AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Tyler isn’t intome.
The moments I swore there was attraction between us had to have been imagined. The memory of his thumb stroking my cheek, his gorgeous body and fiery eyes so close, was an exaggeration of my booze-addledbrain.
I go downstairs to grab coffee and find Haley already there, one hand on her back as she pourscoffee.
“How was the party?” she asks, studying me. “You look like you had lots of…fun.”
I blink up ather.
“Tyler seemed to be looking forward to going, but I didn’t hear him come in. What did he goas?”
I pop in a coffee pod, slide my mug under the nozzle on the fancy machine, and hit Start. “A prince. Tyler went as aprince.”
When I lift my filled coffee mug, Haley’s watching me intently. “I know he appreciates you helping him fitin.”
“He doesn’t need my help,” I murmur into mymug.
“People don’t always show what they’re feeling. Especially when they’re trying to fit in somewhere new.” She shakes her head. “I remember the first weeks on tour with your dad. It was like a different universe. I tried to put on a brave face, but I didn’t know what to do or who to listen to or when to stand my ground. It can beoverwhelming.”
Her words linger in my mind as she goes to make cereal, and I drop onto a stool at the island and stare out the patiodoors.
Yes, Carly and every other girl at the party was trying to get close to Tyler last night. They don’t know him like Ido.
They haven’t shared hundreds of laughs, thousands of smiles, dozens of orders of cheesefries.
So what if he didn’t look for me when Carly brought him hisdrink?
Tyler came looking forme.
What if all this popularity stuff is bullshit? Maybe what’s between me and Tyleriswhat’sreal.
The chance, however slim, has a wave of hope washing overme.
“Ladies.” My dad pads into the kitchen, barefoot in his favorite jeans and T-shirt, Sophie swaddled in his arms. His hair sticks up in every direction, and scruff covers his jaw. When his gaze lands on me, he pulls up short. “Youlook…”
Haley clears her throat, but my dad ignoresher.
“Were you drinking lastnight?”
I could lie, but that won’t go overwell.
I cross to him and peer down at my baby sister, rubbing a fingertip along her softcheek.
Then I hold up my thumb and forefinger an inchapart.
His expression clouds, jaw tightening. “Annie—“
Haley steps deftly between us, smiling at the baby and my dad in turn. “Good morning to you,too.”
For a second I think he’s going to protest, but as she tips her face up to his, of course hedoesn’t.
Haley knows my dad too well. The ick factor I have for seeing him shift the bundle in his arms so he can pull Haley into a hard kiss is counterbalanced by my gratitude for her bailing meout.
I pull out a box of Rice Krispies cereal and the bag of marshmallows. I focus on making the squares and ignore whatever is or is not going on behind me until they both come up for air and resume talking about normal things, like Sophie’s sleeping schedule and an ad campaign my dad’s booking in LA and a project Haley’s been putting off since before the baby was born but wants to take onsoon.
Eventually, my dad appears at my elbow to make a coffee of his own, free of his tinyburden.
“You’re going to eat all of those for breakfast?” he asks as I cut a row out of the pan before arranging the four squares on a littleplate.
