Page 63 of Love to Hate You

“Sure,” I say.

I’d like to wring my own neck right now.

She flashes a smile, and I feel awestruck because I can count on one hand how many times Daisy has given me a genuine smile. Including this time, it would be one.

“What do you want to watch?” she asks.

I shrug and gravitate toward her. “I don’t care. You pick.”

“Okay,” she singsongs. “Just remember that when we’re an hour into some chick flick and you want to off yourself.”

I settle on the couch leaving about a foot of space between us.

That’s more than enough room, right?

Daisy clicks through a few movies until she finds the one she wants. We watch the preview and she raises her brow in askance. I nod, and she cues up the movie. Twenty minutes in, my muscles gradually loosen, and I relax, losing myself in the mindless humor of the rom-com we’re watching.

This isn’t bad.

What was I so worried about?

I’ve been around this chick since freshman year and nothing has happened because I haven’t allowed it to. And that, right there, is the key. As long as I keep that in mind, everything will be fine. The wanting may never go away, but that doesn’t mean I have to act on it.

Because I’m distracted by the girl next to me—the way she looks when she’s laughing, her fresh floral scent, the way she glances at me to see if I’m laughing as well—it takes about forty minutes until I realize that the main characters in the movie like each other but are constantly bickering and pushing each other away.

Oh, for fuck’s sake. Seriously?

I shift on the couch and give Daisy a little side-eye, hoping she hasn’t picked up on the similarity of our situations. Although, she’s not the one pushing me away. She’s reacting to me being a prick. There’s a difference.

I drag a hand over my face, needing this movie to end so I can retreat to my room for the next twenty-four hours. By the time the credits roll, I’m a nervous ball of energy. Naturally, the main characters got it on and worked out their issues, before living happily ever after.

I almost snort.

If only it were that simple. Some issues are insurmountable. They can’t be wrapped up in an hour and a half. Life is messy, and it’s not fair. Sometimes, no matter how much you want someone, it’s just not going to happen.

This is one of those times.

Grabbing the remote, I turn off the television. I glance at Daisy, ready to put this night behind me. The TV screen is blank, but she continues staring at it. Her brows are drawn together like she’s trying to work through a problem in her head.

I’m not going to lie, it’s a little disconcerting.

“So…” I jerk my thumb toward my room. “I’m off to bed.”

I can’t get away from her fast enough.

“Feeling super-duper tired,” I add in case she didn’t hear me the first time.

Her gaze slides to mine. “I know we agreed to forget about the past and move on, but I can’t. I want to know what your problem was with me.” She pauses for a beat. “I need to know.”

“What?” I laugh, but it comes out sounding choked and high-pitched. “I told you that it had nothing to do with you. It was all me. Okay?” I don’t wait for a response. “Great. Glad that’s settled. Now we can go to bed.”

Daisy shakes her head as her frown intensifies. Her gaze pins me in place. I’m powerless to move. To breathe.

“Come on, Carter. Just be straight with me.” She angles her body toward mine. “Whatever it is, I won’t be mad.”

I close my eyes and suck in a breath, but it doesn’t do a damn bit of good to calm me. “There’s nothing to tell.”

“That doesn’t make sense,” she insists. “I don’t understand why we can’t talk about this like adults.”

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