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"Eli?"

"Yeah, okay," I growled

Paisley’s dark eyes turned sad and she shook her head "I don’t knohat you’re ht noe can do it later"

When she started to stand, I grabbed her hand and held her there "No, I want to do this now, but I need to know if he hurt you, Pay It’s killing ht have done to you"

"Of course he didn’t!"

Relief surged throughelseto keep ed her to tell me "Okay, I promise I’ll stay quiet until your question"

Her eyes immediately fell back to her coffee cup as she tookher to talk to uy I aer for me I look at him, and I have no doubt of that I have no doubt that I could spend the rest of my life with hi to lose my Paisley

"And I know that sounds crazy after only a feeeks, but, honestly, I knew it the first day I met him I don’t kno to explain it It wasn’t like the world stopped turning or anything, there was just a feeling I had" She sed roughly and looked away for a second "But there’s this other guy, and I swear this guy owns uy? And she hadn’t said anything? We’d always told each other everything Seriously, when the hell did all this change?

"Eli," she whispered, her voice nearly inaudible "I have been in love with you since I was thirteen years old"

Paisley dated people about as often as the Olympics came around, and I spent nearly every day with her How could I not have known about all these-- Her declaration finally hit ive away my shock

What The Hell did she just say? She what? No--no way She wasmore My mind raced as she took controlled breaths and kept up her fucked-up confession

"I’ve kept quiet for twelve years, and I would’ve continued to if I hadn’t met Brett These last feeeks have been casual, but I knoants it to be more But if there is a chance of an us, then there would be absolutely no thoughts of anything else with hi to us She was irl I could stand to be around for any period of time other than my sisters, Candice and Rachel And even those tere pushing it

"Eli, I need to know" She exhaled slowly and waited until she heldan us?"

I sat there frozen as I replayed everything she’d just said over and over Waiting, hoping for her to take it all back As the minutes ticked by, her anxious posture slowly hunched in on itself, and I watched as the hopefulness left her eyes

Not a joke This was real

As the confusion washed throughback and forth "You’re my best friend, Paisley," I nearly whispered "You’ve always just been rasped there was nothing else I would be adding, and for the second time in a week--and the fourth time in a dozen years--I watched Paisley bite down on her bottom lip as her eyes filled with tears

"Pay" I started reaching across the table, but stopped short Hoas I supposed to touch her? Hoas I supposed to co now that I kne she felt?

She blinked back the tears and it hit me The bar--her tears Like I’d done countless ti her to make so her, brushing kisses against her neck--oh God Theyto her

My head dropped into my hands and my elbows hit the table If Paisley was in love within the worst way possible