“We’re still friends.”
“That’s it? There’s nothing else you feel for me?” she asked, but not entirely sure she wanted the answer.
He laughed and looked at the sky. “What do you want me to say? Obviously I’m attracted to you.”
She nodded. “But just for two weeks, right? Then you’ll magically stop being attracted to me? I start dating Finn, you have some backup woman waiting for you, and we all go on our merry way. Is that how you see this playing out?”
“Yes,” he growled.
She bounced the ball once. “Okay. So it doesn’t bother you to think about me with Finn. Kissing him.” Bounced the ball again. “Touching him.”
“Stop it.” He looked ready to spit nails. “You say this shit to get a rise out of me.”
“I’m trying to get the truth out of you.”
He stood still, not moving, not speaking. She was ready to either burst into tears or scream. She was fighting for the right to his heart. And he was a tough competitor.
But if she gave up on him, she’d only fulfill what he thought to be true. Until he told her, showed her, he didn’t want her, she’d hang on to him.
“What about a compromise?” she said.
His ears perked. “Depends what you mean by compromise.”
She took a deep breath, prepping herself for the risk she was about to take.
“Everyone is so set on us having dates to the rehearsal. Why don’t we go together?”
His dark eyes sparkled with confusion. “For several reasons. One is that we’re keeping our relationship from everyone. Showing up together would be a big fucking declaration, the opposite of discretion.”
Okay, so he wasn’t one for big declarations, she’d figured that. “It doesn’t have to be this big deal,” she said. “We can show up together as friend-ish type things. That’s not a crazy notion.”
“Did you just say friend-ish type things?”
She glared.
He shook his head. “Whatever it is, it’s still a statement. One that your brother and everyone else will figure out. Then we’ll have to explain why we’re not together the next day.”
“Of course, because God forbid we go beyond two weeks.”
His expression seemed pained. “You agreed to the terms,” he said. “Why are you trying to change them now?”
“Because I want you!” And she wanted him for a lot longer than fourteen days. But she felt like she was on the brink of losing him already, and it had nothing to do with the timeline.
He ran a hand through his hair, and it looked like he was trying to fight off his brain from exploding. But she went on. Pushed. Because she had to know if she was fighting a losing battle. “The question is, do you want me back?”
Those dark eyes zeroed in on her. “Yes.” He sounded pissed off by his own admission. “But that doesn’t change our arrangement. Showing up at the rehearsal dinner, making a statement like that gets us nowhere. It actually puts us in a worse position. Because the next day, we’re done.”
That struck her chest like a dull knife to the ribs. “Did you ever decide about Jenna’s friend? Are going to the wedding with the third bridesmaid?”
He nodded. “I told Colt I’d show her around. She’ll be here for a couple of weeks while he and Jenna are gone.”
“Ah yes, and a couple of weeks is your specialty,” she snapped.
“Don’t.” He took a step closer. “Don’t act like you aren’t doing the same thing.”
“You’re the one who pushed me toward Finn. I haven’t said yes to him yet.”
He scoffed, and all the hard muscles of his chest and abs flexed. “I’m not talking about just that. Don’t pretend that you’re innocent in all of this. You sought me out, remember? You’re the one who agreed to the two weeks, because you’re on a mission to gain experience and find a better man when we’re done.”