Page 64 of Bad Crush
“Nah, let’s do this thing tonight.” Rhett finishes his beer and nods.
“Really?”
“Yeah. Look, I know this was some sort of intervention to help me get over Carrie.”
“No, we—” Heath starts, but Rhett holds up a hand.
“I’ve been moping around and sucking at practice. I get it. But I made a decision tonight. I’m going to call her, get closure, and then move on.”
“You decided that in the thirty minutes we’ve been out? Damn, we’re good,” Maverick says.
“I decided the second I realized you three were trying to help me. Like you fools have your shit together. So, yeah, please, let’s do this thing tonight. I think seeing you ask Reagan to be your girlfriend might be the cure to my shitty month.”
“All right then. Make those shots doubles.”
18
Reagan
The element of surprise is a great way to make an impression. Today, you’ll have the opportunity to surprise someone. Leave them wondering what you’ll do next! Also, pack clean undies—you never know.
“My face is tingling.”Dakota brings her hands up to her face but doesn’t touch it.
“That means it’s working,” I say, wiggling my nose. It does tingle, but it also itches.
“These are hilarious.” Ginny hands me her phone. “Take a picture so I can send it to Heath.”
“Yeah, I’m sure a creepy-looking tiger face mask will really turn him on.” Dakota snorts as I snap a picture of Ginny and hand her phone back.
“You’d be surprised what turns Heath on.”
Dakota and I both burst into laughter.
“No, honey, we wouldn’t be surprised at all,” Dakota tells her.
“He says, ‘Rawr,’” Ginny tells us, staring down at her phone. “Reagan, you should send Adam a picture.”
“You think he’s into llamas?” I ask and pose with my hands under my face. She snaps a picture.
“Absolutely do not send that to him. We are not at that stage.” The tingling gets worse as my face flames with embarrassment at just the idea of him seeing me like this. “Promise me?”
“Okay, okay.” She puts her phone down. “But you look adorable.”
“What stageareyou at?” Dakota asks.
“It’s hard to take you serious with that on your face,” I deflect. Her mask is a narwhal and makes her face almost entirely blue.
My friends, or the tiger and narwhal they’ve become, stare back at me. They don’t look like they’re going to let this go.
“We’re at the ‘everything is great and everyone else should mind their own business stage,’” I say.
“She has no idea,” Dakota says to Ginny.
“My brother is an idiot.” Ginny’s shoulders sag, and she sticks out her bottom lip. “I’m sorry.”
“There is nothing to apologize for. Everything is great.” I smile, though I’m not sure how effective it is through this mask.
I get up and go to the kitchen to grab another bottle of wine. The truth is, everything is great. Do I have an uneasy feeling wondering if Adam is as into me as I am him? Yes. Do I think I’d have this same uneasy feeling regardless of what label we slapped on this thing between Adam and me? Also, yes. I’ve been crazy about him for years. It makes sense that I’d fall harder, faster.
