Page 86 of Those Summer Nights (Sweet Cravings 2)

This summer had been about bettering myself, and I had. I’d finally decided what I wanted to do with my life. I was exercising more than ever. And my heart had mended. Originally, I thought I could do all that myself. But J.J. and Kristen were the ones that showed me the way. They were my best friends. I loved them both so much.

I bit the inside of my cheek. Kristen knew I loved her. For some reason it was easier with friends to talk about your feelings. But J.J. was more than just a friend. He was…everything. I loved him so much. And I needed to tell him. If anything, seeing Aiden had just confirmed my feelings for J.J. Maybe I’d tell him that tonight too. Just lay it all out there and see what he had to say about it.

“Hey!” Becca said as I walked up to the ice cream shop. She leaned on the counter. “And what can I get for you today? A double scoop of Flavors of Love?”

I laughed as I came in. Ever since she’d met J.J. she’d been teasing me every time we worked together. The names of flavors at this shop were absurd and there were probably at least 30 that had to do with love. I grabbed my apron and tied it on. “How about a double scoop of I just got into the University of New Castle and I’m so excited I can’t even contain myself!”

“What? Ah!” She hugged me. “I didn’t even know you were transferring.”

Becca wasn’t the first person that I wanted to tell. Mostly because although we got along fine at work we never really hung out outside of it. But I couldn’t keep my news locked up for a whole shift. “Mhm. I applied last month and just heard back. I’m so freaking excited.”

“Well, I’ll tell Rory and Keira that we need a new flavor name. It’s lengthy but at least it won’t make me blush whenever a guy orders it.”

I laughed. “The worst is when a little kid orders something like Wet Dream.”

“I know!”

A family stopped in front of the shop, breaking up our conversation. I was focusing more on tips than I had in the past. I needed to save every dime if my restaurant was going to become a reality.

***

When there was finally a lull in orders, I pulled out my phone. It was tempting to text Kristen, but I wanted to tell her in person too. My shift was almost over. It could wait. There was one person that I needed to tell as soon as possible though. “Can you handle everything out here for a minute?” I asked Becca. “I need to tell my Dad the good news.” I said it like he’d care. Not like it was a formality.

“Of course.” She shooed me to the back room. “Go tell everyone. I got this.”

“Thanks, Becca.”

I disappeared into the storage room and clicked on my acceptance email again. I could read it a million times and still be grinning ear to ear. It would have been fun to call my dad, if we had that type of relationship. But it was better this way. Aiden was a perfect reminder that I was done surrounding myself with dickweeds. I forwarded the email to my dad and added a note about when tuition was due. No love or xoxo sign off. Simple. Formal. I was majoring in business now after all. I pressed send.

My mom would have been genuinely excited for me. She’d definitely be happy that I’d be so close to home again. I was about to call her but stopped myself. I tried to remember when she said she was going on that couple’s cruise. It was definitely at the end of July. Even if she did get service, I didn’t want to disrupt her vacation. I shoved my phone back in my pocket. My mental balloon still felt a little deflated. I just needed to get through this shift and then I could hand J.J. the air pump and I’d be as good as new.

I walked out of the back room and froze. Fucking shit fuck. What little air had been put back into my balloon by Becca’s optimism and the thought that I’d be seeing J.J. any minute popped again. Aiden was standing there talking to Becca. I was about to turn back and hide in the storage room when he called my name.

I turned back around.

Becca looked so uncomfortable. “Hey, um…this guy says he’s your boyfriend?” She lowered both her eyebrows, jumping to some horrible conclusion about me.

I swallowed hard. I was not going to let Aiden ruin my life here like he’d ruined my life back in Cali. “Ex-boyfriend,” I said as firmly as I could. “We broke up months ago. Right, Aiden?”

“It was a misunderstanding,” he said. “We’re still very much together.”

What the hell was he doing?

Becca looked back and forth between us. “Does J.J. know about him?”

Shit. I pressed my lips together. Everyone loved J.J. I wasn’t upset that she was trying to protect him from whatever she thought was going on. But I didn’t want Aiden to know I was seeing someone else. I didn’t want him to know anything about my life. I didn’t want him here at all. And J.J. would be coming by the shop any minute to pick me up after both our shifts were over. I needed to get rid of him.

“Who’s J.J?” Aiden asked. “Are you seeing someone else?”

I cleared my throat and walked back up to the counter. I looked at Becca, trying to address her question and wishing Aiden would just disappear. “J.J. knows that Aiden and I broke up when I walked in on him cheating on me last semester. Aiden also knows this so I have no idea why he’s standing here right now.”

That seemed to get Becca on my side. She turned her head and glared at him.

Aiden smiled. “Like I said…a misunderstanding.”

“Seeing you in bed with someone else wasn’t a misunderstanding,” I said.

“You never let me explain.”

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