Page 19 of Counting the Stars

“Ladies, I need your help.” I intently make eye contact with Michelle and Aly, who are sitting across from me at our booth at The Local. With its beachy theme and extensive menu, it’s one of our favorite places to eat. Plus, for some reason, it always smells like funnel cake.

We try to have a girls’ night at least once a month. It’s something I always look forward to, but the guys hate it. Alex and Carter typically end up pouting that they have to find their own food and Jax has gotten extra overprotective of Aly now that she’s pregnant. I swear, that man would put her in bubble wrap if he could. Not that she needs it; the girl can hold her own.

“What’s wrong?” Aly asks with a look of concern. She brushes back a lock of her dirty-blond hair. All three of us look so vastly different from one another. Alex likes to refer to Michelle and me as fun-sized since we’re both a smidge over five feet, while Aly towers over us at five eight. Michelle and Aly have light hair and blue eyes, while I’m the opposite withdark curly hair and brown eyes. Even our body types are all over the place. Michelle is the petite one, Aly is the athletic one, and me? I have curves for days.

“I need to talk to you about Alex.”

“Ugh,” Michelle groans. “Did he propose to you with an onion ring again?”

“No, the last time was with one of those plastic rings that come off a water bottle cap.”

“Well, at least that’s more durable.” Aly takes a sip of her chocolate milkshake and throws her head back. “My God, that’s the best thing I’ve ever tasted.”

“Didn’t you just say the same thing about the nachos?” Michelle points a french fry at Aly.

“I can’t help it. My taste buds are heightened or something. I’m telling you, food tastes amazing when you’re pregnant.”

“I’ll take your word for it.” Michelle looks back at me. “Let’s get back to the task at hand. What did Alex do this time?”

“He didn’t do anything specifically, but we were doing laundry at the same time the other day and I found this on the floor near the washing machine he was using.” I pull out a crumpled piece of paper. “At first, I thought it was just a piece of garbage, but when I went to throw it out, I noticed my name written on it. It must’ve fallen out of his pocket.”

Aly snatches the paper out of my hand. “‘Operation Ms. to Mrs.,’” she reads. “Oh boy, he’s upping his game.”

“That looks like Carter’s handwriting.” Michelle looks over Aly’s shoulder. “If that’s the case, he’s called in reinforcements.”

“Ugh!” I groan, sinking low into my seat. “This can’t happen.”

“Why not?” Michelle asks while studying the list. “I mean, yeah, he’s goofy and all, but that’s just part of his charm. Alexis such a wonderful guy, not to mention good-looking. Also, why don’t you like flowers?”

“It’s just not my thing.” I yank the paper back out of Aly’s hands.

“I think it’s great!” Aly ignores my actions and swirls the straw around in her milkshake. “I like that Alex has a plan. It reminds me of my life list and…” A blank expression washes over her face. “I can’t remember what else I was going to say.”

“That baby brain is hitting you hard, isn’t it?”

“The other day Jax asked me when I was going to start using big words again.” She frowns. “And that was before he found my purse in the fridge.”

“So what are you going to do?” Michelle asks.

“I’m not sure.” I sit up a little straighter. “But I know I need to prove to him that I’m not the one for him.”

My friends share a sad look.

“What?”

“Why are you so hard-set on not dating Alex?” Michelle asks gently.

“We’ve both kind of wondered why you push him away,” Aly adds. “Is it because of his dating history? I’ve heard rumors, but I haven’t seen him with anyone since you moved here.”

“He’s very well-known at the hospital.” I dramatically roll my eyes, hoping to convince my friends. I know he’s had flings with a few of the nurses. I heard a group of them talking about him once when he brought in a patient while working as a paramedic. The general consensus is that while Alex is a huge lover of women, he’s respectful and always clear that there are no strings attached.

“I wouldn’t be too concerned about that.” Aly dips a fry into some honey mustard. “If Jax can mend his playboy ways, I have no doubt Alex can too.”

“I get what you’re saying, but I can’t be with him. It’s just… I can’t explain it. But he needs to let this go. To let me go. Will you help?”

“If this is what you really want, we’ll support you,” Michelle says. “But I’m not sure what we can do to help.”

“I’ve been thinking about this. I need to figure out ways to make me unattractive to him.”

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