If only he knew how much I wanted to scream for him to do exactly that—and how I would never get the chance.
He brushed his lips against mine one last time on his way into the bathroom, and I took a minute to collect myself and breathe before unlocking the door to go back to the fund-raiser.
Whoever had been trying the door thankfully hadn’t waited around, and I quickly made my way through the room. My eyes darted around as I looked for Collin or his parents . . . or anyone who might have figured out what I’d just been doing.
I found Collin on the other side of the room talking with a few people, and as soon as he saw me, he quickly excused himself and walked over to me.
“You’re red; you don’t look like you feel good at all. Let me take you home.”
It was selfish, but I wanted him to. I didn’t want Knox to have to see us together anymore. I glanced around and tried to keep a straight face. “But all these people . . .”
“It’s fine, Harlow, they’ll understand. Come on, let’s go.”
He placed his hand on the small of my back to guide me out of the building. After a few steps, I turned my head to see Knox coming out of the hall where the bathrooms were. His eyes moved quickly around the room until they landed on me. A worried expression instantly covered his face, so I sent him a small smile, hoping he understood I was safe . . . for now. He nodded once, and I faced forward again as we left the fund-raiser, and I left my heart behind.
Chapter 8
Harlow
Summer 2010—Seattle
“ARE YOU SURE you want to go all the way to Walla Walla for college, Low? What’s wrong with University of Washington?” my friend Zoe asked as she messed with her hair in her bathroom mirror. “I mean, you already live in Seattle, and I just got this amazing apartment and need a roommate, so it’s perfect.”
“And I’ve never left Seattle, which makes it not so perfect,” I countered. “Besides, it’s only four hours away. I could’ve been like Hayley and gone to the East Coast.”
Zoe turned to give me a horrified stare. “And I would’ve hated you. Come on, I already have two years at UDub under me. I know everything so you don’t have to learn it the hard way.”
I laughed and looked back up at the ceiling from where I was lying on her bed. “I love you, and I’m going to miss you, but I need some space from Seattle for a while. Besides, it’s already official. I got my packet today with my dorm and all that.”
If I was being honest? it was the farthest my parents could get me to go. I wanted to stay in Seattle, but my mom had seen right through that. Knox. For how hard a time they’d had with letting Hayley go away, they sure as hell wanted me to get away from here because of him.
My parents didn’t have a problem with Knox; they just thought I was going to miss out on life because all I wanted was to make it to my eighteenth birthday so I could be with him. And since that birthday was a few short months away, they thought I wouldn’t be focused on academics and all that came with being independent.
I wasn’t about to say they were right.
“Hey, does this look okay?” Zoe asked, pulling me out of my thoughts.
I turned my head and lifted an eyebrow. “Uh, yeah? You’ve been wearing it for the past couple of hours.”
“I know, but I want to look comfy without looking gross, because I don’t want to look like a skank.”
A short laugh burst past my lips. “Wow, I didn’t know all this thought went into what you wore around me for sleepovers, Zoe. I’m touched. Really.”
“Hush your face. Okay, so don’t be mad . . .” She trailed off, and my face fell.
“Zo!”
“He just texted me—it’s not like I’m gonna say no to him!”
“Who is he? And what is it you’re not saying no to?” I asked as I sat up. “I thought we were gonna veg and watch movies.”
She held up her hands to stop me. “We totally will . . . after. And he is—” She cut herself off and her eyes widened when there was a knock on her door. “Here. He’s here. But don’t worry, he knows that I have a friend here, so he brought a friend.”
“Oh nice, so now I won’t be a third wheel. I’ll just be the pity double date.”
Zoe scoffed. “It’s not like that; trust me. He’s just a guy I hooked up with a week ago.”
“Oh my God, wait! How do I look?” I hissed as we walked into her living room.
She stopped walking long enough to give me a once-over and a thumbs-up, and then continued to the door. I barely had time to glance in the mirror near the door before she was opening it, and my breath came out in a hard rush.
Knox.
I wasn’t sure if time had stopped or if we were just experiencing the most awkward silence as we stared at each other. Because even though I’d talked to him the previous day and seen him the week before, and he was now standing feet from me . . . he was standing there because Zoe had a guy coming over that she’d hooked up with.