Page 17 of Made for Wilde

Then he pulls Charlotte into a bear hug, and I watch as she melts into her father’s embrace.

“Love you, Dad,” she murmurs against his shoulder.

“Love you too, baby girl. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

When they break apart, Charlotte turns toward me.

For a heartbeat, I think she’s going to hug me too. My body tenses, unsure how to handle the sudden possibility of her pressed against me.

But something passes between us.

She steps back instead and her cheeks flush pink.

“It was good to see you, Koda,” she says. Her voice is softer than before. “Don’t be a stranger.”

I shove my hands into my pockets to keep from reaching for her.

“I won’t.”

FOUR

CHARLOTTE

I kickoff my work shoes the moment I walk through our apartment door and let them thud against the wall. I don’t even bother turning on the lights.

All I want is to crawl into bed and forget that I saw Koda tonight. Forget how he looked at me.

Forget how I wanted him to keep looking.

“There you are.”

Sarah’s voice startles me. She flips on the lamp and illuminates her curled-up figure on our secondhand couch. She’s already in her pajamas with her hair piled messily on top of her head.

“I’ve got wine and I need gossip.”

I drop my bag on the counter and force a smile.

“I smell like beer and desperation. Can the gossip wait until after a shower?”

“The wine waits for no woman.” She holds up a half-empty bottle of the cheap red we keep for emergencies. Two glasses sit on the coffee table, one already filled. “Besides, you’ve been texting me cryptic messages all night about your dad showing up. I need details.”

I consider making a break for the bathroom, but Sarah’s expression tells me I’m not escaping this conversation.

I collapse onto the couch beside her and accept the glass she pushes into my hand.

“It wasn’t a big deal.” I take a larger sip than intended. The wine is sweet and slightly warm, exactly what I need. “Dad just stopped by The Summit. Surprised me.”

“So why do you look like someone ran over your cat?”

“I don’t have a cat.”

“Don’t deflect. You’ve been weird since you texted that your dad showed up. What happened?”

I swirl the wine in my glass and watch it catch the light.

“Nothing happened.”

“Liar.” Sarah’s eyes narrow. “Your cheeks are flushed, and you’ve been staring at that same spot on the wall for two minutes. Either you’re having a stroke or something happened.”