Page 45 of Movers and Fakers

“His lips touched you,” Saylor says like she’s in awe. “That counts.”

“I think we should be done with this topic.” I pull my cinnamon roll closer to me. “Let’s get back to eating in silence.”

“You don’t want to talk more about tonight?” Jasmine asks. “Go over a plan or anything?”

“Nope,” I reply, and pick up the giant cinnamon roll with my hand instead of a fork. “It’s someone else’s turn in the spotlight.” I take a big bite to avoid answering any follow-up questions.

Thankfully, the girls move on quickly after a few shared glances. Saylor regales us about her latest dating-app horror story, and I make a valiant effort to drown my anxiety in sugar. It doesn’t work, but at least it’s delicious.

Chapter twenty-two

Surprise Shopping

Hayes Rosewood

“Why am I here right now?” Forrest groans, slumping on a nearby shelf full of fall-themed products.

“Because you wanted me to buy you food,” I reply as I pick up a jar of spiced apple butter. I place it in the cart next to the random assortment of items I’ve gathered so far.

“We’ve been in here for twenty minutes, and I haven’t eaten since before the gym,” he complains.

“That was maybe two hours ago. You’re fine.” I grab a pumpkin waffle–scented candle and set it with my collection, then realize I’ve already put three candles in there. “How many candles is too many for a gift basket?”

Forrest looks at me like I sprouted a limb from the center of my forehead.

“How should I know?” He throws his hands in the air. “I can’t think when I’m starving like this.”

“Well, you better learn to, because I’m not getting you food until we figure this out.”

“Fine.” He crosses his arms over his chest. “You’ve got way too many things in there. There’s no way they fit in that tiny basket.”

I frown and eye my cart. Candles, flowers, baked goods, and house decor are scattered across the bottom. He’s right. I grabbed a brown wicker basket from the home section when I first got here, but I’ve quickly outgrown the measly thing. Growing up, my mom always said that you don’t go to someone’s house empty-handed. Her version of that included expensive bottles of champagne or a fruit bowl that costs as much as someone’s mortgage. I got the feeling that wouldn’t be appreciated by Aurora or her family, so I googled hostess gifts. The infamous basket came up, and I spent my morning workout scrolling through photos in between sets.

Once I had sufficient inspiration, I dragged Forrest with me to the store. I have to drive him home anyway, so I thought two heads would be better than one. I’m not sure about that anymore, since he’s mostly complained about being hungry the whole time.

“I’ll just get a bigger basket,” I say, and start to turn the cart back in that direction.

Forrest grabs the rim of the cart, stopping me.

“Why don’t you ask Aurora what she thinks her mom would like?” he asks like it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

“It’s supposed to be a surprise,” I reply, and jerk the cart out of his grip.

“From what I’ve heard, she doesn’t seem to be the surprise type.”

I think she’d like surprises if they were tailored to her, but Forrest might be correct in this specific situation. I tell him as much, which earns me a smug look I’m tempted to swing at. Grumbling about cocky teenagers, I pull out my phone and call Aurora. She answers almost immediately.

“Hello?” Her voice is lined with both confusion and panic. I can hear music in the background, and voices, too.

“Having a party without me, Princess?”

Forrest’s eyebrows tick up at the nickname. I shove his shoulder and point in the direction of protein bars as we pass them. I’ll buy him a meal, too, but I like to get him some groceries every now and again. He jogs in that direction, leaving me to have my conversation in private.

“Saylor rewards herself with a music-and-cleaning party on Sundays. She doesn’t listen to music with words during the week because it distracts her from studying.”

I let out a little laugh.

“You’ve got some interesting friends.”