Page 131 of My Rules

“What about this one?” Chloe holds out the dress into the change room.

“Hmm.” I twist my lips as I eye it over. “I was trying to go sexier.”

“So what’s this guy like that you’re going bowling with, anyway?”

“He seems nice. We’ve been chatting online for a couple weeks. We went out once and had a pretty good time.”

“What does Blake say about this?”

I frown as I pull the next dress up over my hips. “Why would Blake have anything to say about this?”

“Because you know how he is with you. He’ll be jealous as all hell.”

“Oh please,” I scoff. “Blake and I are just friends.” There’s no hope of anything more, not with Kayla in the picture.

“Keep telling yourself that. Trust me, I’m a Blake Grayson expert. I have been watching that man for eighteen months, and there’s something that I know with one hundred percent certainty.”

“What’s that?”

“Whenever you’re in the room, nobody else exists for Blake. I’ve learned to live with it by now.”

I open the curtain and look at Chloe. “Are you serious?”

She nods.

“That makes me feel like shit, Chloe, knowing that you’ve liked him all along. I’m sorry. Is that really what you think?”

“Yeah, I do, and that’s not a bad thing. You don’t need to apologize. I just had a crush on Blake because he’s gorgeous. We didn’t really know each other, and I knew pretty early on that he was smitten with you.”

“You know, it’s the weirdest thing. Taryn said the same thing to me the other day.”

“Because it’s true.”

“I hate to think that if you liked him, and you thought he liked me, that you wouldn’t have said something.” My eyes search hers.

“Blake and I never had chemistry. I just thought he was gorgeous, and now that I have Oliver, I’m actually glad that nothing ever happened.”

I shrug, unsure what to say to that, so I go back to trying on another dress. “Try this one on.” She holds another dress through the curtain.

I think out loud. “Anyway, he’s got a new girl, Kayla, and I think she might be the one for him. It’s probably a good thing. If something did happen with me and Blake and it didn’t work out, I worry that we would lose our friendship.”

“But what if it did work out.”

I stick my head out of the curtain, and my eyes hold hers for a moment.

Her eyes widen. “Wait a minute ... you do like him? You do, don’t you?”

“No. I’m confused; there’s a big difference. Blake has always been like a big brother to me, but recently I’ve just had a few weird moments where the lines have been blurred, that’s all.” I’m trying to convince myself it’s true, but the words sound hollow to my own ears.

“If I was you, do you know what I would do?”

My eyes search hers. “Please tell me, because I would love some insight from someone who knows the both of us.”

“I would grab hold of Blake Grayson with two hands, and I would make him fall madly in love with me. And I wouldn’t let him go ... ever.”

“What if he doesn’t like me that way?”

“Trust me, he does.” She goes back to looking at the racks. “I’m going to find you something sexy for bowling and not for stupid Gregory. I’m finding you something sexy for Blake.”

---