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And I have a whole new respect for Stanton Sofia can be pretty godda when she puts herwith you?"

"If you want an actual answer, you’ll have to be ames with Chelsea And it needs to stop"

Obviously, Chelsea filled her in on our interaction in the garden I wonder what she said, how she described it And I don’t actuallyher side--Chelsea deserves to have so weak

"You’re tearing her apart, Jake She doesn’t knohich end is up"

I flinch

"So either shit or get off the pot Either you’re her friend, or you’re more than her friend--you can’t have it both ways"

"I fucking know that!" I snap "I’ her ar like it"

• • •

Sofia’s verbal attack bugs the shit out of me the rest of the day My focus is crap because of it--so I cut out early and drive straight to Chelsea’s house To talk to her Toneed us to be okay

There’s a strange car in the drivehen I pull up--a white Chevy Suburban The front door is unlocked, so I walk in The house is quiet, so I lass of the back door Chelsea’s wearing overalls and a tiny white T-shirt Her hair is pulled into a shiny bun Ronan is crawling around on a blanket beside her She’s in the vegetable garden, sround with a shovel,easily, swinging his own tool, is Tos here--in a house with a garden, a ruglike dog, and a three-car garage The kind of guy who goes to PTA s and Boy Scout ja nauseous as it makes me to ad portrait in their upstairs bedrooine Chelsea and Tolass and turn around I e onzombies in an old-tionna leave?" Riley asks

I watch the them in Then I shake my head "Tom’s here"

"We want you," Raymond quietly declares Without question or doubt

"Touy, Raymond"

"He’s not you," Rory says "We want you"

They all nod

Then Rosaleen brings me to my knees

"Don’t you like us anymore, Jake?"

What do you say to that? Iwords?

"C’mere," I tell her And she steps forward into e the lu up "Of course I like you Out of all the little shits in the world, the six of you are uys"