked it. A little too much. “To Elle.”
Elle laughed and lifted her candy cane cocktail, complete with peppermint stick garnish, acquiescing to the praise. She sipped through the straw, face scrunching at the shock of rum. Surprisingly strong for being half-priced on trivia night.
That same gut feeling that had driven her to search harderurged her to lift her head. Across the table, Darcy was staring, bottom lip trapped between her front teeth.
Elle chewed on her swizzle stick straw, failing epically when she tried not to smile.
Feedback from the bar’s audio system filled the room, rowdy gripes following. At the front of the room near the bar, a man with a full ginger beard and a shiny bald head gave a rueful wince before tapping the mic. “Sorry ’bout that folks. Who’s ready for some trivia?”
“Cherry’s been outside for a while,” Darcy pointed out. “Doesn’t take that long to smoke a cigarette. Vape. Whatever.” Darcy waved her hand.
Brendon grimaced, one hand reaching back to grip his neck. “Yeah. She texted me. Apparently, she ran into a friend and... she’s not feeling it, I guess.”
Darcy’s eyes flashed, jaw dropping. “Sheleft. Without saying good-bye?”
Blink and miss it, Darcy glanced across the table, the nostrils of her pert nose flaring.
Elle stiffened. Was that meant to be a comparison, a dig at how Elle had dipped during their date while Darcy was in the bathroom? Because if so, it was apples and oranges. Unfair because the situations couldn’t have been more different. Brendon was sweet and thoughtful and fun. Darcy had been rigid and skeptical and downright rude.
And it hadn’t been a matter ofnot feeling itwhen Elle had left, bladder screaming, ego battered, and hopes crushed. She’d felt it, that spark, but Darcy had done everything in her power to douse it. Sparks hadn’t mattered, not when Darcy’s beliefs,or lack thereof, made them incompatible. You could bring a horse to water, but you couldn’t make it drink.
Oblivious to the thread of tension connecting her and Darcy, Brendon shrugged affably, lips quirking. “Wasn’t meant to be.”
He was a better sport about it than she’d been, that was for sure.
“Onward and upward.” Elle gave him a nod. “If she couldn’t see how awesome you are, she didn’t deserve to revel in your awesomeness.”
Brendon laughed and Darcy shot Elle a curious glance, one Elle couldn’t quite parse. Darcy patted her brother on the arm. “You’ll, um, you’ll find her. Your...person.”
Lips pinched together, Brendon met Elle’s eyes. They burst out laughing.
Darcy shifted on her barstool, arms crossing over her chest.
Brendon threw an arm around Darcy’s shoulders. “Thanks, Darce.” He pressed a quick kiss to the crown of her head. “Got to say, I’m starting to think my person is something of a unicorn.”
“Ooh, now that could be a problem,” Elle joked. “Unicorns are only attracted to virgins.” She waggled her brows and reached for her drink.
Darcy did a poor job of muffling her laughter with a cough. “Now that would be ironic.”
“Darcy,” he warned, face flushing. “Don’t you dare.”
She waved him off. “It’s not embarrassing.”
“It’shumiliating,” Brendon grumbled over the lip of his bottle. “And I told you that in confidence.Drunkenconfidence.”
Darcy turned, focusing on Elle. “Brendon didn’t lose his virginity until he was twenty because he was saving himselffor my best friend, Annie, who he had thebiggestcrush on for practically his entire childhood. For years, he was convinced that they were destined to be together.” When Brendon’s head thudded against the table, Darcy snickered. “That’s what you get for telling her I was smitten.”
Brendon lifted his head and glared. “You’re making me sound pathetic. Besmirching my good name.”
“Good name?” Elle teased.
Brendon gasped. “Elle. I thought we were friends.” He shook his head. “I see how it is. You’ve picked a side. My own sister turning my friends against me.”
“Oh please. Besides, Annie thought you were cute.” Darcy pinched his cheek before smacking him lightly.
