Page 62 of Friends Don't Kiss

Colton

What the hell is this guy talking about? This conversation was supposed to be short and to the point and lead to a first date on the slopes. Period. Nothing else. I don’t want to know what Kiara’s answer is. I stand from the stool and pace toward the window.

But her voice fills the room as he switches to speakerphone. “Oh, no-no-no. Just a really, really good friend. The best. Salt of the earth. The kindest soul there is.”

My jaw clenches. I resist scowling at him. The guy is a new customer doing me a favor. But the fact remains, he shouldn’t be making her talk about me.

He glances at me, seeming happy with his scheming. “Huh. You sound like… you really like him.”

Her voices catches when she says, “I do.”

And I nearly lose it.

Because I see what he’s doing. And that was not the plan.

Kiara

I do care for Colton. I’m not gonna lie. But talking about him feels both right and wrong, as if by bringing him into the conversation I’m not really doing what this feels like: cheating on him.

“But he’s with someone else,” the guy states with finality in his tone.

Why would he say that? “Um. I’m not sure. It’s hard to tell, with Colt. Different woman each time.” The taste of bile invades my mouth. I have nothing to support that theory, but it’s like…I know.

“Are you jealous?” he asks, surprising me.

My heartbeat picks up. “No! Not at all. Why would I be?”

“You say you really like him. You say he’s not an ex. I’m… look. I’ve been burned before. So far I’m getting a good vibe with you. I just don’t want to be led on. If you’re holding a torch for someone else, then…”

I get the guy’s point, and I would feel sorry for him… except: “I thought you were looking for casual?”

He clears his throat. “And I am. I’m just a bit territorial. That okay?”

M-hm. Territorial in a casual relationship? That could be fun. From what I’ve read, it can only make the sex hotter. “Sure. Yeah. It’s—I was a little confused, is all.”

“Tell me more about Emerald Creek. How is it home to you?”

“Oh, that’s… that’s a long story but…” I glance at Willow. I’ve never shared the details of my life before Emerald Creek to anyone, except briefly to Colton, and that was just the other day. And under emotional pressure to explain my weirdness. “Bottom line, I was down on my luck and they… they took me in. Treated me like one of their own. I found a job and a place to stay, and basically… you know.”

There’s some ruffling on the other end of the line, then he says, “No, I don’t know what you mean.”

“Well, this is my home now.” Hell if I’m going to open up to a perfect stranger. “How ’bout you? Why are you in the NEK for what—a month?”

He seems to hesitate. “Uh, just needed to get away from it all. Recharge.”

“You hiding from something?” I ask, laughing a bit to make him at ease. Suddenly the idea of going out with a perfect stranger isn’t so appealing anymore. I know nothing about this guy. I glance at Willow, and she gets closer to my phone, trying to listen in.

“N-no. Why would you say that?”

“I dunno. The NEK, the casual but territorial, the hesitation over being married or not, the foodie who just likes to eat. Just trying to get a picture here.”

“Ah! I didn’t know this was going to be a phone interview,” he says, releasing that infectious laugh again, making me relax. “Nah. You’re reading too much into all this.”

Colton

My heart stomps. Shit. She’s gonna hang up on him. There’s no way.Fuck.Why didn’t I remember to tell him not to say that? That’s the one thing that drives her crazy. Well, among other things. But that, I should have thought of.

I make the universal sign for cut and grab a piece of paper off the stack of invoices on my desk. The guy gets the idea that he messed up, maybe because he sees me panicking, or maybe because Kiara is chopping his ear off. I don’t know. I can’t tell. The blood wooshing in my ears is too loud to hear her voice.

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