Page 147 of The Charlie Method

Her assurances don’t comfort me the way I want them to. Instead, they just make the guilt heavier. I can’t meet her gaze any longer.

“Can you keep this Harrison thing to yourself for now?” I ask. “I’m not ready to tell Mom and Dad yet, and I want to be the one to do it.”

“Of course. I won’t say a word. But—”

“I have to go. Talk later.”

“Char, wait—” she protests, but I’m already pressing End Call.

I stare at my phone, the tension in my chest growing with each passing second. I feel raw. Like I’m teetering on the edge of something I can’t control.

I need to clear my head. Do something. Anything. Just anything that will make me forget about that uncomfortable exchange.

I should have never opened my mouth.

I text Dante, who says it’s cool to stop by the track, then grab my purse and jacket. I’m heading for the door just as my phone rings, and I brace myself, expecting to see Ava calling me back. Fortunately, it’s Beckett.

I greet him with a tired “Hey.”

“Hey, sugar puff. Where are you?”

“Home. Why?”

“You were supposed to come by tonight. After dinner with your brother?”

“Oh fuck, I’m sorry. I totally forgot. It’s been a night.”

“What happened?”

“I got into a thing with my sister. Got into a fight with Harrison earlier. Can I call you tomorrow? I’m on my way out.”

His voice sharpens. “It’s eleven at night. Where are you going?”

“Out,” I say, trying to keep my own voice casual. “Just need to blow off some steam.”

“Where?” he repeats, suspicious.

I sigh, because I know he won’t let it go. “Do you want to come with me?”

“Yup.”

“Fine. I’ll pick you up in twenty.”

CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

BECKETT

Yeah, that’s the one

THE DRIVE IS MOSTLY QUIET, BUT IT’S A COMFORTABLE SILENCE. IT’S SOeasy to be with Charlie. I don’t need to impress her or fill every pause with random conversation. She’s happy to sit in the driver’s seat and sing along to the pop songs wafting from the car speakers, every now and then turning to flash me the smile that makes my chest clench. She’s gorgeous.

I haven’t pressed her any further about where we’re going. I’ve already asked twice since she grabbed me from Hastings, to which she’d shrugged and told me to wait and see.

Only proving that Charlotte Kingston has many more layers just waiting to be unraveled.

I didn’t expect to like her this much. But the more time Will and I spend with Charlie, the more I find her getting under my skin. She’s so damn smart, able to hold her own in any conversation, any topic you throw her way. She makes me laugh my ass off. She gets my dick harder than anyone ever has.

And this is the first time I’ve ever felt…dread. Genuine anxiety about this arrangement coming to an end. Because it always does. The woman gets bored of it, the novelty of being with two men wearing off. Or she catches feelings for one of us, the way Caitlin did at the beginning of the semester. And then it ends. We all part ways.

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