Page 108 of Restricted List

But my mind wanders a bit as I do.

If I’m not a pain in his ass, maybe there’s a chance Rory and I can get him to come around to the idea of us together. It’s the first time I’ve felt a slight bit of hope for that.

But it’s dashed just as quickly.

“Cole, can I ask you something?”

Fear creeps up my spine, and I try to not let it show on my face. “Uh, sure, Skip…”

Paul lets out a sigh. “Do you know if Rory is seeing someone?”

Why yes, I do know that. Funny you should ask.

“Nope,” I lie. “She, uh… hasn’t mentioned anything.”

He eyes me but moves past my stammering. “She’s been acting weird lately. She’s always nervous around me. She won’t tell me what’s going on, but I know the signs of someone in a relationship.”

“Oh,” is all I can manage to mutter, afraid that if I speak more, all of our secrets are going to come out like word vomit.

“You two are friends. I know it’s asking a lot, but will you see what you can find out? If she’s being secretive about this, there has to be a reason why. I’m not trying to invade her privacy, but I want to know if I need to be worried.”

What.

The.

Fuck.

My girlfriend’s dad just asked me,his daughter’s secret boyfriend,to find out who she’s seeing.

My heart is hammering in my chest.

“With all due respect,” I say nervously, “I don’t know if I’m comfortable with that. I’m not much of a spy.”

“You’re the only one I can ask,” he sighs. “Your sister, Lucia, and Ella would never. Lane is her boss, so I don’t want to put him in a weird spot. Josh seems to be clueless most of the time. And Knox would probably just walk away from me if I asked him.” Paul takes a deep breath. “I know it’s a shitty position to put you in, but she’s hiding something. Rory doesn’t hide things from me, so I’m worried. I just want to make sure everything is fine. Can you please help me, Cole?”

What the hell do I do?

If I say yes, I’m going to have to pretend to be searching formyselfsince I’m who she’s hiding.

If I say no, it’s going to seem suspicious as hell, and he might not feel the need to search at all after that. It’ll be obvious.

When I say, “Sure, Skip. I’ll see what I can find…” I know the only chance I had at winning over my girlfriend’s father just slipped right through my fingers.

Cole

Rory

We have a fucking crisis

Rory

That’s ominous

What’s happening?!

Cole

I ran into your dad

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