Beg You to Trust Me (Lindon U #2)(60)

The easy expression on her face diminishes for a second before her smile returns, a little lower than before. “No. Serenity thinks this event will cement things for them, but that’s it.”

I shake my head, but she holds me in place in a silent chide. “Why can’t she just make the move? It’s the 21st century. Women can ask men to marry them. It isn’t like Anthony isn’t head over heels for her.” Any man who has the patience to deal with our oldest sister’s craziness is the real deal.

“Don’t all women like to feel special?” Serena asks, braiding two small sections of hair on either side of my face and pinning them back so they stay out of my eyes. “Serenity has always liked the spectacle of things. She isn’t going to settle for anything less when it comes to a proposal.”

I watch my sister comb my hair with her fingers until the frizzy waves fall over my shoulders. She goes to my bathroom connected across the room and comes back with a curling iron. I make a face that she chooses to ignore while plugging it in, then goes to stand behind me.

“What about you, Sky?”

My brows go up. “What about me?”

She smiles into the reflection of the two of us, resting her chin on top of my head. “You’ve always marched to the beat of your own drum. Would you go after the guy or let the guy come to you?”

For some reason my mind wanders to Danny, and my traitorous lips turn upward into a goofy smile.

She gasps dramatically, fingers gripping my shoulders until they pinch. “Oh my God! There is a guy coming after you!”

The shriek of her voice makes me hiss out a low, “Keep your voice down!”

Despite that, she claps and does the same dance she always does when she’s excited. “I can’t believe you’ve been keeping this to yourself. What’s his name? What does he look like? Is he pining for you? Or—”

I groan loudly, smacking her hands away from my shoulders. “It’s not like that, Rena. His name is Danny—” More high-pitched noises come from her that make me glare in warning until she zips her lips. “His name is Danny and he’s on the football team. We’ve been hanging out a little.”

“Hanging out as in hanging out? Or hanging out as in—” Her hands twist together in a weird gesture that I think is supposed to symbolize something sexual. “—hanging out?”

I turn in my chair to eye her. “Never do that again, it looked like you were stroking out. And we’re just hanging out. He took me to the airport. We have a class together. Sometimes, we study and watch movies. It isn’t a big thing.”

Lie.

Lie, lie, lie.

The text I sent him becomes front and center in my mind, making me internally groan. I can’t believe I even told him that I wanted a redo of that night. That I wanted him to replace those memories. I never thought I had it in me.

So, maybe Serena is right. I guess I am the type to march to my own beat.

My sister gets a doe-eyed look about her. “I have a feeling you’re thinking about him right now, and it doesn’t look like it’s in a friendly way. A football player, huh? I never would have thought you’d go after a jock. That’s so…Allen of you. Very Sienna. She’ll be so proud—”

“You can’t tell her!” My eyes narrow in warning that she looks none too pleased about. “I mean it, Serena. You can’t say a word to anybody. You know our family will blow it out of proportion. Remember Ryan?”

Her shoulders. “He was different. He was your first boyfriend.”

“And Danny is…” My lips curve downward as I loosen a sigh. He isn’t my boyfriend, but I care about him. “Danny is a great person, and I just want it to be as uncomplicated as it can be. If Sienna or Serenity find out, they’ll tell Mom and Dad, and the group chat will be nonstop questions pestering me about him. That’s hardly fun or uncomplicated.”

She checks to see if the curling iron is hot enough and murmurs, “I don’t see what the big deal is. You have no problems ignoring our messages most of the time anyway.”

Guilt creeps into my chest and scrapes a nail down my heart. I do tend to ignore the messages until I have no choice but to answer them. “You have to admit, most of the messages in that chat aren’t even geared toward me. I can’t have my phone out twenty-four-seven replying to Serenity’s crises, or Si’s work meltdowns. If I put it on silent for one class I find at least twenty texts waiting after I’m done. It’s…a lot.”

She picks up the iron and walks over to me, picking up a section of hair. “Did it have to be New York?”

My brows furrow at her question, but I think about it while studying her sad eyes. After a few extended seconds, I offer a small smile. “Yeah, I think so. I just needed some distance.”

“From us?”

This time, I don’t answer.

“We’re not that bad, Sky.”

It only makes me feel worse. “I know you’re not. But…I don’t know what you want me to say, Rena. Isn’t it normal to want to explore? Leave home? Serenity went to Yale clear across the country, why is it so different that I did? College is a perfect chance to figure things out.” I gesture toward the outfit I’m wearing. “I was never totally happy doing stuff you guys wanted to do. I never liked dressing up and attending these events and getting my photo taken a million times. What’s wrong with trying to figure out who I am?”