Page 17 of Accidentally Kidnapping the Hitman

My laugh is watery. “And I believe you. Seriously, don’t worry about it. We can do a movie night or something soon.”

Wyatt hums, but he doesn’t sound convinced. “I don’t like leaving things like this. You still sound upset. Did something happen tonight? Something other than me being a terrible friend, I mean?”

Hm. Did something happen tonight?

Did somethinghappen?

My head tips back against my locked door, and a slideshow of the weirdest, most fun night of my life plays in my brain like a movie reel.

Bumping into Dean in that bar, and prodding at his ‘fake’ tattoos. Feeling the first butterflies explode into life in my belly as he looked at me with those brown eyes, flecked with gold.

Laughing and shrieking as he hunted me through laser tag. Marveling that my serious bestie had found his playful side.

Cringing behind Dean’s broad shoulder to hide from that creepy Jack-in-the-box.

Teasing Dean by the food trucks, making him read every menu with me and giggling as his stomach growled.

The club. That dance. Thatkiss.

And the knife.

“No,” I say, rubbing at my forehead. “Nothing happened tonight.”

Nothing I can talk about without shattering into a thousand heartbroken, confused pieces anyway.

Because what if I ran away too soon? What if I had stayed with Dean and let him explain? What would we be doing right now? How would my future unfold?

I wanted him for so long.Missedhim for so long, and tonight I had him… then I tossed him away.

“Alright, well, if you’re sure,” Wyatt says. “You can always talk to me, Annie—”

“Do you ever hear from Dean?” I blurt out. There’s a shocked silence at the other end of the line, and I get why. Ever since he left our suburb and never looked back, Dean is one of those topics that Wyatt and I Do Not Discuss. Not because we ever outright agreed on that rule, but because it was always a sore spot for us both. And why poke the bruise, you know?

Wyatt’s too practical to dwell on something outside of his control. And for me… the way I felt about Dean always felt too private. Too personal to share with someone else. Because Wyatt would think it was a mere teenage crush, and even back then I knew it was more.

So much more.

“I, ah. Sometimes, yes.” For once in his life, my best friend sounds flustered. “He texted me last year to say happy birthday. I didn’t respond.”

My heart soars.

“Can I have his number?” My voice goes extra high and scratchy with my request. “Please don’t ask me why.”

“But… Annie…”

“Please, Wyatt. I can’t explain yet but I will one day soon.”

A long-suffering sigh crackles down the line, then Wyatt takes the phone away from his ear, grumbling faintly as he digs up the number. My phone buzzes against my ear, then Wyatt’s voice is back, crisp again.

“Don’t get your hopes up, Annie. He wanted nothing to do with us, remember?”

We’ll see about that.

“Thank you. Hey, want to get lunch tomorrow? We’re both in work.”

Wyatt and I work at the same hospital, though he’s a big, fancy doctor while I manage the hospital laundry. Hey, patients need clean sheets, right? We’re both helping people in our own way—and that’s what I remind myself of whenever I start feeling small and insignificant. Without clean sheets, the patients would be screwed. All of our contributions matter.

“Of course.” Wyatt sounds relieved at the offer, like I might still be mad at him for standing me up in that bar. And maybe I would be more annoyed if Dean hadn’t been there; if I hadn’t gone on a crazy, dreamlike adventure. “One o’clock?”

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