Page 41 of Ask Me Something

“Well, I believe we were all heading down to the beach for a bit. You ready, Kenzie?”

Brian’s expression changed immediately upon seeing his sister. “Uh, okay. Mind if I join, too?”

I grinned. “Of course not. Lead the way, Colby.”

Colby was momentarily confused but went with the flow, falling into step next to an irritated McKenzie as we all made our way down to the beach.

“Okay, boys, do you mind grabbing us some beers,” I suggested with a smile, wanting some time alone with Brian’s sister.

The guys headed toward the bar while we girls meandered down toward the beach. We took a seat on a dock with our feet dangling over the water.

Knowing we only had a few minutes before they returned, I was blunt. “The crush is Colby, I take it?”

She didn’t bother to deny it. “Is this the part where you tell me how screwed up that is?” Her eyes were focused on her feet.

I sighed. Who the hell was I to give advice about anything romantic? So I went with my gut. “Crushes aren’t about logic. It’s simply how you feel. Of all people, I’m not in a position to judge that.”

“He was coming to your room because you’re the type of woman he wants. Sexy, confident, beautiful, polished—”

I shook my head and interrupted. “Stop, Kenzie. Do you want to know why Colby came to my room?”

She rolled her eyes. “Please don’t tell me some story. I’m a big girl.”

“I know that,” I started, trying to mind her feelings. “And what I was going to say is that the reason why he came to my room is because of the challenge.”

She looked at me curiously, and I continued.

“Men like Colby like the pursuit of a woman who isn’t falling at their feet. You said it yourself. He’s used to these droves of girls in LA throwing themselves at him. When one doesn’t automatically do so, he’s interested for the sake of the chase.”

She blew out a breath of frustration. “And I’ve been the pathetic girl who doesn’t pose a challenge at all.”

I put my arm around her shoulders, hoping the gesture didn’t come across as awkward since comforting others wasn’t my forte. “There’s nothing pathetic about you, McKenzie. He obviously has a relationship with you that he doesn’t have with other women, which means he must show you another side of himself. And that makes you special to him.”

“He does show me another side. But I always pitifully make him the priority. Maybe if I didn’t, I’d be the chase.”

I nodded. “Now you get it. This isn’t a game per se but more of a strategy. Some men want what they can’t have.”

“Which is why you haven’t slept with my brother?”

Oh, boy. “That’s a bit more complicated.”

“I’ve spilled my guts about a guy I’ve had a crush on since I was six years old.”

I hesitated, thinking about how to put it. “Your brother is my best friend. And now he’s my boss. Adding a third element gets tricky.”

“You’re his best friend, too. I hope you know that. He talks about you all the time. I mean, only to me, but I know that over the last year since you moved, he misses you a lot.”

The thought warmed me. “I miss him, too.”

“By the way, please don’t tell Brian about Colby. I think he knew about it when I was younger, but I don’t want him knowing about it now.”

It meant a lot that Kenzie trusted me enough to confide in me. “I won’t. We’re here to have a good time, so the other piece of advice I have is that at the reception you should dance with Will as much as possible.”

She giggled. “Oh, that won’t be a hardship.”

We accepted the beers gratefully when the boys found us a few minutes later.

“Everything all right?” Brian asked, looking at Kenzie and back toward me.

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