Page 74 of The Wild Card
“So, if Lindy and I happen to be out in public and we see you two, do we need to help sell it?” Pat asks. “Like, for example, should we insist we go on a double date immediately?”
I glare at them both. Lindy’s face is serious, like the question is legitimate, but Pat is grinning like the fool that he is.
“I mean, a double date would be fine,” Molly says quickly.
“Spontaneous double dates are acceptable but not necessary,” I add. “And it’s not like I run into you all the time in town. We usually just make plans. Like normal people.”
Pat’s look tells me that running into me and spontaneous double dates are going to be the new normal. The sheer glee on his face assures me he is going to do his very best to see me on a daily basis and drag me and Molly into some kind of date.
“You don’t need to oversell it,” I add.
“Are you saying we don’t need to shout things like, ‘Hey, Collin! Good to see you with your girlfriend’?” Pat asks.
Winnie perks up. “Or comment loudly on you being the cutest couple in town?”
“Absolutely not,” I say. “Both of those examples would fall into the category ofoverselling.”
“And we wouldn’t want to start any kind of argument on who the cutest couple actually is,” Harper points out.
“Absolutely not,” Tank says. “You’re all equally good looking, and that’s not up for discussion. I don’t want a repeat of you boys competing like you’re back in high school.”
“What about public displays of affection?” Chevy asks, and I make a note to confront him later with anEt tu, Chevy?“You know—good old fashioned PDA.”
It wasn’t awkward when Molly and I talked about this earlier, but it sure is now.
Actually, when we talked about it earlier, it was kind of hot. And I might have even had some of the other kind of PDA—privatedisplays of affection—had my stupid family not interrupted.
“What about it?” I ask through clenched teeth.
“Should we expect to see you two holding hands and kissing?” Winnie asks.
“We’ll be doing a convincing amount of public affection,” I say, shooting Pat a look that promises retribution.
But my younger brother never has cared about consequences.
“So, kissing then?” he presses.
“Relationships do usually involve kissing,” Tank says, and I’m not sure if he’s chastising Pat or making a point to me.
Maybe both.
“We’ll do what’s needed given the situation and circumstances,” I say. Molly shifts under my arm, and I glance down in concern, only to see it looks like she’s holding back laughter.
I’m glad one of us thinks this is funny.
“Perfect. So we’ll expect to see some kissing,” Pat says. “I know when we were first dating, we kissed all the time. Everywhere.”
Lindy rubs a hand over her belly and gives Pat a sly grin. “Not just when we were first dating,” she says, and Pat leans in to plant a lingering kiss on her mouth.
I groan and roll my eyes.
“Ooh!” Winnie leans forward excitedly. “A lot of us have keys and tend to just drop by Tank’s place. Do we need to give you both a heads up—just so we don’tinterruptanything?”
“There won’t be anything to interrupt.Fakedating.” I try to look unbothered by this barrage of nosy questions meant to humiliate me, but I’m sure I look like I’m passing a kidney stone.
Also, if they had stopped by earlier rather than texting, they might have interrupted a kiss.
Practice, I told Molly. That’s what I also told myself when I had the idea.
