Page 48 of Tangled Up

“Broken pencil.”

“Wait… I’ve heard this one.” We stop at the trucks. “Broken pencil who?”

“Forget about it. It’s pointless.”

“Ahh…” He shakes his head. “That’s terrible.”

“It’s a knock-knock joke. What do you expect?”

He squints up at me. “Good to see you joking around again. I’ve been worried about you.”

“How so?”

“You’ve been out of town the last two weekends, and I don’t know. You just seem… broodier than normal.”

Leaning against my Rover, I cross my arms, thinking. Asher and I have known each other a long time, and I feel pretty good trusting his judgment. “Tell me something.”

He catches his foot, pulling it behind him to stretch his quad. “Shoot.”

“Say you have this thing in your past you’ve never told your girl. Nothing sinister like cheating—”

“Oh, great. Well, if it’s not cheating…”

“Don’t be an asshole. I’m serious.” Standing straighter, I pull my foot up to mimic his stretch. “It won’t change the past, and it would only cause her pain. Should I even bring it up?”

He narrows his eyes at me. “We’re talking about a girl you like?”

“Yeah.”

“A girl you want to have a long-term, adult relationship with?”

I sniff, doing a shrug. “If she’ll have me.”

“And you’re asking me if you should keep important information from her?”

“It’s not important. It’s more… coincidental.”

“Would she care if she knew what happened?”

“I don’t know.”

He steps over and grasps my shoulder. “I think you do know, bro. I also think you know the answer without my input.”

My eyes rise to the top of the stadium, and heat simmers in the base of my throat. I hate that he’s right. I do know the answer.

“She’s finally opening the door to me again.” Looking down, I rub the towel across my neck. “Granted, it’s only a crack, but it’s a crack. Digging up the past will only hurt her. It doesn’t matter to me. Maybe it doesn’t matter to her.”

“If it’s causing you this much stress, it matters. The shit’s in your head, so it’s in your relationship. Whatever it is, you have to tell her, or she’ll feel you’re holding something back.”

Exhaling deeply, I glance at my friend. “When did you get so fucking wise?”

“I’m not so wise. I just know you can’t have secrets in a real relationship.” He pulls the door of his truck open. “Why aren’t you talking to Lars about it? This is her territory.”

“Already did. She said the same thing.” He gives me a smug nod, and my jaw clenches. “It’s possible I’ll be in town next weekend. For good.”

* * *

“I can’t remember the last time I’ve been here.” Carly smiles, lifting a glass of prosecco and taking a small sip.

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