Total pages in book: 31
Estimated words: 29464 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 147(@200wpm)___ 118(@250wpm)___ 98(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 29464 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 147(@200wpm)___ 118(@250wpm)___ 98(@300wpm)
“Oh, um … right, about the birthday thing …”
Liam stops and looks back. “Yeah?”
Teague sucks in his bottom lip, appearing to trouble over his words. Then, in a tiny voice, he grimaces and says, “Would it be … like … maybe the worst thing in the world … if I … make the tiniest little confession … that today, um … isn’t … my actual birthday?”
Someone pulls the pavement right out from under Liam’s feet.
Pulls the air right out from in front of Liam’s face.
“Another week or two from now,” Teague goes on, his voice becoming more and more strained the longer he squirms. “So … not entirely a lie. Just, um, not today. Not exactly today. You just seemed a bit tense ever since we left the store, so I thought I could distract you a little, and … and hey, didn’t it sort of work?” He lets out a nervous laugh. “Isn’t that funny? How it all worked out? Um, Liam …? Your eyes are doing something weird.”
Liam is gripping the handle of the car door so tightly, he could crush it like an aluminum can. He just might grind his teeth into bone meal if he stands here any longer.
In lieu of saying another word, he simply lets himself out of the truck—while Teague says, “Liam? You’re not mad, are you?”—and then makes his way back to the store.
Perhaps Liam shouldn’t have given any concession to Teague and just stuck with his original conclusion. Teague is a schemer. A well-intended schemer, possibly, but he plays games with people’s feelings, manipulates everyone into liking him, and then saunters through life like he’s in the happiest most undeserved dream.
And Liam can’t stand another minute of being part of it.
It’s time to wake the hell up.
Liam, against all odds, makes it through the rest of his shift without seeing Teague. He clocks out at the computer, and thanks to some unknown god or goddess of luck, it gives him no trouble. He peels off his apron, decidedly done with this day, and folds it over an arm before heading for the door.
Until he’s stopped by Gracie. “Liam! Glad I caught you! Bernie, Zeke, and Deena are coming to my place to hang out. Just a small nothing thing at eight o’clock or so. Can you come?”
Of course Liam’s gut reaction is to decline the invitation. After the long day he’s had, he really would rather go home, enjoy one of his mother’s home-cooked meals, then get lost in another long and entertaining conversation with his dating app obsession, who just might restore his faith in men.
On the other hand, some nights Hate2LoveU isn’t responsive, which is understandable, as they both sometimes are busy with their day-to-day offline lives—of which neither has divulged much about, admittedly—so it’s possible he might have a free night.
“Please?” Gracie asks again. “If you’re there, I’ll even bake a plate of my famous gingersnaps. Fresh, hot, tasty gingersnaps.”
Liam glares at her. “You had to mention the gingersnaps.”
“Don’t make me beg.”
Admittedly, a relaxing evening away from home also has an appeal he can’t easily resist, with or without Gracie’s gingersnaps. And she’s a friend from school he hasn’t spent any time with this summer. With there being no guarantee of a conversation tonight with Hate2LoveU, what harm can one evening out do? He has his own offline life to live.
“Fine, I’ll come,” he gives in. “No further bribing required.”
Gracie squeals and throws her arms around him. “Yesss! It’s gonna be so much fun!” She lets go. “Um, do I still have to make the cookies, or—?”
“Yes,” states Liam flatly, then the two of them laugh.
And it all would have gone perfectly, had the voice not come from behind, startling them both: “Cookies? Fun? What’s gonna be so much fun?”
Their laughter dies. They turn to find Teague standing there appearing curious, gripping his apron in a ball hanging from his fist, eyebrow quirked, giving a charming, cockeyed smile.
The audacity of this guy. Liam can’t believe, after everything, that Teague would still dare to intrude like this. Is the guy insane?
“Oh, nothing,” says Gracie with a shrug. “Just a little boring thing at my house.”
“Boring thing? I love boring things! Can I come?”
Gracie’s mouth opens and closes like a fish, over and over.
Liam should have expected this. Whatever happened between them today, it’s far from over. Teague has more games to play.
But would it really be so bad to let Teague join? Liam doesn’t have to speak a single word to him, and all of Gracie’s friends will act as the perfect buffers. Besides, if the night goes south, Liam can turn to his secret lightning-bolt-farting comfort as an excuse to leave. Isn’t it basically a win/win?
Liam turns to him. “Of course. Why not? More the merrier.”
Teague is naturally surprised. “Really? Wow, thank you!” He comes right up to Liam’s side and throws an uninvited arm around his back. “Thanks for letting me in on the fun, guys!”