Page 41 of Best Friends
I recoil. “Excuse me? You thought I was a druggie?”
She laughs sheepishly. “Well, you were acting so weird. And then this morning, when you completely forgot about the marathon. That was bizarre.”
I exhale, face warm. “I forgot because Malcolm spent the night at my place. I was a little… distracted. He wanted to go for a bike ride then spend the day together.” Guilt nudges me at how dejected Malcolm looked when I left him this morning.
She blinks at me. “How’s that work when you asked Amanda out on a date tonight? How’s Malcolm going to feel about that?”
My gut starts churning again from stress. “He’s not going to like it one bit. Do you think he’d understand if I explain how obnoxious Harlan was being to Amanda?”
Cheyenne watches me like I’m delusional. “Do I think he’ll understand? You can’t seriously think Malcolm will be cool with you going out on a date, right? He’s analpha. They don’t tend to share well. Not when they’ve decided something is theirs.”
“God, you’re right. I can’t go on that date. He was already upset that I left him behind this morning to run in the marathon. Now I’m going to fuck up the rest of our day too? No, he’ll go ballistic. What the hell was I thinking?”
She watches me with sympathy. “You weren’t thinking. You just felt sorry for Amanda.” She starts the engine, backing out of her parking spot.
“Yes.” She’s exactly right. “It was definitely a pity date.”
“Trust me, no girl wants that. If she knew you asked her out because you felt sorry for her she’d die. You’ll be doing her a favor by calling off the date, instead of sending her the wrong message. I mean, if you take her out, she’s going to assume you’re interested in her.” She hesitates. “You’re not, right?”
“God no.” I shake my head vehemently. “Not at all. I… I just want Malcolm.”
“Well, I wouldn’t blame you if you were attracted to her. You’ve dated women in the past and she’s very pretty.”
“She is, but Malcolm is just… perfect for me.” My cheeks warm at my sappy statement.
“Then you really fucked up.
I wince. “Yeah. I did. I was being chivalrous, and I hate the idea of hurting Amanda’s feelings. But Malcolm has to be my priority or I could ruin everything between us.”
“No question.” She drives in silence for a while. “How long do you plan on keeping your relationship a secret?”
“You mean how long will Malcolmletme keep it a secret?”
“Yeah, I guess. You should be more like Malcolm. He doesn’t care what people think of him. I know you do though. That’s something you might have to get over, if you want this thing with Malcolm to last.”
I sigh. “I guess I don’t expect it to last and that’s the whole problem.”
She looks shocked. “You don’t expect it to last?”
“Come on, Chey, this is Malcolm we’re talking about.”
“What does that mean?” She frowns, her eyes still on the road.
“Can you really see Malcolm settling down with meforever?”
“Absolutely. You’re the one he’s been waiting for.”
I roll my eyes. “ I wouldn’t exactly say he was waiting for me. Women have been chasing Malcolm since he hit puberty, and he didn’t say no. He must have slept with half of the female omega population of Whispering Pines by now.”
“Okay. But he was never serious about any of them. He never wanted to settle down with any of them.”
I shrug. “He probably just never found the right one.”
She laughs gruffly. “Out of all those women, he couldn’t even find one he wanted to date longer than a month or so. Something kept him from falling in love with those other omegas.”
I glance at her. “Are you seriously suggestingIwas the reason?”
“Yes.” She bites her bottom lip. “It’s obvious he’s always been in love with you, Carrick. You guys do everything together. You should have seen him when you stopped coming around. He was a basket case. I’m sure his feelings for you prevented him from falling in love with anyone else all these years because he was already in love with you.”
