The Romantic Pact (Kings of Football)(51)

“Exactly.” I quickly get up and run to the bathroom, where I shut the door and then lean against it, squeezing my eyes shut.

Pops, what were you thinking?

Crew has never liked me as more than a friend, never will. This just seems cruel.

I try to catch my breath and still my racing heart.

It’ll be okay. You’ll be okay, Hazel. Five more days. You totally can do this. Don’t be weird. Smile, laugh, and try to enjoy yourself. And after it’s done, Crew will return to his life, probably play pro, get married and have a full, error-proof, goal-driven life. And I’ll . . . I’ll return to the farm, to the town ridicule, to never knowing if I’ll ever succeed in meeting Pops’s expectations. I’ll be too busy to find a husband, and life might just pass me by. But there are five days with Crew that I need to endure . . . enjoy. I can do that.

Deep breaths.





Crew is next to me, asleep on the bed. After finishing our dinner, we played some more Dots and Boxes, and then broke off to do our own reading. He went to sleep pretty quickly, but I can’t seem to find any need for sleep, so I turn away from him and reach for my phone where it’s charging on my nightstand. Knowing my friend, Mia, from back home will be in her florist shop, pruning away, I send her a text.

Hazel: Hey, do you have a second to talk?

God, I hope she has her phone next to her like she normally does.

Mia: Uh, yeah. Sheesh, I’ve been waiting to hear from you. Last thing I heard was that you landed in Germany and confirmed it was Crew you were on the trip with. I need all the details now. Is he with you?

Smiling softly, I consider how grateful I am for Mia. We’ve been friends for a few years now. Her husband, Johnny, moved them back to our small town to help out his parents, and she wound up opening a florist shop while he’s a social studies teacher at the K-12 school. We became fast friends, and it’s been really nice since she doesn’t know much about my background other than what I tell her.

She does know about Crew, though, because she was there for me when he started ignoring all my emails and attempts to reach out. She’s also been a steady shoulder to lean on as things have gotten tougher on the farm.

Already starting to feel some of the anxiety ease, I text back.

Hazel: Sorry, things have been crazy. We’re nonstop moving around and attending activities Pops set up for us. And when we’re not doing something, we’re passed out from exhaustion.

Or drunk, but I don’t say that.

Mia: Sounds thrilling. I’ve loved the photos you’ve posted on Insta. It looks like a story book coming to life. Is that what it feels like?

Hazel: Yes, it’s kind of crazy how unreal it feels. The buildings resemble something from Pinocchio, and it’s hard for my brain to wrap around the idea that I’m actually in a real place.

Mia: I wonder if people from other countries think the same about America.

Hazel: Probably. But yeah, it’s been fun. Drank a lot, visited some beautiful places, had some gingerbread, dry humped Crew, and we’re on a road trip now.

Mia: Wait . . . what?. You dry humped Crew?

Mia: Don’t think you can just slip that little detail in there and not get called out for it. Deets!

Hazel: We were incredibly drunk and it just happened. I don’t remember much of it, but what I do remember is the morning after and doing it again.

Mia: Oh my God! You dry humped twice?

Hazel: Yes.

Mia: Why the hell are you keeping your clothes on?

Hazel: It’s not that easy. I think I like him.

Mia: Like . . . *like* him, like him?

Hazel: Yeah, and I know he doesn’t feel the same way about me, and this entire trip is built around our relationship and Pops trying to play matchmaker. We’re sharing a bed in every hotel, we’re partaking in romantic wine tastings, and we’re on a road trip called the Romantic Road, for fuck’s sake. It’s messing with my head and I don’t know what to do.

Mia: How do you know he doesn’t feel the same way?

Crew stirs next to me and I hold my breath, waiting to make sure he doesn’t wake. After a few seconds, I type Mia back.

Hazel: He told me he’s here for closure, not for a relationship.

Mia: Ouch. Okay, that’s a bit of a blow.

Hazel: Yeah, tell me about it. I acted as if it didn’t hurt me and then ran to the bathroom, where I nearly hyperventilated.

Mia: Aww, Hazel, that makes me so sad. I wish I could be there to give you a hug.

Hazel: I could use one right about now. One that isn’t from Crew. God, Mia. He’s . . . he’s more than I remembered. Outgoing, fun, charismatic. Sweet, loving. I don’t understand what Pops was thinking.

Mia: Maybe he was thinking that you two were meant to be together.

Hazel: We could not be more polar opposite. He’s an All-American college football star about to go off to the combine and try out professionally. I’m a farm girl with nothing to really show for it. Plus I have my sordid family.

Mia: That’s not true, and you know it. You’re not just a farm girl. You have helped change McMann Farm into the bustling tourist attraction it is today. People drive up from all over during the fall season just to go to the farm. You helped create that.

Hazel: And I’ve no clue what’s going to happen to the farm at this point. It could be bought out. I could be shit out of luck with no job.