Page 34 of Fall at Once

“So, Andrew, what can I do for you?” He seemed shy. He was giving me non-creeper vibes, so I smiled at him.

“You’re Kenzie’s cousin, right?”

I sat up, narrowing my eyes. “Maybe.”

He shook his head. “I’m not here for anything nefarious, or stalkery, or—” Frustrated, he ran his hands into his hair and let out a low growl. “She’s driving me crazy. I just need her to talk to me.”

“Yeah, I can see that. Driving people crazy is one of her superpowers.”

He laughed, dry and cynical. “Why won’t she listen? Are running and hiding her other superpowers?”

“No!” I turned to see a rage-filled Kenzie stomping through the Confectionery. “Uh-uh. Nope. You don’t get to be here. Get lost, Drew.” Kenzie set our food down and glared at him before turning to me. “We dated a few months ago. Zero stars. Do not recommend.”

“Oh.” I perked up. “This is Drew.TheDrew? He said Andrew, and I didn’t make the connection. I remember now. Hi.” Kenzie had told me all about Drew—the man who had cheated on her and broke her heart—over a wine-filled phone call not long after it happened.

“I just want to talk to you—” he told her.

“No. I don’t talk to lying, cheating, scumbag men.”

“Will you give it a rest and talk to me, please?”

“You give it a rest, asshole. And now you want to talk to me? Fuck that, you had your chance, and you didn’t want to talk. Plus, that’s my cousin you’re hitting on. You have a lot of nerve.”

“She thinks I cheated on her,” Drew informed me. “And I did not.”

“Yeah, right.” Kenzie was practically apoplectic, but she also looked sad.

Beneath the anger and bravado she was hurting, you’d have to know her as well as I did to be able to tell. Plus, she’d never been serious about a man before. I wanted to hug her. I wanted to take her upstairs and make it all better with a glass of wine and maybe a movie to veg out over. But I knew better. Getting mushy would only piss her off more.

“Leave. Now,” she yelled at him. “I’m going to hurt your feelings or your face, Drew. It’s up to you and totally depends on what you choose to do next.”

“Fine, I’ll go.”

“Good. Leave. Bye.”

“Great. Perfect. I’m out.”

“What the hell, Kenzie?” I hissed as she sat and shoved two petit fours into her mouth.”

“I’m pretty sure I’m in love with him,” she mumbled while chewing. “I’m so stupid.”

“You’re not stupid. You’re breaking my heart, Kenzie. Can I hug you?”

“Ugh, no. I don’t want to talk about it. What’s the deal with Cole? You have to talk to me now. Tell me all the things. I need a distraction so I don’t go running after his stupid ass.”

“Um, okay. I like Cole. Too much, and I need it to stop.”

“I can help with that.” She nodded emphatically. “I got this. Men, in general, are huge disappointments in most areas. Case in point, both of our fathers, Ross and Drew, Riley’s ex-husband—you get the picture. Ask him what his favorite book is. Or his favorite dish to cook. Ask him for laundry tips. Tell him you need to get a grease stain out. And you’ll like him a little less when he can’t come up with a solution for you, right? He doesn’t know about laundry, Madi. None of them do.”

“That’s not a bad idea. Well, he can make good toast. His coffee was pretty good, too.”

“Toast is not food. And any idiot who wakes up in the morning can learn to make a decent cup of coffee. Those are basic life skills. Come on, Madi. Just get him talking. The more words that come out of his mouth, the dumber he’ll probably sound. Then, boom. Your crush will be deactivated.”

“It’s worth a try. Can I help you with Drew?”

“Nope. There’s no more help for me. I’ve given up on men,especially that one.”

“I think I have to.”

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