Page 24 of Dare Me

“What?!”Arianna cried, jumping to her feet. “You can’t go out with Will! No! Absolutely not! I forbid it!”

“Ari…”

“I’m serious, Ry! You’ll just have to tell her no and that you’ve met somebody else!” Stomping her foot, she paced a few feet away. “What did you say? Did you even try to tell her it was an awful idea?”

“I did! I told her I wasn’t interested in him and how it would be awkward for Liam.”

“And? What did she say?”

Shrugging, she replied, “She mentioned how Jamie didn’t have any problems setting us up with his friends, so…”

Growling with frustration, Arianna stormed to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of wine. “This is the worst!Gah!Why did he have to show up now? And why did he have to be friends with Liam?” She took a big sip of her drink before storming back toward her sister. “If Will were a friend of Jamie’s or Patrick’s, none of this would be an issue! But no, he has to be friends with the uptight Donovan!”

For a minute, Ryleigh didn’t say anything. She simply walked to the kitchen and poured herself a glass of wine. Leaning against the counter, she stared at Arianna. “Okay, don’t yell at me, but…”

“But…?”

“But you said you were over him,” Ryleigh said cautiously. “When we sat down Monday night, you said you couldn’t forgive him and you were moving on.”

Arianna knew her eyes were practically bugging out of her head. “So…what…youwantto go out with Will? Is that what you’re telling me?”

“No! It’s just…well…you’re being awfully possessive of him right now. And if he stays in town and this business thing with Liam works out, you know he’s going to start dating someone eventually. Then what are you going to do?”

“Hopefully, I won’t be here,” she countered, and hated the slight tremble in her voice.

“Oh, sweetie…”

And the next thing she knew, Ryleigh was giving her a fierce hug. She wanted to be mad, but…her sister was right. “I hate this,” she mumbled against her shoulder. “I hate it so much.”

“I know, I know,” Ryleigh softly replied, rubbing her hand up and down Ari’s back. “But I think we need to talk about this.” Pulling back, she motioned to the sofa. “Let’s eat pizza and just…get it all out there.”

“What’s there to get out? Apparently, Mom wants you to marry Will, and I’m never allowed to leave Laurel Bay, so…yeah. There it is.”

Rolling her eyes, Ryleigh grabbed a slice of pizza. “Jeez, dramatic much?” Taking a bite of her pizza, she shook her head. “Look, I understand your frustration. I do. But are you really sure you want to move away? Especially now that Will’s here?”

“What good is staying here if he’s married to you?” she griped, picking up her own slice.

“I’m not marrying Will! I don’t even want to go out with Will!” She growled with annoyance and took another bite of her dinner. “Believe it or not, I’m trying to help you!”

“How? By dating the guy I fell in love with? Thanks, but…I’m not seeing that as particularly helpful.”

For several minutes, neither spoke. But once Ryleigh finished her slice, she took a sip of wine and got comfortable. “You want to know what I think?”

All Arianna could do was shrug because inside, she was seething. It was all so unfair, every bit of it. And to top it all off,Will hadn’t even tried to reach out to her. Oh, he talked a good game Sunday night, but once again, he clammed up.

Jerk.

“I think you are still seriously in love with Will,” her sister stated.

“Well, duh…” Then she gasped. “I mean…um…no. It’s not…”

Reaching over, Ryleigh gave her a slight shove and laughed. “Oh my God, just shut up! You’re only lying to yourself at this point. Now do you want my help or not?”

“It’s not like I have a choice. In typical Donovan fashion, you’re going to tell me what to do…”

Refusing to take the bait, Ryleigh took another sip of wine and smiled. “Okay, then. How about you let me help you instead of sitting there pouting like a brat?”

That…sort of got her attention. “Help me how?”

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