Caleb’s arm tightens around me when I fully expected him to drop it. “We came over for the day.”
“How nice. So did we.” Baylee glances over at Carson, her gaze softening. “You both know Carson, right?”
“Not really,” Caleb says.
“Sort of,” I add.
“Well, this is my boyfriend, Carson.” She smiles at him and he grins in return. “Carson, this is Gracie and…Caleb.”
Oh, I am one hundred percent sure Carson has heard all about Caleb and what he did to Baylee throughout the years. And I’m also sure he thinks Caleb is a total prick.
But he’s polite and says hello. I scramble off Caleb’s lap and he rises to his feet to go shake Carson’s hand, which I can tell shocks Baylee. I’m sure her expectations of Caleb are very low when it comes to manners, and I’m quietly proud of him for acting like such a gentleman.
“I heard you two were living together,” Baylee says. I can tell from the expression on her face that she’s dying to ask questions, but she won’t say anything since we kept our coffeeshop meeting to ourselves.
“With Eli as well,” I remind her. “We’re roommates.”
“Interesting,” she says, drawing the word out.
Caleb chooses that moment to sling his arm around my shoulders. I get the sense he’s staking a claim on me, and normally that kind of thing annoys the crap out of me, but for some reason, I’m okay with it. Okay with his claiming.
In fact, I tilt my head back, meet his gaze and smile at him like a lovesick idiot.
“How long are you here for, Bay?” Caleb asks and I try my best not to let the nickname bother me. It means nothing. He’s known her a long time. Way longer than me. And he’s known her intimately too.
Ugh. I sort of hate that, and I totally hate how I feel right now.
“We got here yesterday. We’ll head home tomorrow,” she answers, leaning her head against Carson’s shoulder briefly. He takes his opportunity and drops a quick kiss on her temple. “We’re staying at one of the hotels on the bluffs.”
“Nice,” Caleb says with a nod. “We just got here. Can only stay one night because of practice and work.”
“Where are you staying?” Carson asks.
“We’re camping in the dunes tonight. My dad let us borrow his truck,” Caleb answers.
“Your dad let you take his truck? I’m shocked,” Baylee says with a laugh.
I see green. I’m a jealous whore and I hate it.
“Yeah, same,” Caleb says with a chuckle, his fingers streaking up and down my arm.
“We just wandered over here to try the ice cream,” Carson says, his gaze going to the mostly empty cup in Caleb’s hand. “How was it?”
“Amazing,” I tell them. “The peach is my favorite.”
“We’ll definitely have to get some then,” Carson says as he starts toward the front door. “Nice officially meeting you both.”
“You too,” Caleb says and I smile.
“You guys have fun,” Baylee says, her gaze knowing as she follows Carson into the shop, her hand still clutched in his.
The moment they’re gone, Caleb tosses the cup into the nearby trash can. “You ready to go?”
I pull away from his hold and grab my bag with my succulent inside from the ground. “Let’s do it.”
We walk back to the truck, both of us quiet. Me muddling over Baylee and her intimate knowledge of Caleb. I am not what I would consider a jealous person. We all have history, pasts with other people, and that’s okay. I’m cool with it. I always have been before.
And I don’t have any issues with Baylee. She’s nice. When she was in deep with Caleb, I felt sorry for her. He took advantage of her and treated her like garbage a lot of the time, and I firmly believed she deserved someone better. It looks like she found her someone better in Carson. I’m happy for her, really, I am.