Page 17 of Hazel and Elijah Find Out: First They F*cked Around

I considered it for a moment, then typed outI’m gonna pass tonight.

Lame.

I snorted, shaking my head.Have fun, Princess.

He sent a GIF of Cinderella transforming from pink rags into a blue shimmering dress.

Outside of the sliding glass door, colorful leaves drifted to the grass on a gentle breeze. It looked like a great night. They’d probably be seated on the patio with outdoor fireplaces fighting back the chill.

I considered meeting up with my friends. Mom had my car, but I could take my bike or ask Sterling to pick me up.

Then I remembered that I’d have to change out of my sweats and into jeans, and decided it wasn’t worth the trouble. A Friday night alone at the cabin would be relaxing. There was a grill in the shed, so I could cook a steak and veggies that Mom had bought from the farmers market.

The rejection from Hazel had taken more out of me than I wanted to admit.

She said she wasn’t dating the ranger guy, and I believed her, but it was obvious there was something between them—everyone in town mentioned his name with hers. I’d seen him coming out of the clinic earlier this week. Clearly, she was more willing to make time for him, and all I could do was accept that.

Maybe they were just meant to be, and it had nothing to do with me. But I couldn’t help wondering if it was my tarnished past that kept her from wanting more than a good time from me.

Regardless of the changes happening in the community, one’s reputation carried a lot of swing still.

My shoulders dropped with my sigh.

One more night.

I’d let myself feel bad about it for one more night.

Again, my phone buzzed. Sebastian’s contact image filled the screen. I answered his video call.

“Hey, man,” I greeted.

“Holy shit, Eli, you okay?” His hazel eyes were wide under thick dark eyebrows.

“Yeah, why?”

“You look rough. Did you lose your razor on a wilderness hike or something?”

I chuckled. “Why would I have my razor on a hike?”

“I don’t know what you do out there. I don’t like to go to dirt-road places.” Red brick filled the background of his video, and the sounds of Greektown were static in my microphone.

“There’s a lot more beards here, and not in a styled, polished way, but in a ‘I don’t feel like shaving’ sort of way.”

“I would not call your look polished. Are you at your grandma’s?”

“No, this is the rental Mom and I are sharing.”

He shook his head. “You gotta get outta there. You’re becoming too uncool for me to do business with.”

I laughed, rolling my eyes. “Did you call just to be an asshole?”

“Kinda. I miss you.” Sebastian’s openness was one of the first things I connected to when I met him. He never took anything too seriously, and he was clear about his feelings. Which meant he rubbed people the wrong way sometimes, but for me, it was a relief. My dad was disingenuous, and Seb’s honesty was something I could trust.

“Come up, I’m sure Mom would be happy to see you.”

“Nah, one of us has to stay down here and run the business.”

“You could hang for a weekend; it’s not that far away.”

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