“Cade.”
Poo. My entire person deflates knowing she’s headed that way. Of course, I want her to mend fences with her big bro, but that little tail tucking is going to cost my own tail a heck of a good time.
Scarlett, Daisy, and I head back to the dorm, and I can feel my secret brewing and bubbling inside me like lava. We take the elevator up, and my heart pounds so loud it fills the chamber of this tiny space like the beating of a jungle drum.
The door opens to their floor, and my ears fill with the rush of the entire ocean. The words swim up my throat, and I try with everything in me to swallow them back down.
“Goodnight!” they call as they take a step off the elevator, and I jump right off with them, feeling the whoosh of the doors close behind me.
“What’s going on?” Scarlett marvels at my lithe maneuver.
Daisy eyes me with suspicion. “I told you she’s been acting strange.” She takes a step in close to me. “In fact, you’ve been acting spacey all night. Spill it. What is it?”
“I’m in love with a boy.” There, I said it. It feels as if a tractor just lifted off my shoulders, and I can finally breathe again.
They both coo in unison as if I’ve pulled a fuzzy yellow baby chick from my purse.
“And his name is Cade James.”
Both Scarlett and Daisy suck in a violent breath.
“You are one brave soul.” Daisy fans herself with her tiny black clutch. “If things don’t end well with you two, Piper just might—”
“Oh, honey, believe me, I have been filling in the blanks.”
Scarlett steps in and picks up my hand. A deep look of concern lines her face with worry.
“I take it Piper doesn’t know?”
I shake my head.
“When are you going to tell her?” Scarlett’s jade eyes light up with something just this side of horror.
“Right after I tell him.”
Cade
I’ve been torn over very few things in my life—usually something small like the difference between pitching for a medium or a large drink, or how well done I’d like my steak. Never have I been torn over the right time to tell a girl I love her—not that I’ve ever tossed those words out liberally. I’ve said them to Sammy, but only because she said them first, and it felt right to parrot them back. At the time, I believed them, but Cassidy has hacked down that fallacy, shown me what true love is, and now I’m torn over when and how to share this information. I could do it sooner than later. Maybe take her to the overlook. But then, we have Piper’s party this weekend, and is it a good idea to profess my love right before I expose her to my barbed wire of a sister? Maybe we should ease into it. We go to the party, and then I lay it all out there afterward. That should soften any blows my sister might lay out. And knowing Piper, there will be many, many blows I’ll have to soften.
Buddy comes over and wraps himself around my legs with the leash in his mouth, and just the sight of that long brown tether brings a goofy grin to my face.
An aggressive knock bursts over the door, and my heart thuds, because it’s a little earlier than Cassidy usually arrives, but I’ll take it. I whip the door open just enough with my foot, holding back Bud in the event he wants to reprise his role as the galloping kisser. He could have knocked her out cold, or worse. I still feel like shit over the incident, but it’s not Cassidy I’m staring at. It’s my sister.
“What’s up?” I look past her to the overgrown oak where Cassidy’s been known to park.
“Well, it’s nice to see you, too. Now, get out of my way so I can give my dog a hug.”
I pull back, and Buddy races out, running circles around Piper, glad to see her. She puts the leash on him, and before I know it, we’re taking a walk around the block. Usually, I would eat this up. Usually, I’d rave about how we have to do it again, but I can’t stop looking over my shoulder at the house, making sure Cassidy hasn’t pulled up and sashayed her cute self to the door.
“Have you heard a thing I’ve said?” She waves a hand over my eyes.
“Yes”—I turn back around—“sorry, no. My head’s all over the place.”
“You’re just like my roommate. Lately, it feels as if I’m talking to a wall. I was apologizing by the way. I said I would be nice to what’s-her-face if I saw her around on campus.”
“Good. Thank you. And will you be nice to her if—I don’t know, you see her off-campus?” I came this close to ruining her surprise birthday party. I’m sure that would have gone over well with Owen. I do like all the care he’s taking to make this special for her.
“You mean like at your house?” Piper’s lips purse as if she’s physically going to be ill.
“Yeah”—I cringe because I know this might leave her with the wrong impression—“like at the house.”