Page 12 of Forget Me Not

She pulls herself back into her corner of the cushions. “Family. Soulmate. Or, just a speck of dust on the road of your life.”

“That seems harsh. I don’t think either of them qualifies as a speck of dust.”

She shrugs. “Then you’re not being very honest with yourself and you should probably find out why.” She gets to her feet. “Only one soulmate, Coop. And your family is usually the first to hear about it when you figure out who the hell it is.”

“You told B when it happened to you?”

She nods. “Told B everything every step of the way. All the good. All the bad.”

I’m here. Telling her. “Mags?”

She turns back. She was halfway back to the kitchen already. “Family, kid. You and me.Family.”

CHAPTER SEVEN

“Hey.” Reed dips low to nudge my shoulder with his as he passes me to intercept and bring me to a stop. “Been looking for you, I thought you had to swing by the science lab on your way to lunch.”

I giggle, because Reed makes me do silly things like giggle just by showing up. “Only when I’m lost and hoping some gorgeous guy will come along and find me.”

“In that case, I’m happy you weren’t traipsing the halls outside of the science lab in search of other guys.” He tilts his head just so, adding a charming crooked grin that makes my stomach explode in a massive surge of butterflies. I don’t know how anyone can stand talking to him for long periods of time without combusting. I feel like a piñata that could bust open, throwing confetti everywhere at any given moment. It’s a level of giddy I’ve never been to before.

“So, listen,” he starts up again as we begin walking toward the cafeteria. Together. “If running into you by accident on purpose is out already, I might as well cut straight to the point.”

I clasp my chest, paranoid that he can hear my heart throbbing its way out into the open.

“There was a point to running into me on purpose by accident?” I ask, sounding as aloof as I can muster.

“I can’t take credit for yesterday, fate clearly had a hand in that.”

Oh, my God. What a line. And I’m totally falling for it. Never ever am I telling anyone how easily I was charmed by this boy. Except maybe Mags.

“Fate, huh?”

“Meeting you? Yeah, had a definite destiny vibe about it.” He winks. He. Winks.

I swallow a sigh.

“You had a point you were getting to?”

His hand slides smoothly into mine. I watch in stunned silence, awed by his bold move. My eyes lock on our twined fingers and I marvel at the way they fit so perfectly together. Any second now I’m going to be buying into his whole destiny theory. No matter how ridiculous it is.

“I did. We should go out. On a date. Somewhere really far away from the science lab where the food is nothing at all like the cafeteria’s.” He turns his head to face me even as we’re walking and I take it in turns being glued to his smile and doing everything I can to look away. “Friday night. Around seven?”

“I’ll have to check with Mags.” I couldn’t possibly have come up with a lamer response, I try my best to salvage it, “But yeah, I’d love to.”

“Mags?” His brow furrows. He’s even hot when he’s confused. Totally not fair.

“My foster mom.”

“Foster mom?” He’s less confused, just curious now. And the pity, it’s creeping in. I hate that. I want to wipe it off his face. Even Reed McAllister can’t withstand the curse of ugly that comes from showing pity.

“Yep. I’m a foster kid. Been one my whole life.” I shrug. “My mom ditched me at the hospital right after giving birth and my father never bothered to show up at all, well, outside of that moment of conception. I assume he was there for that. You never hear of anyone going to the trouble of getting artificially inseminated if they don’t plan on keeping the baby when all is said and done.” Dry delivery and sarcasm always takes the weight out of it.

His hand squeezes mine as we keep walking. “Sounds shitty.”

“Not so shitty today.” I smile, trying my damnedest to get back to the happy carefree life I had thirty seconds ago.

“No,” he agrees, his mouth slowly spreading back into that smile I already adore, “not so shitty at all.”

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