Page 38 of The Love Dare
Another girl steps into view, not quite as perfectly crafted. Her platinum-blonde hair is piled into a messy high pony, and her sleek black racerback dress gives off a sportier vibe. While the first girl would be described as pretty, this one is striking. Her features are more angular—her jaw pointed, her eyes big, her brows heavy. But her almost turquoise irises are still warm as she extends her toned arm. “Need a hand?”
“Thanks.” Winnie takes it gratefully. “I’m Winnie Rusu.”
“Harper Nicholls,” the girl says as she pulls.
“And I’m Charlotte Webb.”
“Charlotte…Webb?” Winnie asks hesitantly. “I’m sorry, but I’m a complete bibliophile, so I just have to ask?—”
“Yes. I’m named after a spider.” She rolls her eyes, but there’s something vulnerable in the move. “It was my mom’s favorite book. My dad completely forgot how ridiculous it would sound with his last name when he picked it, but, well…he had other things going on.”
Winnie frowns, easily able to read into what the girl isn’t saying. “Well, I’ve got you beat,” she jumps in to shift the mood. “My real name is Uldwyna.”
“That’s—”
“A mouthful?” Winnie laughs. “It was my grandma’s name.”
“Where was she from?”
“Romania.”
“That’s really cool,” Charlotte says, surprising Winnie with how genuine she sounds. Most people treat her name like the butt of a joke. It’s why she’s learned to beat them to the punch. “I love it.”
A smile pulls at her lips. “Thanks.”
“Wait,” Harper interjects as her already large eyes pop wider. “Romanian? And you said your last name is Rusu?”
Here we go…“Guilty.”
“That’s who you are!”
“Sort of.” Winnie winces, not quite ready to face her fate. “Who does everyone think I am?”
“There’ve been a few theories. Ex-girlfriend. Stalker. Puck-bunny?—”
“Harper!” Charlotte scolds.
“What?” The other girl shrugs. “It’s out there.”
“Superfan,” Charlotte graciously corrects with some side-eye toward her friend. Then she snaps her head toward Winnie. “But who are you? And what’s it to do with your last name? I’m not following.”
“She’s Alex Rusu’s sister,” Harper explains.
“Is that supposed to mean anything to me?”
“Alex Rusu?” Harper repeats with an edge of exasperation. “Center for the Boston Bears?”
“I don’t really follow hockey.” Charlotte shakes her head. “What does he have to do with Tyler?”
Harper looks as if she might blow a gasket, so Winnie comes in to save her. “Tyler is my brother’s best friend. Has been since they were about nine. I’ve known him most of my life.”
“Oh, that’s—” Charlotte cuts off as her mouth drops into what would be an almost cartoonish depiction of shock if she weren’t so attractive. “Ohhhhhhh.”
“That’s right.” Winnie nods. “I am a walking cliché.”
“No, you’re a badass.” Harper gives her an affectionate nudge. “I have three older brothers and if any of their friends were even half as hot as Tyler is, you can bet your damn ass I would have shot my shot too. What else are brothers good for, anyway?”
“So is that what you were talking to him about outside?” Charlotte leans close and lowers her voice to a whisper, as if they’re trading government secrets. “That you love him?”
