Page 70 of The Fun Part
“You can go.”
She holds my shoulders and looks into my eyes. “Sure?”
“I’m sure.” Having Mackenzie at my side lightens the load. “Thank you.”
Her gaze drops to my mouth. Desire stirs, but before I can reach for her, she stands, turning for the door.
“You don’t have to leave,” I say.
“I do.” She grabs her coat and purse. “I’ll see you next weekend.”
“Yeah, okay.”
She slips out the door. I stare blankly for a long moment, wanting to close the distance between us, with no clue how to do that.
I should ask her. If that romance novel taught me anything, it’s that she’s got a lot of thoughts and feelings hidden in her head. She needs some prompting to give me the secret to making things right. We have chemistry; we have friendship. Isn’t that everything?
It hits me that maybe she wants me to go after her.
I push open the door and race down the stairs. When I get to the sidewalk, she’s gone. She must’ve run, and doesn’t that tell me everything I need to know?
17
Mackenzie
I missed the Clover Park spring festival this weekend to fly out to Minnesota for Sutton. It’s okay, though, I did my part in the prep work, and they’ve got it covered for staffing. Cal dropped out of the committee after the first meeting in favor of donating money to the cause. That’s one way to go.
Cal and I were on different flights, so I’m here with Sutton in the early afternoon on Friday before her dad is home from work. Her fiancé is supposed to stop by after work, so I guess then we’ll have a little engagement party. She’s making brownies for the occasion.
The oven timer dings. Sutton pulls the brownies from the oven and sets them on the stovetop to cool. She resembles Cal in coloring with dark brown hair and brown eyes, but her demeanor is pure sunshine whereas Cal’s more serious. “Are you an end or a middle?”
“Huh?”
“Which do you like better? The crunchy end of the brownie or the gooey middle?”
“Ohhh. Both.”
“I like the gooey middle. Cal likes the crunchy end. Perfect combo. He texted he’s on his way.”
I fidget with the end of my shirt and then smooth it out. “Great.” Things are awkward with Cal. Okay, I admit it. I’m in too deep, and I’m scared. I almost didn’t take this trip, but I care about Sutton, and I want to be supportive of both her and Cal. I’m worried Cal’s disapproval of her engagement will upset her.
She told me all about her fiancé, John, making him sound practically like a knight in shining armor. It’s hard to believe someone as smart as Sutton could be fooled by a serial cheater. But what do I know about long-term relationships? She said they’ve been together since high school. Maybe knowing someone since you were an impressionable teen makes you blind to their flaws.
“Water or milk?” Sutton asks.
“Water, thanks.”
She pours us glasses of water, and we take a seat in the living room with our brownies. The two-story house has furniture and decor that looks like it hasn’t been updated since Cal’s childhood. There’s a faded green sectional sofa and a cherrywood coffee table and end tables. It’s neat and tidy.
After we make short work of our brownies and Sutton fills me in on life in Minnesota, a silence falls.
“It’s so nice to finally meet you in person,” Sutton says for the third time since I got here.
“You too.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, did you come out here for me or Cal?”
I flush. “What? This has nothing to do with Cal. I just thought it was way past time that you and I met in person.”
