“I know.”
And if I didn’t before this conversation, I do now. Andrew will never be all right with me having anything to do with his ex. For the first time since Brooke and I have gotten closer, I seriously consider backing off.
The smartest thing to do would be to end things. It’s not like we have an actual relationship. We’ve just been texting back and forth.
Would I like it to be more?
Yeah.
But it’ll be at the expense of my friendship, and I’m not ready to go there.
Not yet.
13
BROOKE
Excitement stirs in the pit of my belly as I grab my phone and settle into bed.
Is it sad how much I look forward to texting Chris at the end of each day?
Probably.
After my bizarre conversation with Crosby this afternoon and then the run-in with Andrew, it’s exactly the balm I need to smooth out all the rough edges.
Instead of waiting for him to make first contact, I let my fingers fly across the keyboard.
Hey. How are you?
I hit send before staring at my phone, willing him to respond. Even though he seemed to find my photo attractive, there’s a part of me that worries I’m not really his type and he’ll end up ghosting me. I don’t think I could take that today of all days.
Hey, beautiful.
A relieved smile spreads across my face as all the doubts circling viciously through my head dissipate. My fingers hover over the screen as I work up the courage to hit the send button.
Want to FaceTime? It’s only fair since you already know what I look like.
As soon as I press send, my heart lodges itself in the middle of my throat before pounding into overdrive. The seconds that slowly creep by drag like hours. A mixture of anticipation and fear spiral through me, ratcheting up my nerves to unprecedented levels.
Sorry, I’m not ready for that just yet.
A tidal wave of disappointment crashes over me, threatening to drag me under. I’m so desperate to put a face to the person I’ve gotten to know over the past week.
What about a call?
I blow out a steady breath, fully expecting him to nix that idea as well. Only now does it occur to me that I might have made too much out of this little texting thing we have going on. Maybe this doesn’t mean anything to him, and I need to pull back. If the guy doesn’t even want to FaceTime or—
When the screen lights up with an incoming call, I jerk upright as my heart nearly explodes.
I stab the green button and answer it. “Hello?”
“Hey.”
His voice is unexpectedly deep and tickles something in the far recesses of my brain. Before I can think too much about it, a swarm of butterflies erupts in the pit of my belly before searching frantically for an escape route. I lower myself down before curling onto my side and hugging the phone to my face.
I blurt out the first thing that comes to mind. “I can’t believe we’re actually talking.”
He chuckles. “It’s nice to hear your voice.”
As crazy as it sounds, I already feel like we know each other. This is more a formality than anything else.
“Yours, too.” So good. “I can’t believe you were able to recognize me on campus.”
There’s a brief pause, and all I hear is the light intake of breath before he clears his throat. “I was at the Union grabbing lunch and I noticed you. Then I realized it was the same outfit you sent a picture of earlier. I took a chance and snapped the photo. I’m glad I was right.”
I cling to the first part of his explanation, not allowing too much hope to take root. “So, I’m your normal type?”
“You’re definitely my type.”
Another explosion detonates in my abdomen as a silly grin spreads across my face. Reining it in would be impossible. There’s no point even trying.
“And you won’t send me a photo in return?”
There’s another long pause. “Not yet.”
“You know that I don’t care, right?” My voice dips, turning serious. “I just want to put a face to the person I’ve been spending so much time texting.”
“I…just need a little time, okay? Is that cool?”
“Yeah, of course.”
If he’s not ready to take that next step, then I’ll wait until he is. I’m just happy to hear his voice. It feels like we’ve reached a new level.
I pull the covers over my body and snuggle into them as he says, “Tell me about your family. You’re an only child, right?”
“Yup. My parents divorced when I was seven, and then it was just my mom and me for a long time. When I was fifteen, she married my stepfather, Garret.”
“And you like him?”
“Yeah, I do. He’s super easy going and treats me well.” There’s a pause before I admit, “My mother, on the other hand? She’s kind of the opposite. Our relationship is more strained.”