I clear the shakes from my throat. “Um, me, Monica, Josh, Bo, Regan, and Rachel.”
Silence.
“Adrian? Is that a problem? I can ditch and come see you.”
Did I just say that?
“Nah, it’s cool, Blue. Just do you, remember? I know who you’re coming to tomorrow.” The cocky smile is evident over the phone and makes me simultaneously roll my eyes and smile.
“I’ll talk to you later. I miss you.” I really do.
As soon as I hang up, I hear footsteps behind me on the porch.
“Ready? Who was that?” Bo asks as he snaps a leather cuff around his wrist.
“Just my parents. Oh my God, listen to this.” I get closer and lower my voice, telling him about them going to San Diego to hit the studio again.
“That’s awesome, November! I can’t wait to hear their new stuff.” He really can’t.
I roll my eyes and chuckle. “We’ll see ...”
“Oh stop, they’re great and you know it.” He playfully taps my shoulder, and for the first time since I walked blindly away from him, I feel it.
With closed eyes, I dip my ear to my shoulder and take a slow breath. In the span of a second, the front door opens and Bo shoves his hand into his pocket as our friends gather on the porch.
“All right, guys,” Monica starts, “we can all fit into my car since Josh is meeting us there.”
Bo rubs the back of his neck, leaving his hand in place. “Actually, I’m gonna take my car, too. Ember, will you ride with me?” Everyone turns to stare at me.
Oh for fuck’s sake. Are we seventeen? Seriously? Breathe. Get your shit together, Harris.
“Sure, let’s go.” I head for Bo’s car, pushed forward by the collective breath everyone was holding.
Chapter Seventeen
When we exit the driveway, Bo turns the music down. Please not now.
“I wanted to get you alone for a few minutes.” He rubs his hand on the top of his thigh.
“Why?” Cursing the late summer sunset, I attempt to cover my red cheeks by looking out the window.
“You love Coldplay. I don’t want tonight to be ruined for you. We don’t have to sit next to each other.” He glances my way as I mentally scan the group. Crap.
“Like that wouldn’t be obvious.” I chuckle. “Two couples book-ended by us.”
“Are Regan and Rae a couple?” Bo turns to me in complete seriousness.
“Take it easy, you know what I mean.” I wave my hand.
A few minutes later, I realize neither one of us has turned the music back up. Bo sees me eye the dials and reaches for the volume. I block him with my hand, and a zap of static electricity causes both of us to chuckle uneasily. I clear my throat.
“Listen. I need to tell you something.” Just say it. “I know you didn’t mean to hurt me.” I take a deep breath, swallow a three-ton boulder, and continue, “I just, um, it was a lot all at once. You, me, the music, the perfection of it all. I felt like someone shot me from a catapult, and I was flying through the air with flailing arms and legs.”
“Were you looking for an out?” Bo doesn’t remove his eyes from the road. His jaw punches the skin on his cheek.
“What?”
“Were you looking for an out? Did what happened at McCarthy’s give you the excuse to run from our intensity that you were looking for?”
I stare at Bo, waiting for him to exhale, to tell me he was kidding, that he understands why I ran. Do you understand why you ran? He doesn’t say a word. We pull into the parking lot of the concert hall with the heavy, unanswered question leaving me to wonder if my fight-or-flight mechanism is faulty. Bo puts the car in park and gets out without a word, slamming the door behind him. When I walk up to the group, it seems Bo’s face has spoken for both of us. No one says anything, except Monica; but she at least waits until she can pull me aside.
“What the hell happened in the car?” She whispers with all the concern she’s been lacking over the past few weeks.
“I was honest. I told him I knew he didn’t mean to hurt me; that everything with us moved really fast. He asked if I used Bill and Tristan as an excuse to bail.” I hand my ticket to the person at the gate.
“Christ, what’d you tell him?”
“I didn’t answer.”
Monica stops in her tracks, shakes her head, and links arms with Josh. As promised, when we reach our seats, Bo and I take the last two. I opt for the very end, so I don’t have to deal with people I know on both sides of me.
*