Page 100 of Play Pretend

And Willow Gray wasmine.

willow

Idropped my head in my hands and groaned, listening as Gracie did the same. My head throbbed in time with my heart, and the usually pleasant scents of the bakery were nauseating.

“We’re never drinking again,” she mumbled.

“We say that every time,” I said, and she made a sound like a dying animal. We’d survived the morning rush, and now had some downtime before the afternoon crowd came.

The lights were too bright, smells too intense, sounds too loud. A migraine teased behind my eyes, and I knew it would be pounding in full force before the day was over. It was my fault for drinking twice in the matter of a week, but I hadn’t had a migraine in months, so I figured they were a thing of the past.

Apparently not.

I massaged my temples in tight, circular motions before moving onto massaging my eyes.

“I’d sell my soul to be in bed right now,” I grumbled.

“I’d walk over hot coals just to get rid of this hangover. I can’t remember the last time I had one this bad.”

“And I don’t think we were even that drunk.” She grunted her agreement before we fell back into silence.

Last night was a blur, but I still remembered everything that happened when I got home. The way Ronan had kissed me, then pulled away because he wanted to do the right thing. The way I’d tested him, seeing if I could entice him enough to come to my room and fuck me silly. The way he’d stood outside my door—that was somehow better.

Everything about last night made me flush with embarrassment, but also with wanton need. He drove me insane, and the person I was last night was not the person I usually was. I needed the liquid courage to do that, and I was so happy I’d had it.

But this morning it was like nothing had happened. Everything felt normal between us. Ronan was ready long before I was, but he sat on the chair in the living room and waited for me. Then we walked out together, and he made sure I was safely buckled in my car before he followed me to work.

I hadn’t heard from him all day, though. He was probably busy catching up on work, but a part of me still felt a little insecure at his lack of acknowledgement of what had happened. We’d leapt over the line last night, in more ways than one, and I wasn’t sure where that left us.

Were we still in that weird pretend stage? In a friend-zone? Or were we something more? Friends with benefits? But I didn’t want that.

When I left my door open as an invitation, it was me telling him I was ready for something real. But maybe him staying outside was him telling me he wanted things to stay how they were?

I groaned again, this time not because of the pounding in my head, but because of the uncertainty in my life. Everything was up in the air. It was all confusing, and I had a million different emotions warring for dominance inside me.

There was only a week left until my family came to town, and Ronan and I were more fucked up now than we had been when we agreed to do this whole thing. Maybe it would’ve been easier to just tell my family we’d broken up. At least then I wouldn’t have fallen for Ronan, and we wouldn’t be in this mess.

The bell above the door chimed, and it took all I had to lift my head. Another groan nearly left me when I saw who it was.

“Hey, Willow,” Braydon said as he shut the door behind him. His eyes flicked between Gracie and me, then he let out a low chuckle. “Hungover?”

Gracie and I glanced at each other before she stood. “That obvious?” she asked, and he shrugged.

“I’ve seen a lot of hangovers,” he said, though the words held something in them—something that made the hair on my arms rise.

“What can I get you today?” I asked, pulling myself toward the screen to take his order.

“I think I’ll try a strawberry scone and a blended honey latte today.”

I tapped in the order before lifting my brows expectantly. “Anything else?”

He’d been into the bakery every day since I turned him down. He was like a fly I couldn’t shoo away. He sat at a table in the back and watched me for hours. He pretended to be on his laptop, but I could feel his gaze boring into me.

I was tired of being nice to him.

He was creepy, and he made me uncomfortable, but the words I knew I needed to say wouldn’t come. I needed to tell him to leave me alone, but…maybe he was a lonely guy? Maybe he didn’t have a lot of experience with women?

I was making excuses for him, but I knew what it was like to feel like an outsider. If Gracie would’ve told me to get lost when I first moved to town, I wouldn't have this job or a best friend.

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