Page 99 of Our Scorching Summer

Wow, I must’ve been primed to unload the recent whirlwind of my life if I willingly voiced all that to a stranger.

A stranger who could very easily upload a vlog tomorrow titledWEIRDEST PEOPLE WE MET ON VACAY, where I’ll be the starring joke.

I take a healthy sip of my water. No, she wouldn’t.

“Huh, he transferred the extra ticket to you?” Tara asks.

Out of my entire overshare, that’s what she grasps onto?

“Yeah, he said it would be a waste otherwise. I don’t know.”

Tara watches me for a moment, her full lips curling at the edges. “Airplane tickets are non-transferable.”

“What do you mean?”

“They’re not like concert tickets.” She reorganizes her silverware. “You can’t trade them.”

“Oh.”

Did Nico buy my plane ticket to Brazil?

No. That wouldn’t make any sense. Nico told me about his friend canceling a week before the wedding. Why on earth would he buy me a flight? The same night he had a date?

No way.

“Mhmm.” Tara gives me a wide smile.

“Well, Nico knows the inner workings of travel tech. I mean, he works on apps and, uh, stuff like that all the time. I’m sure he would’ve figured out some kind of loophole.”

My flip-flop bounces on the gravel.

“You’re right. There must be a simple explanation.” Tara crosses one of her legs over the other, reclining back in her chair. “He’s different, though. Have you noticed?”

Anticipation cramps my stomach.

I finish off my water before settling the glass on the table. “How so?”

“I’ve known Nico for eight years, and he’s never traveled with another woman. Honestly, I think he only traveled with Keith before, and it’s ’cause they were working together.”

So, I’m the first.

My cheeks raise a hair at her confession.

I nod. “I don’t know what to say. We’re just friends, so—”

“Huh, I guess I don’t think he’s ever had any friends who make his face light up the way you do.”

I know she only has Nico’s best interests in mind, but I’m sweating under the spotlight. The nerves I managed to bury come back in full force. Much, much worse than getting fingered on the darn ski lift.

“We have rules we’ve agreed to. It’s simple.” I hear the words come out of my mouth, but feel as unconvinced as Tara looks.

Why am I telling a stranger more details of my personal life than I’ve told my best friend?

The guilt sweeps in, and I do what I can to brush it away.

“I’ve never had rules for any of my friends.” Tara eyes me as if I’m meant to break and share a secret with her. “I suppose the only person I do have rules with is my husband.”

“What are you guys talking about?” Nico asks. He and Tate carry a new bottle of champagne and a carafe of coffee toward us.

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