Page 6 of Caden & Theo

Even now, while he’s animatedly describing being mobbed last year by foam ball-wielding eight-year-olds, I can’t stop watching the curve of his mouth. I imagine leaning in, enough to catch him mid-sentence, shutting him up with a kiss and feeling what it’s like.

But then come the what-ifs.

What if it ruins everything? What if I misread the signals? What if I’m not actually into guys and this is just some kindof best friend confusion? What if Iaminto him, and it makes everything harder?

“What if it ruins everything?” I say quietly and without thinking.

Theo frowns. “What?”

Shit.

“Nothing,” I say quickly. “Just… thinking about the future.”

He studies me for a second, and I know he knows I’m dodging. But he doesn’t push. He never pushes.

“Yeah,” he says quietly. “Me too.”

We fall into this easy silence we’ve always been good at. Comfortable. Familiar. But under it, there’s this crackling energy I can’t explain. I feel it when our shoulders brush. In the way he shifts just slightly closer, like he’s settling in. Like maybe he feels it too.

I stare at the stars for a while, trying not to think about kissing him again—and failing miserably. Because now that the thought is in my head, it’s like itwon’tleave.

And maybe, if I’m being honest with myself, I don’t want it to.

“—and Shane actually ate it,” Theo’s saying, pulling me back into the conversation with that mischievous glint in his eye. “Like, full-on chewed and swallowed. Thought it was a meatball. It was a dog treat. Shaped like a meatball, yeah, butstill.”

I blink. “Wait, what?”

Theo grins. “See? You missonepunch line and the whole story falls apart.”

“I was paying attention,” I lie.

“You so weren’t.” He nudges me with his knee. “Try to keep up, North.”

“I’m trying,” I say, smiling. “It’s just—your face is really distracting.”

He freezes.

My mouth goes dry.

“I meant, like,youmake distracting faces,” I scramble, waving a hand vaguely at him. “You’re expressive. It’s… uh… charming.”

Smooth. Real smooth.

Theo lifts one brow slowly, eyes sharp with interest now. He sips from his cup like he’s trying not to smirk. “Mm-hmm.”

I can’t tell if he’s messing with me or filing that away for later. Probably both.

I drag a hand through my cropped curls and look out at the firepit, where someone’s trying to toast a marshmallow with a sparkler. “So, uh… Shane swallowed dog food, huh?”

“Fully. Cam’s got video. He’s saving it for blackmail when Shane’s rich and famous.”

“Honestly? Smart.”

“He’s calling it the Pup-Peroni Incident.”

I laugh, relieved to be back on safer ground. “You really have a gift for attracting chaos.”

Theo leans back, arms spread on either side of his chair like he owns the lawn. “What can I say? Drama follows me.”