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"Did I interrupt? Oh my god, Amelia, why did you even answer the phone?"
I wondered that, too, and grimly remembered that he had essentially insisted. "He wanted me to. And no, there have been no kisses since."
"Why?"
I would have loved to claim that I didn't know, but that wasn’t the truth. "If anything is going to happen, I have to make the first move. Gray insists on it."
The thoughtful expression on Manon's face was unmistakable. In her eyes, it was the man's role to make the first move. She wanted to be pursued while I had learned to take what I wanted—otherwise, I wouldn't get it.
With Gray, that surely only held until he wasn't crossing any unseen boundaries by getting close to me. I was just good at deflecting certain things or ignoring them. He had the same talent since he also ignored my hints.
"Then find him and keep kissing him. Don't stop until what you want happens. Afterward, please call me and let me know if thebig-D energyis just a façade or not." Knowing Manon, she would expect play-by-play details.
Honestly, the idea of pushing it didn't sit well with me. Why not wait and see how things unfolded over the coming days? How things would be if everything took its natural course?
"Anyone looking can see that he's into you, Amelia. You can't tell me you feel nothing when he's standing next to you and…"
Radiating that big-D energy she had just mentioned? It actually made my knees weak.
"So? What's it going to be?"
Manon jolted me out of my thoughts. It wasn't good to fantasize about all these things concerning Gray without knowing if they were true. What if he…?
After he kissed you like that? Sure, keep telling yourself that.
"I…"
"Repeat after me, Amelia: I won't deny myself some fun with Gray."
"I won't deny myself some fun with Gray," I repeated, rolling my eyes internally.
My best friend, however, clapped her hands in satisfaction. "Perfect. Let him distract you. And don't forget?—"
"To report back to you? Of course not."
We ended the conversation, and I felt something akin to relief. Manon never held back her honest opinion. Knowing that she didn’t see a problem with Gray and me getting closer oddly comforted me. And her readiness to support me in every decision concerning him and what had happened made me feel even more secure.
Nothing was worse than being teased by Manon when I did something against her principles or contrary to what she envisioned. Funny? Always. But still a torment.
6
GRAY
Once a week, the bed-and-breakfast hosted a laid-back evening around the campfire for its guests. A barbecue was always part of the event, as were the staff from the Curved Grape, who had set up a small outdoor bar. Several locals had also joined in, creating a lively scene on the grounds.
That was enough to keep my hands full, yet it didn't stop me from continuously stealing glances at Amelia, who had settled on one of the furthest logs we had turned into benches, just at the edge of the campfire, with a book resting on her lap.
To the rest of the guests, she blended into the background, her presence barely noticeable. For me, though, she quickly became the focal point in the crowd, where my eyes repeatedly and unfailingly returned.
She was there. Although I had essentially given her no choice in the matter, part of me had still been convinced she would ignore my request. Secretly, I had even considered what impression it would make on the guests if I carried her over my shoulder here so that I could have her near me—not only physically but to not be alone with the thoughts that no doubt were swirling through her head, whether she admitted it or not.
Wilder cleared his throat beside me. Normally, he didn't attend the barbecues, allowing his team to manage the bar and everything associated with it. But that evening, he had shown up—and the reason was obvious. "Your eyes are constantly on her," he observed, stating the obvious. Typical of him.
I shot him a meaningful look. "Is that so? I hadn't noticed."
"Why?" he asked, ignoring my comment.
Wilder was just a few years younger than me. Single. The owner of the only bar in town—theCurved Grape.
