Page 63 of Just Friends Forever
I keepthe tone light and fun on the way home, despite the knot in my stomach.
I could have sworn we were going to kiss. Not just that I wanted to kiss Stevie, but that she might’ve even wanted to kiss me back.
But that’s the moment she shot up and said we should go.
We find our way to my backdoor neighbor’s house and climb the fence without incident this time. I can’t tell if the silence between us is radio silence or something else. Is she worried I’ve crossed the boundary again? That I’m going to make things weird or beg her to give me a chance?
I wish I could say she’d be wrong, but it scares me how close I was to doing it all over again, to putting myself out there for one-in-a-million odds like Lloyd Christmas onDumb and Dumber.
I can’t seem to find the courage to tell her I’m not with Lyla anymore. Now more than ever, it feels like doing it would confirm her fears and cause her to see me as a threat rather than a support.
When we get to the house, Stevie acts normal, asking if I want to watch someFresh Prince. I politely decline, claiming I have some work to catch up on.
It’s true. I need to update Evelyn’s hotsheet. But even more than that, I need to recalibrate. I’m having to do that every time I spend any significant amount of time with Stevie now, and it’s kind of exhausting.
Her date tomorrow night should shake some sense into me, though. It’ll be like a hammer to a magnet—maybe the force of it can disrupt my connection to her. That’s what I’m hoping.
* * *
Stevie is already upand at ‘em when I get to the backyard for my workout in the morning. I wore a shirt again for her sake. It’s ab day, and I lay out two yoga mats on the floor, putting them far enough apart that my magnetic tendencies might be weak enough to resist.
“So,” she says as we both sit down on the mats, “I got a text last night.”
“Yeah?” My mind jumps to Curtis. Maybe he’s coming around and realizing what an absolute idiot he’s been.
“Apparently, our good friend Rick mentioned us to Rocco Sterling.”
I chuckle and lie on my back. “I forbid you from living in that neighborhood. Rick is like a built-in paparazzo.”
“He is. But I think you’ll be a little less annoyed by him in a second.”
I raise my brows. She’s sitting cross-legged, facing me with a light in her eyes that ignites my curiosity. Or maybe my inner magnet. Who even knows at this point?
“Rocco texted me last night.”
My mind sorts through its celebrity gossip archives. Is Rocco Sterling single? I think so. Is Stevie about to tell me he asked her out? Can I drum up some fake excitement for her?
“He asked me if I’m moving into the neighborhood, and I told him I wasn’t sure,” she continues, her smile growing. “He said it would be a shame if I did.”
My brows pull together. “What a jerk.”
She laughs, shaking her head. “He’s moving out of the neighborhood. Or hopes to. He wants a bigger place.”
This whole conversation is confusing me. “And you’re happy he’s leaving so you’ll know fewer people in the neighborhood? Stevie, I liked that house a lot, but I really think you’ll regret living by Big-Mouth Rick.”
“I completely agree. I asked Rocco if he has an agent already. He doesn’t.”
I still, my ears perking up like a rabbit’s.
She smiles, pleased by my reaction.
I can’t stand it any longer, so I sit up. “You’re killing me, Stevie. Get to the punchline.”
She scrunches her nose. “But it’s so much fun torturing you! Fine. He wants you to be his agent.”
I shoot to my feet. “Are you serious? Rocco Sterling wants me to be his agent?”
She nods, looking up at me from her seated position, her face full of glee at my reaction. “It’s a little far, since he’s looking at homes in Malibu.”
