Begin Again (Again #1)(26)

“Oh,” I hesitated. I was pretty sure that Kaden would have withdrawn this invitation on the spot if he had been in the apartment.

“Hey, I see my hiking boots!” She pointed to the shoes, planted alongside Kaden’s in front of the wardrobe. “Are they doing the trick?”

“Yes, thanks again,” I said with a smile.

Monica squeezed my arm and walked into the living room to introduce herself to Dawn.

I began collecting my stuff.

Since our hike Kaden and I had kept out of each other’s way, and I preferred to retreat before he got back. But just as Dawn was bringing the last loose-leaf binder into my room, Spencer and Kaden arrived in the hall, carrying large, flat boxes.

“Hey, Allie,” Spencer said, when he spied me in the living room.

“Hey, Spencer. How’s it going?”

“Can’t complain. I’ve passed all my exams so far, and there are two left to go. Keep your fingers crossed!” He and Kaden greeted Monica and Ethan, then dropped off the boxes on the kitchen counter.

“Good luck!” I said and hustled off to my room.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Kaden called after me.

I stopped and looked back over my shoulder at him. He was just about to grab plates and napkins from the closet.

“Dawn is here to study with me,” I explained. “We didn’t want to disturb you.”

He frowned and opened the first box. “That’s too bad. We bought pizza for you.”

I opened my mouth and closed it again. Was this a peace offering from him? My mouth started to water, as the scent of pizza began to fill the apartment. “Really?”

Kaden shoved the first pizza on a plate and handed it over the counter to Spencer, who set it down on the table in front of Monica and Ethan.

More relaxed, I went into the kitchen just as Kaden opened the next box. “Ah, here we go. Pepperoni and anchovies. By far the most disgusting pizza they had on the menu. I thought it was just the right thing for you and your warped sense of taste.”

I couldn’t believe my eyes. Suddenly I felt a strange emptiness in my belly. Kaden scooped out a piece of the pizza and slid it onto a plate, which he held out to me expectantly.

And then the most embarrassing thing happened.

I started to sob.

“Not again,” groaned Kaden setting down the plate with a clang on the countertop. “I was joking about the anchovies. Rule one, dammit!”

For a moment I stared at him, frozen. Then I turned on my heel and fled to my room, shutting the door so I could let the tears flow.

“Allie,” Dawn called out and leapt off the bed. “What happened?”

I remained standing with my head against the door, trying to catch my breath.

“Kaden brought pizza,” I said in a trembling voice.

Dawn blinked at me, perplexed. “That asshole. What was he thinking?”

I laughed and wiped the corners of my eyes. Then I sank into my sofa bed with a sigh. “That’s not what I mean.”

“So what is it? I want to hate him but at the moment it’s not easy,” Dawn said, leaning against the wall. “‘Cause I can smell the pizza, and it’s making me hungry.”

I looked up, as the burning in my eyes began to fade. “We never ordered pizza at home.”

Dawn’s eyes grew round. “What?”

“We never ate fast food. My mother was so obsessed with detox and dieting, that she counted calories constantly. She didn’t want me to gain weight and made up a nutrition plan for me every week, including a strict exercise program.” I shrugged. “The only pizza I ever ate was in Rome during a family vacation.”

Actually, that was only part of why I was upset. I was still unsettled over my mother’s attempt to phone me. When Kaden had held out the pizza to me just now, I heard her voice in my ear again, warning me about calories and accusing me of letting myself go. I hated that she was still so present in my life.

Dawn’s eyes told me she was trying to grasp this.

“Allie, you can’t be serious!” she erupted in anger.

I took a deep breath. “You don’t know Sharon Harper, Dawn. She is a dictator. Even now she’d like to be controlling my entire life. My college courses, my friends, my eating habits.”

Dawn shook her head in disbelief and walked over to me. “Allie Harper,” she began, dead serious. “We’re going out there right now and you’re going to scarf down this pizza. If you have to moan before you enjoy, that’s fine. If you have to cry, super!” She bent down toward me and looked me in the eyes. “You are free, Allie. You’re in charge. Got it?”

Tears rose in my eyes again. I blinked them away and swallowed down the lump in my throat. “Okay.”

“Great! Now let’s go,” Dawn said, opening the door and leaving the room without checking to see if I followed.

“This is Allie’s first take-out pizza!” announced Dawn.

I rolled my eyes. Good, now everyone knew.

I ventured into the living room, and was relieved to find that the others didn’t seem to notice me. Either they didn’t know I’d fled the room, or they were tactful enough not to speak.

“Go for it, people,” Spencer said, his mouth already full.

I sat next to Dawn on the floor and took the napkin that she held out. Grateful, I smiled up at her. Music was playing in the background. I took the slice of pizza that Kaden had selected for me and fought for a moment with the dangling threads of cheese. I felt Dawn’s eyes on me as I took the first bite.