Page 10 of Blindsided By Fake Love

“Nooo. I mean, yeah. But that was so that he could tease me,” I say dismissively, ignoring the silly grin, trying to escape. “Like when I would put my lip balm on, and he would stare before saying something like, ‘How many layers do you need?’ or ‘Ewww, cherry!’”

Genevieve giggles. “You still do that! And no. That wasn’t about teasing you.”

“Yes, it was,” I declare. “He did it all the time.”

“Kit, you putting on the amount of lip balm you do is ridiculous—”

“Hey!”

“Buuuthe said it because it drew attention to your lips.” Unconsciously, I lift a finger to the organ we’re talking about. “And because your face would scrunch up while your eyes got this fiery glint in them. It was easy to see he couldn’t resist himself. Or you.”

“If that’s true, then why was he dating Luna?”

“First, they were talking and had gone on a few dates. They weren’t dating, dating. Second, he broke things off with her immediately after you had that little talk.”

“I don’t believe you.” I stubbornly cross my arms over my chest and work to push away the gigantic surge that just shot through me. “Why didn’t he come and talk to me? Why did he just let me leave town without saying a word?”

“You don’t remember how many times he called or texted you? What about him showing up at Harris Teeter so often while you were working that people thought he worked there, too?”

“Of course, I remember. I just thought he was taunting me.” That time in my life is crystal clear. Every time Beau showed up around me, I saw red. I felt like I was a joke to him. I was embarrassed and hurt when I thought Beau Matthews,theBeau Matthews, would actually be interested in datingme.

For years, I acted like he annoyed the bejesus out of me, and sometimes, he truly did. But most of the time, everything about Beau made me feel alive.

The gruffness of his voice made my knees weak. His breath, when he whispered stupid things in my ear, sent chills down my spine. That smirk he would give me just as he would throw a zinger at me, heart-melting.

That night, in the park, something changed between us. For the first time, we weren’t trying to one-up each other; we were just enjoying each other’s company. When he told me he liked me and wanted to see where things could go, I nearly floated away. Excitement running through me.

But then I stopped at Circle-K on the way home, where I overheard Luna talking about the two of them going to the movies the next day.

My emotions took a swan dive into the whirlpool that was my stomach. After that I wasn’t about to hear anything he had to say. Or what anyone else was saying, for that matter.

“He wasn’t taunting you.” Genevieve’s words cause my pulse to race. “But that’s neither here nor there now, right?”

“Right,” I say, trying to sound confident in my decision. “His attorney is going to call me, and we’re going to get an annulment.”

“Problem solved.” I can hear Genevieve brushing her hands together. “Sounds like it was a crazy time.”

“Yeah. Crazy indeed.” I pull the phone away from my ear, putting Gen on speaker phone. Peeking at my texts, I see Beau’s number.

Unknown Number:

Beau Matthews

A small smile tugs at my mouth at his text being just his name. Like I could ever forget who he is.

“Did you hear me?” Gen asks.

“No, sorry.”

“Do you need a ride home from the airport?”

“No, I’m good. I have a driver coming to pick me up.” At that second, a text confirms that my driver will indeed be meeting me at the airport at my arrival time. “Let me go and pack. I’ll call when I get home.”

“Sounds good,” she teases. “Mrs. Matthews.”

Before I can respond, she hangs up. But the butterflies flying around my stomach keep me busy for a few hours afterward.

Chapter Five

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