Page 64 of Peaches

Don’t let him fool you, sweetheart.

I swing the door of my fridge closed a little too hard after getting out some orange juice and a June’s Café magnet falls to the ground and breaks in two. I eye it warily, wondering if it’s a sign. If my heart’s about to break just as quickly. Just as plainly.

Rhett might not owe me anything, but I don’t like the way this uncertainty makes me feel. As open as he’s allowed himself to be, there’s still obvious traces of darkness that linger and hold tight to his mind, and I can’t let myself get so deep in the trenches of it all that I get hurt in the process.

By the time the sun begins to dip down again to bring in another uncertain evening, I’ve decided that the next time I see him, I need to lay out some ground rules.

Thankfully, Charlotte comes into the café that evening to visit during my shift. And she’s not alone this time: Ivan trails in behind her like a well-trained puppy. She leads him to her usual table, and after dropping off food for Maeve and Gerry—lord knows the gossip ping-ponging between those two—I head over to them.

“If you guys were looking for a romantic date night, I’m not sure my mom’s café is the right kind of environment. I’m pretty sure I saw Gerry use his shirt as a napkin over there, and Maeve doesn’t seem to understand the concept of covering her mouth when she coughs.”

Charlotte rolls her eyes. “Gotta love them.”

I smile. “If you insist.” I turn to her boyfriend. “Nice to see you, Ivan.”

His returning smile is warm and genuine. “Hey, Olivia, good to see you.”

“How’ve you been?”

He shrugs. “Good as can be.” I watch him throw a small glance at Charlotte. “I was actually hoping you’d be here. I wanted to apologize for that night at Spurs—Trent was such an asshole, and you didn’t deserve it.”

I wave it off. “Not a big deal.” And I meant it. I’d already forgotten all about it.

“He’s sorry too, you know.”

“Ivan,” Charlotte warns.

I frown at her before I look back at Ivan. “I appreciate it, but you don’t have to apologize for him.”

Ivan nods. “I agree. He’d actually like the chance to apologize to you himself. And maybe, if you’re willing, for a do-over on the whole thing?”

Char lets out a frustrated huff. “Ivan, I said no,” she whines.

He looks at her with a mix of guilt and determination. “I know. But it’s worth asking!”

“By ‘whole thing,’” I interject, “do you mean the double date?”

Ivan’s expression turns sheepish. “If you’re open to it, yeah. He feels really bad for acting like an idiot, and he knows he messed up.” He takes a deep breath. “Look, Trent’s not a bad guy. He’s one of my best friends, and I promise he doesn’t normally act like that. I think he was nervous and pregamed a little too hard . . .”

“Olivia doesn’t have time for do-overs,” Charlotte states matter-of-factly. “And Trent’s not the only interested guy on her roster.” She turns to me. “Right, Liv?”

I know she’s talking about Rhett. That she wants me to admit I have feelings for him, that something bigger is going on between us. But I’m not going to take the bait.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I say, feigning confusion. “But there’s definitely not aroster. Geez, you make me sound way cooler than I am.”

Ivan, bless him, laughs at my joke. But Charlotte’s face scrunches. “There’s not?” she asks.

I shake my head. “Nope.”

“What about?—”

“Nope,” I repeat more firmly.

Her eyes soften, and I’m not sure what conclusions she’s coming to, but I’m sure they’re close enough: I’m not feeling very secure in anything going on with Rhett. At least not right now, not when everything points to him ghosting me.

“So, you’d be down then?” Ivan asks, hopeful.

Charlotte kicks him under the table.

---