Page 21 of Hot Girls Read Book Club

Sean’s voice drops as he really takes me in for the first time all day. Noah follows a second later, the joking tone slipping from him entirely. I can feel them watching me closely, the hair at the back of my neck prickling with awareness.

“You good, man?” Sean finally asks.

I don’t answer right away, hands still working on the engine in front of me, but I’m not really seeing it anymore. I’m thinking about a parking lot, a hand lifted in a wave that I didn’t return, and a pair of honey eyes glancing my way.

“I’m fine,” I say, but it comes out so flat that even I don’t believe it.

Noah snorts like he’s about to push his luck, then stops himself. The expression on my face must be enough to shut that part of him down. Sean studies me, leaning back against the counter.

“Wanna try that again?” he asks, but there’s no edge to it.

I don’t want to have this conversation, but I set the wrench down, bracing myself against the side of the car I’m working on.

“I ghosted her,” I say.

That’s ultimately what it comes down to. Sure, it started with gossip, and I’ve had excuses running through my head all week, but it boils down to one thing at this point.

I left her standing there.

Noah’s expression changes, something softer settling in behind his eyes. Sean tosses his rag over his shoulder and exhales through his nose. “What happened?”

“I thought I was doing the right thing.”

Noah tilts his head slightly. “That usually doesn’t involve bailing on someone without saying anything.”

The worst part about that is he’s not wrong.

I look back down at the engine because it gives me something to focus on that isn’t their faces or the weight in my chest. “Reputations always have a way of catching up to you. There’s no point dragging it out.”

Sean pushes off the counter a little, stepping in just enough that I can’t ignore him. “You ever think she might’ve wanted to decide for herself what she thinks about you?”

I don’t look at him right away.

When I finally do, Sean is watching me, waiting for me to say the answer we all know is true out loud. I glance between him and Noah, looking for judgment in their gazes, and finding none.

“Yeah,” I admit quietly.

Noah nods, giving my shoulder a reassuring squeeze. The contact catches me off guard, but it loosens some of the tightness in my chest. “Then maybe don’t take that away from her.”

I wipe my hands on the rag that’s tucked in my back pocket and look away again before either of them can see too much.

“I screwed it up,” I say.

Sean shrugs slightly. “Then fix it.”

At least he’s honest.

The garage door rattles open before either of them can say anything else, and a cold rush of air rolls through the space. It’s a chill that doesn’t belong in this place, but I don’t think much of it at first, assuming it’s just a customer coming to check on their vehicle, until I hear Noah pause mid-sentence.

Silence blankets the room.

I turn, and there she is.

Lily.

Standing just inside the doorway, like she isn’t sure she should be here but came anyway. The rain outside clings to her hair and her jacket, darkening everything it touches, and for a second, my brain refuses to process how she got here or what she’s doing in a place like this.

Her eyes find mine almost immediately.