Page 58 of Hate Notes

"He was apparently quite talented with that hula-hoop," I stage-whispered to Jessica. "Could keep it going for hours."

A surprised chuckle escaped Orion. The sound did something warm and fluttery to my chest.

"Good to know he has that kind of stamina," Jessica said with a wink.

I felt my cheeks heat as the server returned with our drinks. Orion's thigh pressed against mine under the table, and I wasn't sure if it was accidental or deliberate. Either way, it was distracting.

"Speaking of stamina," Colton said, "remember that time in college when?—"

"No college stories," Orion cut in.

"But they're the best stories!"

"I want to hear college stories," I said, leaning forward eagerly.

"You really don't," Orion said, but his voice held an unfamiliar note of warmth.

The conversation flowed easily after that, helped along by Colton's natural charm and Jessica's surprisingly sharp wit. I learned that Orion and Colton had been roommates, that Orion had briefly considered becoming an architect before a particular business professor changed his plans entirely. I also learned that he’d once gotten so drunk he tried to organize a stranger's garage at 3 AM.

"He just couldn't help himself," Colton said, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes. "The poor woman found him categorizing her holiday decorations by season and size."

"It was inefficiently stored," Orion muttered, but I caught him fighting a smile.

I liked this version of him—slightly softer around the edges, actually capable of laughing at himself. It made me want things I shouldn't want. Made me imagine a future where we could have this all the time.

But that future would require honesty. And the time to be honest and come clean had come and gone weeks ago. Every day that passed without me telling the truth turned what might have been a forgivable offense into something more. It felt like rot that was spreading between us, even though Orion didn’t know it was there. When I came clean, he’d look back at all these moments and find them colored black at the edges—tainted by what I hadn’t said.

"Earth to Ember," Colton said, snapping his fingers. "You went somewhere else for a minute there."

"Sorry," I said quickly. "Just thinking about... work stuff."

"Always working," Jessica sighed. "You two are perfect for each other."

I felt Orion's eyes on me but couldn't bring myself to meet them. Instead, I excused myself to the bathroom, needing a moment to breathe.

I was fixing my lipstick when Jessica appeared beside me.

"He likes you," she said, touching up her own already-perfect makeup. "I've known Orion for years. Colton and I have dated off and on, and I’ve seen Orion at various points along his journey to full work robot. I’ve never seen him look at someone the way he looks at you.”

"It's not that simple," I said.

"It never is." She capped her lipstick and turned to me. "But sometimes the complicated things are worth figuring out."

I thought about that as we walked back to the table. Orion stood automatically when we approached—of course he did—and pulled out my chair. As I sat, his fingers brushed my shoulder, sending electricity down my spine.

"Everything okay?" he asked quietly.

I nodded, not trusting my voice. Because the truth was, everything wasn't okay. I was falling for him—had already fallen for him—and I had no idea how to stop it.

Or if I even wanted to.

27

ORION

“Wow,” Ember said as she watched me slide a key into the elevator control panel. The key allowed me to lift a small metal latch that covered a button at the top labeled with a “P”. “That’s fancy.”

“Is it?” I asked, grinning. I had never really thought too hard about it.

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