Page 74 of Tongue-Tied

“Just finished half of one, and there’s a lull in customers, so I’m taking a break.” He motions toward the girl. “Was training Chelsea, but my replacement is on his way because my manager knows I have plans.”

“Plans?”

“I’m meeting my parents for lunch on the pier.” His forehead wrinkles. “I thought I told you about it.”

“You probably did and I forgot.” I puff out a breath. “Tell them hello for me.”

“I will.” He smiles. “If you didn’t have a student government meeting, I’d invite you along.”

I blink. “Holy shit, I can’t believe I forgot about it.”

His smirk is heartening. “I guess it’s good we ran into each other.”

“Jesus.” I lift my wrist to check my watch. “Can you be my future campaign manager?”

“Hell no.” He closes his book app. “But I’ll certainly organize your TV appearances and print out all your flyers.”

I playfully elbow him. “Deal.”

I sit there awkwardly, wondering how to bring up the topic of his date. I’ve never had an issue asking him pointed questions before.

“So…” He bites his lip. “Aren’t you gonna ask me how it went?”

Well, there it is.

“How did it go?” I squeak out, but if he thinks my voice sounds strange, he doesn’t mention it.

He hitches a shoulder like it’s no big thing. “Not well.”

Guilt tightens my stomach when I feel relieved. “So…?”

“There was no chemistry.” He sniffs self-confidently, and I note how flippant he sounds over a disaster of a date. This is definitely an improvement. “And besides, I apparently talked about you a bit too much.”

“Uh-oh.” I wince. My pulse is throbbing as I ask, “What made you do that?”

He bites his lip. “It’s comfortable talking about my best friend.”

My neck prickles. “Still, he probably got the wrong idea.”

He frowns. “He did, but I set him straight.”

Christ, why do I feel relief and regret all at once?

“And…what happened?”

He sighs dramatically. “We decided to be friends.”

“Suppose it could’ve been worse.” I nudge his shoulder. “You could always use more friends.”

He rolls his eyes and grows silent. From the way he’s fidgeting, I can tell there’s something else he wants to say. I wait him out.

“Thing is…” Austin twiddles his thumbs. “I’m pretty sure I need a fourth date. Maybe even a fifth.”

I inhale sharply. “Are you serious?” My heart is thumping hard as I try to make sense of why I feel so pleased.

“Well, yeah…look how much I messed up on that date.”

“But look how far you’ve come. You realized there was no chemistry instead of beating yourself up about not being someone’s type. You’re finally seeing that it’s not only one-sided. People have to actually connect, and it needs to be mutual.”

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