Page 111 of Sincerely, Your Enemy

Most of the group agrees. Finn, Xavier, Dia, Theo, and Chance all climb out of the hot tub, leaving me alone with my girl and Aaron. Aaron, who, by the way, is still very much glaring at me like I’m the devil incarnate.

He’s going to try and cockblock me, isn’t he?

I make eye contact with Chance a second later, and all I have to do is cast a discreet glance toward Aaron and raise my eyebrows for him to pick up on my tells.

“Aaron, man, you coming?” Chance asks, coming in clutch, and I’ve never been more grateful for his friendship in my life.

“Nah, I’m good.” Aaron won’t budge.

The guy is like a piece of fucking gum under my shoe.

“Come on, I have to show you something,” Chance insists.

Remind me to get him a kick-ass present this Christmas. Reluctant, Aaron casts another death glare in my direction before slipping out of the tub and following the guys inside.

I can tell Lacey saw right through that by the way she shakes her head and scoffs.

“Subtle,” she comments.

Smart-ass.

“Thanks. It’s a gift.”

We’re alone.

At last.

She proceeds to slide to the other side of the hot tub to create distance between us. She can try to get away from me as much as she likes…

But she’s not getting out of this hot tub until we talk.

Lacey

“We need to talk,” he breathes out.

A scoff rips from my throat as I hug my knees to my chest as if to protect myself.

I’ve heard that one before.

From Theo.

Whenever something happened between us and he had to tell me he didn’t feel that way about me the next day.

Crazy how history keeps on repeating itself.

The difference is this time, I won’t delude myself into thinking he’ll change his mind. I’ll just accept the rejection with dignity and move on with my life.

I can see his shitty excuse coming from a mile away. “Let me guess, you’re sorry and you shouldn’t have said that?”

He lowers his eyes to the water for a second, a sign that I’m spot-on.

“I really am sorry,” he says quietly.

I sigh. “Look, this thing between us… It got out of hand. With the weekly lessons and the fake relationship crap… You were right earlier. Iwasstarting to catch feelings, but you don’t feel the same, and that’s okay. Now we can just put all of this behind us and?—”

“I do.”

I blink at him, struggling to make sense of his reply. “You do what?”

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