Page 10

Chapter Ten

Lainey

It’s day eight of the Great Bash Freeze-Out. And for a person who has a really hard time being mean to anyone, I’m doing pretty damn well.

I ambivalently sailed past the savory-smelling platter of freshly cooked bacon in the kitchen yesterday morning, my stomach begging me to give in.

But no. Bash isn’t winning me over with a delicious homemade breakfast. Those cinnamon rolls looked incredible, though.

He probably had to throw them away since he’s eating healthy to prepare for camp starting in two weeks.

When he texts asking if we can talk, I tell him I’m busy. I was at Mara’s from after work Friday night until Sunday afternoon when I had to come back to Bash’s to work on my lectures for Professor Carr’s classes. I went straight to my room and only came out to make a sandwich in the evening.

The craziest part is that I’m not even really mad at him anymore. I’m avoiding him because I’m not in a good place emotionally to talk to him.

I’ve been thinking about the things he asked me to consider.

I only dated one guy before Shane, and that was a six-month college relationship that fizzled when he graduated.

But even without much experience, I know Shane is definitely not head over heels in love with me.

He’s never called me beautiful or sexy .

Shane has been more of a comfortable presence in my life the past couple of years. We don’t have a lot of sex, but when we do, it’s...good for him every time and good enough for me, maybe half the time.

I wanted Shane to want to see me last weekend. But when I told him Mara and Suki invited me to have a sleepover, he wasn’t disappointed. He said he had work to do and we could see each other another time.

I’m a scientist. I like logic and order. I used to be a starry-eyed romantic, but Bash broke me of that. I made a fool of myself to him and his rejection gutted me.

I promised myself I’d never feel that way again. I’d never fall so hard for someone that they had that kind of power over me. But maybe I went too far to the other end of the spectrum with Shane.

I once heard him tell his friends over his video game headset that he had time for another round of their game because I “probably had the shits.” He laughed.

My cheeks blazed with humiliation. He probably thought I couldn’t hear him, but I was in his bedroom getting out the lingerie I’d packed for my first overnight stay at his house.

His thoughtless comment made me pack my bag up and tell him I wasn’t feeling well, and that’s when I decided we’d never spend an entire night together. He shrugged and waved at me over his shoulder, still playing his game.

It bothers me that he never fights for me. If we see each other, it’s fine, and if we don’t, that’s fine, too. If we have an argument, he leaves, and he doesn’t want to finish it later.

Bash drives me crazy with his nonstop criticism of Shane, but he’s stubborn as fuck and I don’t think he’ll ever give up. He’s a fighter.

I have to freeze him out because if I don’t, I’m going to fall for him again. Seventeen-year-old-me would never forgive me if that happened.

“Welcome to Harvest Moon,” the greeter at Harry’s restaurant says with a warm smile. “Can I get the name for your reservation?”

“I’m actually here to see Harry.”

“Oh! Let me go grab him.”

She’s beautiful, her light-brown skin glowy and her thick, tightly-coiled curls bouncy. Her perfectly pressed bright-white dress shirt matches her teeth.

Harry asked me to come by to check out his restaurant before trivia night.

I knew it would be incredible, but it’s even more than I was expecting.

The tables and floors are dark wood, the walls textured to look like soft brown saw grass.

Candles in glass globes glow on every table and minimalist scones and chandeliers provide a warm glow, but the overall vibe is dark and cozy.

“Lainey.” Harry opens his arms as he approaches me. “I’m so glad you could come by.”

He’s wearing khakis and a light-blue polo, his short, dark-blond hair styled perfectly. Harry always looks put together and polished.

But me? I’m wearing jeans, Converse, and a well-worn black T-shirt that says, “Science doesn’t care about your opinion.” I changed out of my work clothes because dress shoes with pointy toes are bullshit.

“I’m finishing up a meeting in the kitchen,” Harry says as he leads me to a table for two. “Give me one minute and I’ll be back.”

“Sure, take your time.”

He wasn’t kidding— he’s back in less than two minutes, two glasses of something cloudy and light pink in hand.

“Hibiscus lemonade,” he says. “I remember you saying you love lemonade, and this stuff is phenomenal.”

I take a sip, then immediately have another. “That’s amazing. It’s sweet and tart at the same time. There’s like a cranberry flavor.”

“I’m obsessed. I drink about a half gallon a day.”

It’s around four thirty p.m., and busy staffers are coming in and out of the double doors that lead to the kitchen. One bartender is polishing the gleaming bar surface and another is lining up clean glass tumblers.

“Is this the prep time before it gets crazy?” I ask.

“Pretty much, but it’s nothing like Fridays and Saturdays. We seat people starting at four forty-five and we have a full house tonight.”

The scent of seasoned, grilled meat makes my stomach growl. I’m surprised when a server approaches our table and sets down a plate of dumplings, pinched perfectly and drizzled with a dark sauce.

“I’m having the kitchen bring us some snacks,” Harry says.

“Wow.” I look up at the server. “Thanks, this looks amazing.”

She grins. “Enjoy. Anything else right now, boss man?”

“I think we’re good.” Harry picks up a small plate and passes it to me. “Dig in.”

“This place is...” I shake my head. “I’m blown away, Harry. Seriously. You look like you’re still in your twenties, and I could try my whole life to create someplace like this and never even come close.”

“That’s very kind, thank you. I’m thirty-two. And I don’t remember if I told you I actually sold this place last year. Part of the deal was that I stay on as executive chef for two years.”

I serve myself a dumpling, steam rising from it as I cut into it. “So what’s your plan after that? Or have you even decided?”

“I’m opening another restaurant. The two years were to help transition, but also for noncompete reasons. I think my next one will be an Asian sushi, ramen, wood-fired pizza mashup.”

“Oh, hell yeah. I’d be all over that.”

“Right? I could live entirely on sushi.”

My first bite of the dumpling makes me moan softly. It’s divine—tender, perfectly seasoned beef, onions and carrots with a savory and sweet sauce. “That’s orgasmic.”

He smiles widely, pleased. “My sous came up with that recipe. It’s a new one. She’ll be thrilled you like it.”

“Like it? I could eat about thirty-five of these.”

He laughs. “I just love you. You remind me so much of Mara and Suki.”

His compliment warms me. “Thank you. I adore all of you. Without you guys, I’d have nothing here but my work at the lab.”

Harry is able to arch just one brow. I’d look ridiculous trying to do that.

“I mean, we’ll take all your free time, but what about Bash? And your fiancé? He’s not far away, right?”

I heave out a sigh. “It’s kind of a situation.”

“Is it something you want to talk about?”

“Sure, I don’t mind.”

“The rest of the Smartinis will be here by five for our pregame drinks and snacks sesh. Do you want to wait and tell all of us at once?”

God, it would be nice to find out what they all think. I’m so tired of running over it in my head and never really figuring anything out. “Yeah, sure.”

“You need a shot to loosen you up?”

I laugh because what an understatement. “Definitely.”

“Oh, hayyylll naw.” Mara is about a drink and a half past tipsy. “Fuck that fucker. He spends seven grand on a gaming computer and you get this engagement ring?” She bends to inspect my ring closer. “Baby, I’ve got blackheads bigger than that diamond.”

I’ve been telling the other Smartinis about Shane, starting with big-picture things like him never saying I look good or I’m beautiful. But as the night has gone on and the drinks have gone down, I’ve opened up and now I’m spilling my guts.

We’re at The Factory, an old warehouse that was converted into a bar and restaurant. After taking first place in the weekly trivia on the bar side, we decided to stay and talk some more.

I look down at the ring that turned my finger green before I had it plated with rhodium by a jeweler to protect my skin.

“I said it didn’t matter how much he spent, but...”

“We all say that,” Suki says. “But for fuck’s sake, none of us mean it. A ring you’re going to wear for your entire life doesn’t need to cost a fortune, but you want it to be pretty.”

I blanch. “Are you saying my ring isn’t pretty?”

Her eyes widen with alarm. “No, I...I didn’t mean it like that.”

I burst out laughing. “I’m fucking with you. This ring is ugly as shit.”

The entire table erupts with laughter. I feel lighter and happier than I’ve felt in a long time. I didn’t realize how much I needed real-life close friends to confide in.

“I’m getting the next round,” Dex says, getting up from the table.

“He said the G-spot is a myth,” I say. “But science has proven it’s real.”

Mara rolls her eyes and cackles. “My response to that horseshit is threefold: unicorns are a myth, the G-spot is super fucking real, and Shane sucks in bed.”

Harry raises his glass. “Shane sucks in bed!”

Suki frowns. “Should we be toasting that, though? Lainey’s engaged to him.”

Harry frowns, burps, and then lowers his glass. “Right.”

“I think it was a good call taking an Uber tonight,” Suki says with a laugh.

“I’m going to need to talk to Shane about that,” I say softly. “I think we should probably postpone the wedding.”

Suki’s expression turns serious. “Is that really what you want? We’ve been having fun talking shit, but I don’t want you to do something you’ll regret because of tonight.”

I shake my head. “No, I’ve been thinking about this on my own for the past week. Bash told me Shane should be all in, crazy in love with me, or I’ll be settling.”

She softens. “Bash said that?”

“Yeah. He said Shane should be here every Friday night through Monday morning. That he would be—Bash, I mean.”

Suki’s brows fly up. “Wait a minute, Bash said what?”

There’s a flutter in my stomach as I replay it in my head. “He said it I was his girl, and he lived in Columbus; he’d be here by seven thirty every Friday night. And he’d get up early every Monday to drive back so he could have an extra night.”

Suki and Mara exchange a look. Harry covers my hand with his.

“After you have a talk with Shane, have a talk with Bash,” he says.

Dex returns with a tray of drinks, passing them around. Mine is water because two drinks is my max on a weeknight.

“So, if you guys are up for the most embarrassing story ever?—”

“Always!” Suki gives me a warm smile.

I take a deep breath. “Okay, so Bash was my brother Eric’s childhood best friend, right? They were together all the time. Every day. I idolized both of them, but when I was in fifth grade, I developed a hardcore crush on Bash. I kissed my pillow, imagining it was him, all that stuff.”

“Wait, how much older is he than you?” Dex asks.

“Four years. Every time he and Eric went to a dance with dates and they came over for my mom to take pictures, it broke my heart.”

“Aw.” Harry pats my hand.

“Yeah, and imagine me with even oranger hair, braces and bad skin. I was so awkward. But my hair got darker and finally, at the age of like fifteen, I got some boobs. So I was feeling better about myself, and when I was seventeen, I...” I blow out a breath.

“I drove to his house and asked Bash to my prom.”

“Oh God,” Mara says.

“Exactly. He said no, of course. I cried and ran back to my car, planning to get the hell out of there, and it wouldn’t start.”

Dex claps a hand over his mouth.

“Oh, Lainey,” Suki says.

“Yeah. Bash called my parents, which got me into the deepest of shit because I’d lied about where I was going.

He drove me home, which took more than six hours.

I’ve never been so mortified in my life.

He was so nice, telling me I was a great girl and any guy my age would be lucky to have me.

..” I shake my head. “And then, to make it even worse, the next week, he got my car fixed and drove it back home. My parents made me write him a thank-you card.”

They’re all giving me sympathetic looks, Dex’s face frozen in a cringe. Finally, Mara breaks the silence.

“That’s awful. I’m sorry. I mean, not that he got your car fixed, but you know what I’m saying.”

“Yeah. It took years for me to even be able to be around him again.”

“On an entirely different subject,” Mara says. “Does anyone want to share nachos with me? With so much extra cheese sauce that we need a snorkel and flippers to get to the nachos.”

“Hell yes,” Suki says.

I pass, fondue night still fresh in my mind.

My phone, which is face down on the table, buzzes with a new text. I flip it over, expecting to see a message from Shane.

Bash: Hey, just checking on you because it’s getting late. You ok?

It’s weird that my fiancé hasn’t texted me since yesterday, but Bash is concerned about me. It makes the voice of doubt about Shane in my head grow just a little louder.