Page 33 of Connected By Stars
I look at him, surprised. “I…I’m not sure..”
“Look, anyone with eyes can see that Maverick is into you. You both can blame it on being overprotective, but we both know it’s more than that. I guess the question is, do you feel the same about him?”
I look at Logan, and no matter how good-looking he is, I know that I wouldn’t be able to give my heart to anyone right now because Maverick still has ahold of it. Whether he chooses to take care of it or break it is yet to be determined, but I know I have to try, or the what-ifs will haunt me forever. I can’t lie to Logan, so I be completely honest with him.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to make you feel like you were inthe middle of something. The last year, things have been...tense between Maverick and me.
“I’ve known him my whole life, and a lot of emotions are involved. Truthfully, we aren’t sure ourselves what is going on. When I said yes to your date, I thought maybe I could get past my feelings for him once and for all, but the last couple of days, things have gotten messy, and it’s...complicated. I didn’t want to cancel on you last minute because I do really like you as a person. I thought, at the very least, we could still have a good time together even if it wasn’t romantic.”
He leans back in his chair and looks at me. I have no clue what he is thinking. Please don’t be mad or upset, I silently pray. I hear him sigh, and he gives me a small smile.
“Thank you for being honest with me. I’m not going to lie. I’m a bit disappointed that I’m not the one who is turning your head, but it is what it is. So why didn’t Mav just say something? I would have backed off, and he could be sitting here right now.”
“Like I said, it’s complicated. I’m sure you don’t want to hear all the details. Let’s talk about something else.” I put some appetizers on my plate to busy myself.
Laughing, he says, “Oh, no. You’re not getting off that easy. I can tell this is going to be a good story. You owe me. Besides, like I told you earlier, I have two sisters, and I’ve become a very good listener over the years.”
“Isn’t it weird though? Me talking about another guy on our date? I don’t want to be disrespectful.”
“I think we’re past the date part,” he laughs. “Just think of it as two friends having a conversation. Besides, I’m a big believer in fate. If you aren’t the one for me, then we were brought together for a different reason. Maybe I can help you in some way, and one day, you’ll return the favor.”
I smile. “I’m a big believer in fate too.”
He fills his plate with appetizers and smiles. “See, best friends already.”
Laughing, I take a sip of my wine, feeling like a huge weight has been lifted off of my shoulders.
We sit there during dinner, and I tell him all about how we grew up together and how I watched him from afar, wanting to be the girl he would leave with. I tell him how I learned he had kept guys from me during high school and how recently he realized he has feelings for me. When I get him up to date, our dinner plates have been cleared, and we’re both sipping on our drinks.
“Let me just say from a guy's perspective, he’s been in love with you just as long as you have been in love with him. He just buried it deep and was too afraid to go there. It was easier for him to go with girls he couldn’t get attached to. There was no chance of them breaking his heart. It’s harder for some guys to be vulnerable. But now that he knows you feel the same, he can’t bury them anymore. You’ve gotten under his skin now, and no matter how scared he is, he can’t walk away.” He shrugs his shoulders.
I sit there dumbfounded. “Wow, you’re good. Are you a therapist or something?”
“No,” he says, laughing. “I’m into real estate. I might as well have been with all the free counseling I gave my sisters. So where are you guys going from here?”
“We haven’t been able to really talk about it, but we both want to see where it goes. It’s complicated with the wedding so close, and then add in the fact that my brother is his best friend, and his sister is mine. I never told Sophia my feelings because I felt embarrassed, especially when I got older and saw Maverick with girl after girl. I felt the only time he would ever look at me would be in my dreams, where I obsessed over this stupid fantasy.
“Now that I know he feels the same way, the wedding is coming up. Even though I know Noah would want us both to be happy, we don’t want to take the focus off of him and Emma. This is their special time, and we’ll have plenty of time after their honeymoon to tell everyone if we decide to move forward.”
“Who are you taking to the wedding? You said Mav is taking Sara because you can’t go together.”
“I haven’t figured out that part yet,” I sigh. “Sophia is taking someone from work, so maybe I should take his partner like Maverick said.”
“Uh, no. Maverick is taking a girl who is not gay, and until he really admits his feelings for you, there is nothing wrong with playing a little dirty. Lucky for you, I’m good-looking and can dance. Mav’s not my biggest fan anyway, so I have nothing to lose if I give him something to worry about.”
I stare at him, shocked. “You would go with me even after I kind of led you on with this date, knowing I have feelings for Maverick?”
“Well, when you put it that way, it does seem dumb of me to want to take you.”
“Stop,” I say, laughing. “You are anything but dumb. You’re going to make a girl very happy one day. I hope you know how much you’re the total package. I would be honored to have you as my date. I so wish you were Sophia’s type. I would throw you guys together in a heartbeat to have her be with a guy like you.”
“What? She’s not into tall, smart, extremely good-looking men? I’m everyone’s type.”
“She’s more into the bad boy looks. You would need a lot more tattoos to catch her eye.”
“A lot more? I don’t even have one.”
“Exactly. You’re way too clean-cut for her,” I say, laughing. “Seriously though, thank you for being so understanding and forbeing my date to the wedding. If my heart wasn’t already invested, this whole date would have gone a different way.”
