Counting Down with You(83)

What doesn’t make sense is his relationship with his brother. As upset as I was with Samir this past week, I don’t think the two of us have ever been that volatile.

“What...happened between you two?” I ask hesitantly. “There are rumors you sabotaged Xander’s presidential campaign. Is that true?”

“Yes,” Ace says, leaning his other elbow against the table and sighing. “That might be one of the few rumors about me that is actually true. Mom and Dad had been separated for a few years by then, but she didn’t move to Italy until last year, around the same time Xander was running for student body president. Xander and I were always fighting, and he kept telling Dad about every single little thing I did. It was driving me up the wall.”

“Who could blame you,” I mutter.

“Xander could,” he says, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “I asked Mom if I could go with her to Italy, because I couldn’t take it anymore, but Xander overheard and told my dad. Dad thought it was because of him. He was heartbroken, and Xander was elated, and I was furious. The next day, I set out to ruin his campaign—not that it worked, since he’s clearly student body president. Since then, he’s been spreading rumors about me as payback.”

I blink. “What the fuck,” I say, unable to form anything more coherent. “Just...what?”

Ace exhales deeply. “I really don’t know. I can’t wait until he goes to Yale in August and all this ends. I’m exhausted.”

I reach across the table and place my hand over his. “I’m sorry.” I wait a moment before offering a timid smile. “At least there’s Mia?”

“At least there’s Mia,” he agrees, lacing our fingers together. “After you and I talked, I told her the truth about everything. She demands real double dates in the future.”

My smile widens. “I’m happy to oblige. I’m glad you have her.”

Ace nods, locking gazes with me. “And now I have you, too.”

Warmth spreads through me. I try to mask the butterflies raging beneath my skin by extending the conversation. “You know, for someone who asked for a tutor, you spent an awful lot of time in the beginning not studying.”

“You’re more interesting than English,” he says, grinning.

I raise an eyebrow. “Sure.”

He chuckles, squeezing my hand. “I told you before, Karina. I saw a spark in you.”

“Every time you say that, you sound more ridiculous,” I say, but I don’t pull away.

“Good,” he says before his eyes light up. “Hey, I just remembered I want to show you something. Are you done eating?”

I glance down at my plate, which is almost empty. I didn’t realize how hungry I was. “Yeah.”

Ace leans over, blows out the candle, and takes my hand. “Come on.”



38


T-MINUS 10 DAYS

The piano. That’s where Ace is leading us.

After he flicks on the lights in his room, he gestures for me to join him on the piano bench. “Sit with me.”

I take a seat, eyeing the beautiful piano curiously. Is Ace going to play something? “What did you want to show me?”

Ace looks torn for a split second, but his expression eases at whatever he sees on my face. “It’s hard to play in front of other people,” he says, pressing his thumb against a key. “My friend Ben is a natural performer. He loves crowds. Me...not so much.”

I give him a curious look. “You’ve mentioned Ben before. How’d you two meet?”

His mouth turns up in the corner. “It was during a competition in Brussels. He accidentally dropped coffee on my sheet music. Ben—he’s a prodigy. Shines brightest on stage. I think it intimidates people, but I don’t really care about all that, you know?”

I bump shoulders with him. “Yeah, I know. You can be pretty intimidating yourself.”

Ace huffs a laugh. “So I’ve been told. But yeah, I think Ben expected me to freak out, except I just took it in stride. I know shit happens sometimes. From then on, we stuck together when we saw each other at competitions.” He pauses. “He told me to say hi to you, by the way.”

I grin. “Did he now?”

A flush spreads across Ace’s cheekbones and he looks down at the piano. “Anyway, during competitions, I have to pretend no one else is around. I used to be able to play only in front of my mom. But she’s in Italy now, and I’m here, so...”

“Why is she in Italy?” I ask. I’ve wondered for a while now, but it never seemed like a good time to ask.

He sighs, hands faltering. “She’s a boutique fashion designer. She’s been opening up branches across the world, and her flagship is in Italy. Even though we talk all the time, I don’t get to see her much anymore, for obvious reasons.”

I lean my head against Ace’s shoulder. “I’m sorry. That sucks.”

“It’s not either of our faults,” he says. “When I asked her to take me with her, I wasn’t thinking straight. She travels too much for me to go with her while still attending school, and I wouldn’t want her to sacrifice her dreams to stay with me.”

A new fact about Ace. Instead of accusing his mother of abandoning him or whining about her being gone, he chooses to absolve her of blame. He chooses to be selfless.