Be the Girl(62)

My heart flutters. He assumes we’re doing something tonight.

“Actually, I’m probably going to hang out with Emmett tonight.”

“You need to be off that.” She points at my leg.

“I know. I’ll see if he wants to watch a movie or something.”

“At their house. Where there’s an adult present who doesn’t go to bed at eight and sleep like the dead,” she warns, heading for her bedroom, her hum carrying through my open door.

I read the texts again, and decide how I should answer. There’s no way I’m telling him that Holly did this. He might do something crazy again like suggest we take a break from us. No way. “In case you were wondering how psychotic your ex is …” I say to myself, aiming my phone at my leg. I snap the picture and hit Send.





A form hovers inside the Hartford front door as I approach, Murphy toddling beside me, his leash dragging on the ground. I was surprised Emmett told me to bring him for Cassie, given his dad’s allergies, but I guess they can’t be that severe.

“They’re here!” Cassie’s voice carries and then the door flies open and she steps out, her focus going straight for the dog. “Hi, Murph! You’re going to watch a movie with us!” she exclaims, dismissing me entirely.

His tail wags.

“Oh, you’re hurt.” Cassie’s eyes dart from the grocery bag in my hand to my leg as I ease up the porch steps, wincing. “Mom! Emmett! AJ’s hurt!” To me, she demands, “What happened?” Her expression waffles between concern and curiosity, as if unsure which to land on.

“I fell at cross-country. It’s no big deal. I’ll be fine.”

“Oh. Okay.” She nods, reassured, her attention shifting to Murphy again to scratch behind his ear. “Does it hurt?”

“Yes.” I point to my tightened face. “That’s why I’m wincing.”

“Yeah. Okay.” Another nod. A smile. “Was there blood?”

“A bit.” I step into the warmth. The delicious scent of apple pie tantalizes my nose. A candle, I note, with disappointment.

“Can I see?”

“See what?”

“The blood.” She’s already bending over, her hand tugging on my pant leg, intent on pulling it up.

“Cassie …” Emmett stands at the top of the stairs, looking as gorgeous as ever in a fitted black long-sleeved shirt and dark-wash jeans. “Sorry, she has a weird obsession with blood and injuries.” He descends with casual effort, and the candle’s aroma vanishes as the scent of his body wash envelops me. If there is a benefit to all the hockey—besides his honed body—it’s the multiple showers he takes after practices and games.

“AJ hurt her leg,” Cassie announces.

“I know. Hey.” He stops just within my personal space, tilting his head at the plastic bag dangling from my fingers. “We have frozen peas here, you know.”

I shrug casually, hyperaware of his proximity. “My mom bought extra so I could swap them in the freezer.”

“AJ has to put her peas in the freezer!” Cassie’s attention is momentarily on the back of the house, long enough for Emmett to steal a quick kiss.

My cheeks flush, the ache in my knee vanishing with his parting smile.

“Why don’t you guys go downstairs? I’ll be there in a sec.”

“Come on, Murph! Let’s show you the basement. You’re going to like it.” Cassie takes his leash and leads him toward the stairs. “Here, let me turn the lights on for you. Oh, okay, Murph.” Her giggles carry.

“You’re okay with her hanging out with us, right?” Emmett asks softly.

“Yeah. Of course. I figured as much.” Truthfully, it was because I knew Cassie would be with us that I’m relaxed right now. She’s a buffer, until I get used to this thing with Emmett being a reality.

“Cool.” His eyes drift to my mouth a second before he leans down to kiss me again, this time lingering a bit, the tip of his tongue teasing the seam of my lips.

He’s such a good kisser; I could do this all night. But is he thinking the same about me? My heart pounds inside my chest, a potent mixture of intoxication and panic, of lust and self-doubt.

This is exactly why I need Cassie there.

“Emmett told me that you—tripped,” Heather stutters as she rounds the corner, catching the tail end of our kiss as Emmett pulls away. A tiny smile flickers across her lips. “Will you be okay for regionals?”

My face flames. “I think so. It’s already better. I have to keep icing it.”

“I’ll put one of these in the freezer for you.” Emmett leans down to collect my bag, his fingers grazing mine, seemingly unbothered about getting caught by his mother.

Heather’s steady gaze is on her son as he passes her, and I hobble down the stairs.

“Please don’t forget that she’s our neighbor and Merv’s family.” My ear catches Heather’s whisper.

“I know.”

“And Cassie’s friend.”

“Yup.”

There’s a pause. “And she’s only turning sixteen. I don’t know if Debra is going to be okay with …”

Heather’s voice has faded by the time I’ve reached the landing, unable to linger without the risk of getting caught eavesdropping. But I can guess how that sentence ended. The Hartfords are a tight-knit family. Heather and Mark know their kids. There’s no way Heather didn’t figure out that Emmett and Holly were doing it “like rabbits.” Thanks, Zack, for that mental image.