Page 24

Are you telling me I need to join a gym challenge?

Only if you want to.

I don’t.

I laugh as I sit up and wonder if he’s still in bed or not. I really want to see what he looks like right now. If he’s naked or wearing a T-shirt. Before I can think about what I’m doing, I take a quick photo and then send him a selfie.

By the way, this is what I look like in the morning. Tell me now that I should find a guy in the library.

He starts typing something back, but then doesn’t respond. I glare at the phone as I get out of bed and open the door. Maybe I went a step too far by sending him a selfie, but I only did it in the hope that he’d send me one back.

“Morning, Izzy,” I say as I head to the kitchen.

She’s standing there in a pair of goofy pajamas, her blonde hair looking like a crow’s nest as she puts some bread in the toaster.

“Morning. Good night?”

“It was okay. I mean, it was kind of weird.”

“Oh, how so?”

“Well, hold up,” Lucia says as she runs into the kitchen. “Did I hear something about a crazy night?”

“You have good hearing,” I say to her, and she laughs.

“You know me and gossip. I love it. So, what happened?”

“Okay, guys, don’t be too excited and don’t be too mad at me, but I kind of made a little bit of a move on Brett.”

“Oh my gosh, why, girl?” Lucia glares at me. “I told you not to.”

“Don’t worry. Nothing happened. He’s not interested in me like that. I mean, he was interested in me. I could tell he thinks I’m cute, but he wasn’t interested in pursuing that.”

Izzy shakes her head. “Is he a man, or is he a loser?”

“He’s not a loser. I mean, I respect the fact that he doesn’t want to just wham, bam, thank you, ma’am with me, and I’m totally okay with that.”

“Girl, it would make it totally awkward if you guys hooked up and then pretended like it didn’t happen,” Lucia says. “You wouldn’t even be able to be around each other because all you’d be thinking about is him naked.”

“Hey, I wouldn’t mind thinking about him naked.” I giggle. “But don’t worry; that’s not going to happen. We have a bet. He’s going to help me find a boyfriend, and I’m going to help him find a lady friend to do whatever he wants with, and the winner gets to decide how we spend our time in the Grand Tetons.”

“What?” Lucia’s eyes survey me with a blank expression. “I know I just woke up, but I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“I’m saying that we have a bet.”

“That sounds like the worst idea I’ve ever heard in my life.” Lucia shakes her head. “And I need coffee now because what did you say about the Grand Tetons? What does that have to do with anything?”

“Well, this was his part of the plan. He says if I win, we go to the Grand Tetons and stay in a five-star hotel, and if he wins, we go to the Grand Tetons and go camping.”

“What? Why are you going to the Grand Tetons?”

“Honestly, I’m not even sure where that came from, but I went along with it. I’m not going to lie. You both know I think he’s absolutely gorgeous, and I like spending time with him, and I want to get to know him better, and if I gain a new friend as well as a boyfriend …”

“You’re not expecting that Brett will become your boyfriend, are you?” Izzy looks at me with a worried expression.

“No, he’s going to help me find someone else, so it’ll be like killing two birds with one stone.”

Izzy and Lucia look at each other and shake their heads.