Page 117 of Guys Can't Write Romance
Chloe studied her over the rim of her coffee mug. “You know what I think?”
“I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”
“I think you’re more scared of how right this feels than you ever were about how wrong things felt with Ethan.”
Daisy opened her mouth to argue, then closed it again.
“Ha!” Chloe pointed triumphantly. “I’m right! You’re doing that thing where you can’t even argue because you know I’m right!”
“I’m doing no such thing. I’m just... processing.”
“Process this: Chad McKenzie, who can barely sit still through a movie preview, spent six hours perfectly still because he didn’t want to wake you up.”
Daisy glanced at the note again. “Six hours?”
“Yup. Left around five this morning.” Chloe stood up. “But you take all the time you need to ‘process.’ I’m sure there’s nothing significant about that at all.”
She headed toward her room, then turned back. “Oh, and Daisy?”
“Yeah?”
“The next time you want to pretend this is just a friendship, maybe don’t smile in your sleep when he adjusts the blanket around you.”
Daisy threw a pillow at her retreating form, but Chloe’s laughter echoed down the hall anyway.
Chapter thirty-one
Bulldozers and Gold-Diggers
“Okay, monsters, hit the showers!” Chad called out to his sixth-period class. “And Thompson, those cartwheels were getting better. Just try not to take out any more students tomorrow.”
“Sorry, Coach Mac!”
Chad was gathering up dodge balls, including the one that had somehow ended up in the basketball hoop, when the sharp click of heels echoed through the gym. He turned to find Ava Anderson in a pristine suit that probably cost more than his monthly salary, looking about as comfortable in a school gym as a penguin in the desert.
“Oh, jeez,” he muttered, tossing another ball into the cart. “Did someone sue over a dodgeball injury? Because I have waivers for that.”
“This isn’t a professional visit.” Her voice could have frozen hell. “This is about Daisy.”
“Ah. I was wondering when this was coming.”
“Do you have any idea what you’ve done?”
“Helped a friend through a breakup with movies and junk food?” He wheeled the cart toward the storage room. “I mean, I guess I could have sprung for better ice cream, but it was late and the 7-Eleven was short on supplies.”
“You encouraged her to throw away everything she’s worked for.”
Chad stopped. “I didn’t encourage her to do anything. Daisy’s old enough to make her own decisions.”
“Oh, please. Spare me.” Ava practically spat out the words. “You did everything you could to break them up.”
“By making her laugh and have fun?”
“By distracting her away from what really matters.”
“Oh. You mean her writing.”
Ava scoffed. “I mean her future. She had everything lined up. A perfect life with Ethan. Security, stability. An actual future.”
