Page 22 of The Romance Rivalry

We.

I smile.

“Oh, and I downloaded one of the books you recommended on your list and noticed a brother’s-best-friend trope. We don’t have that on the list,” Jeannette points out.

“My brother’s thirteen,” I point back.

The corners of her mouth drop, and I have to laugh at the disappointment on her face.

“But hey, there’s also best friend’s brother,” I suggest, waggling my eyebrows. In fact, I recall that one of Jeannette’s brothers is only a year younger than us.

Her eyes widen.

Oh shit, did I offend her?

Or is she already planning my wedding to her brother?

“I’m...” She stops and clasps her hands in front of her heart. “I’m your... best friend?” She says the last two words in a reverent whisper.

I’m suddenly very aware that maybe I too easily shared too much. I didn’t even consider how seriously Jeannette would cling to the words.

“Um, well, you’re definitely the actual best. Period. And you’re a better friend to me in this short amount of time than anyone I’ve known for all the years leading up to now. So, yeah, I consider you my best friend. Too soon?” My anxiety does one of those spikes in the EKG I see in my head. God, she must think I’m too overbearing. Too needy. Too much.

I drop my eyes and beg my feet to move and run away to the bathroom. But two arms throw themselves around me and I’m lifted up off the ground and spun around.

“We’re best friends. We’re roomies. And besties. We’ll get an apartment together as upperclassmen. We’ll be in each other’s weddings. We’ll have Sunday brunch every week.”

I don’t know why I ever thought I was too much.

I laugh and let out a squeal as she spins me one more time before putting me down.

I shake my head and laugh some more. What a nut.

“Now get out of here and get washed up, bestie,” she says.

So I do. I turn and head to the bathroom.

But I’ve got a smile on my face.

And I don’t once think about how broken I am along the way.

Epigraph

I loved the tension the author built in this workplace romance. It was part rivals-to-lovers, part will-they-or-won’t-they, and part hate-sex-is-so-hot-because-I’ve-wanted-you-all-along. And this recipe hit all the right spots for me. I especially love when the MCs are forced into a project together and it’s through those quiet moments that they finally open up and reveal bits of themselves to one another. So good.

—@irene.loves.love.books

The buildup of wondering will they or won’t they (let’s get real, we know they will, but we trick ourselves into still believing that there’s an option) had me flipping each page wishing I had taken a speed-reading class in the past. The way I had the deepest need for Shawn and Gwen to get past their workplace misunderstandings and admit that it was all because of their underlying feelings for each other... I have a serious book hangover after this one.

—@aidentheguyreadsromance

Five

workplace romance

Fit check: stretched-out old yoga pants with a hole in the left knee. Oversize church camp T-shirt. Hair pulled back with a headband. No makeup—except a little mascara because I still might pass someone on the way to the library.

A day that I have been completely dreading has finally come. I have to meet Aiden at the library to discuss our class project. Our partnered project.

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