Page 48 of Wanna Bet?

Chapter Twelve

To: Headphone Guy

​Hey! Can I come over and have you help me figure out wtf I’m gonna wear to the lake?

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The second she hit send, Myah dropped her phone onto her bed and stared at the ceiling. It landed beside her with a soft bounce, but her gaze remained fixed on the faint water stain above her fan. She counted the blades as they spun. Once. Twice. Three times.

It didn't help. Nothing seemed capable of slowing the frantic energy racing through her body. Because ten minutes ago, Jace had asked her to go to the lake.

Not with a group or as part of some larger plan. Not as an afterthought. Just the two of them.

The memory of the text message made her stomach flip all over again.

She rolled onto her side and grabbed her phone before she could stop herself. His message was still there.

From: J <3

Weather's supposed to be perfect Saturday. Wanna go to the lake with me?

It was simple. Casual, painfully normal. Yet she'd spent nearly five minutes staring at it before responding because she had been terrified of reading too much into it.

The problem was that she wasn't reading too much into it. At least, she didn't think she was.

Over the last several weeks, things between her and Jace had shifted into something neither of them seemed willing to define. They spent more time together than apart. Their conversations had become effortless and comfortable. There was a familiarity growing between them that made her chest feel warm whenever she thought about it.

And Jace looked at her differently now. Not all the time or dramatically, but there were moments. Moments when she caught him smiling at her from across a room. Moments when his attention lingered just a second longer than necessary. Moments when his eyes softened in a way that made her wonder if he felt this too.

Those moments had become dangerous. Because every time she started allowing herself to hope, the guilt came rushing back.

The bet. God, the stupid, awful bet.

The excitement she'd felt when she first read Jace's invitation dimmed slightly as the familiar shame settled over her shoulders. What had started as a joke should have ended as a joke. Instead, it had become this ugly secret she carried around everywhere. Every laugh they shared, every conversation, every flirtatious glance, every new memory. The secret followed her through all of it.

Her phone buzzed.

From: Headphone Guy

You need help with clothes?

Another message followed immediately.

From Headphone Guy:

This feels serious.

Despite everything, a smile tugged at her lips.

Myah:

I'm having a crisis, Ellis.

From Headphone Guy:

You can come over whenever. Issaky is out of town on a work trip :)

Honestly, she probably needed to sooner rather than later. Because if she stayed alone with her thoughts any longer, she was going to drive herself insane.