Page 17 of Cozy Girl Fall
She rolled onto her side, fluffing the pillow under her head and cursing when her phone slipped out of her hands. She jolted to catch it, fingers clasped awkwardly around the screen.
Once again comfortable, Penny returned her eyes to the screen and Ethan’s abs as something caught her attention out of the corner of her eye.
A red heart.
Eyes flaring wide, Penny sat bolt upright as a cold sweat broke out across her skin. “No. No, no, no.” She face-planted the pillow and rubbed her face roughly against the cotton as she shook her head.
The only thing worse than cyber-stalking your ex? Getting caught.
Her finger hesitated above the screen before she tapped, unliking the post and hoping Ethan would assume the notification was a glitch. What other reason would there be for his ex to be sniffing around at his photos fromfive years ago?
Penny thumped her head against her pillow repeatedlywith a groan, stopping abruptly when her phone buzzed. Dizzy, she fell very still before cracking open one eye and peering at the notification that had popped up on her home screen.
Ethan_Blake:Indulging in a little light stalking on this fine Sunday evening?
She shouldn’t reply. That would only add fuel to the fire, right? Or maybe he would take it as an admission of guilt. Undecided, Penny was still hesitating when another direct message buzzed into her inbox.
Ethan_Blake:And yes, in case you were wondering, my abs really do look like that. Even five years later.
“Ugh,” she muttered, staring at the message and clicking to open it before remembering, too late, it would show asread. “Crap. Stupid, stupid …”
FindAPenny:I have no clue what you’re talking about.
Ethan_Blake:*photo attachment* Strange, that looks like your name in my notifications
FindAPenny:… I hate you
His response took long enough that she’d thought that was the end of the conversation, until another message popped in.
Ethan_Blake:Don’t worry. If you had more than two photos on your account I’d probably be stalking them too
Heat rose in her face and she dropped her phone to the covers before sitting up to retrieve her hot chocolate and taking a long sip. This wasn’t flirting, was it? This was just two friends, chatting. Her phone buzzed again and she snorted when she unlocked it, seeing his name pop up in her notifications.
Ethan_Blake liked your photo
Ethan_Blake liked your photo
FindAPenny:Now who’s the stalker huh
Ethan_Blake:See you tomorrow ;)
She stared for longer than was necessary in order to read his message. Tomorrow? He was working at the orchard again? Why was he even working there in the first place? By all accounts he seemed to have a thriving business working as an architect and interiordesigner—or, at least, that’s what his business’s Instagram page had made it look like.
And how did he know that she had a shift tomorrow too?
Thoughts swirling, Penny turned her phone over so she couldn’t stare at the message for any longer. If only she could quiet her brain in the same way.
9
Penny had been feeling jumpy all morning, ever since she’d arrived at the orchard. She was half expecting Ethan to appear around the corner at any moment, likely catching her in some kind of embarrassing situation as seemed to be her norm now.
But so far, she hadn’t seen a trace of him.
She’d deliberately worn her coziest, scruffiest outfit to the orchard, not wanting to look like she’d dressed up for him if she wore something too nice. So she’d settled for a beat-up pair of mom jeans that had a rip in the knee and an oversize sweatshirt whose sleeves were long enough that only the cuffs were keeping them above her hands. Casual. Unaffected.
Why does it matter?Her inner voice screamed, and she tried to focus on the task at hand as she squinted against the watery sunlight. The wind had eased off that morning, but the chill in the air remained, reminding her uncannily of cold nights by the bonfire that took place on the green in the center of town to celebrate fall. Maybe she could suggest that her parents set up a stand with warm apple cider—mostly becausesheloved warm apple cider, but it would also kick-off the buzz in the run-up to Halloween Orchard Fest in late October.
Unfortunately, her thoughts hadn’t settled even after clearing half the tree of its load.
