Page 38 of Fall With Me

She itched her nose with her middle finger. “But you wouldn’t even talk to him just a few weeks ago. Every time he walked in or even looked in your direction, you bailed. I’ve always known something was up between you two, but I’m confused as to what is going on here.”

I gave a wobbly smile. “Well, it’s a long story.”

“Since I ordered half a pig, we have time,” Katie replied.

“And you guys are going to think I’m a terrible person.”

“Doubtful,” Calla reassured me.

I wasn’t so sure about that, but I hadn’t told a soul except Charlie about what had gone down between Reece and me, including the huge misunderstanding. I took a deep breath and then I told themeverythingabout the night with Reece, pausing long enough for our food to be delivered.

“So, yeah, that’s ... that’s where I’m at with everything,” I finished as I cut the rest of my syrup with a side of waffle into tiny squares.

Calla stared at me, a piece of extra-crispy bacon dangling from her fingertips.

Even Katie gaped at me, which was saying something, if I managed to shock her into any realm of silence. I shrunk back against the booth, feeling sheepish and crappy. “I’m a terrible person, aren’t I?”

“No,” Calla said immediately. “You’re not a terrible person.”

“Wait.” Katie held up one hand. Somehow a thick piece of sausage had made it to her fingers. “So, let me make sure I have this correct. You’ve basically been in love with Reece since you were fifteen.”

“I wouldn’t sayinlove,” I muttered, but my heart thumped.

“Whatever. I’ve known you’ve been in love with him,” she insisted, and I didn’t protest it, because I figured it would end up with a discussion about her super-stripper powers. “Anyway, you’ve beenin lovewith him, but he always treated you like the annoying kid next door.”

My eyes narrowed on her. “I wouldn’t say he treated me like the annoying kid next door either.”

She ignored me. “He finally starts treating you like the hot chick that you are, he comes to the bar one night, gets shitfaced, but because you’re madly, deeply, and irrevocably in love with him and because you’re a girl, you don’t realize he’s shitfaced.”

My eyes narrowed further on her.

“You two go to his house, because he asked for a ride for his drunk ass, things get hot and heavy. You see his sausage.” She waved the sausage she held, and Calla made a choking sound as she reached for her coffee. “You guys make out all the way back to his bedroom, where he passes out. Am I following this so far?”

“Yeah.” I folded my arms. “Kind of.”

Katie nodded sagely, and I had no idea what she was being sage about. “First off, that’s lame of him to get that freaking drunk, so he gets a cool point taken from him.”

“Cool point?” Calla turned wide eyes on her. “We’re still adding and taking away cool points?”

I snickered.

“In my world, we are,” she replied, and then she bit into the sausage, chewing thoughtfully for a moment. “So he passes out, you stay with him, and then he wakes up, thinks you guys had sex and is apologetic and regretful?”

Nodding, I popped a piece of waffle into my mouth.

“And you thought he regretted having sex with you,” Calla tossed in. “But he regretted getting so drunk and having sex with you?”

“Yep.”

Katie shook her head as she picked up the salt and dumped it on her half-eaten sausage. “But you two didn’t have sex.”

“No. And I started to tell him that when he first made the assumption, but he was so damn sorry about it all that I thought he was talking about the actual sex.”

“And that hurt your feelings,” Calla said gently. “That’s understandable. I probably would’ve thought the same thing.”

“But you could’ve cleared it up right then,” Katie pointed out.

“No shit,” I replied. “But I didn’t. I was so embarrassed and ... yeah, my feelings were hurt, so I left his place and just so much time passed, and I was still all butt sore about it that I never cleared it up.”

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