“Have you seen Tessa this week?” Logan asked. “She’s not answering her phone.”
I kissed her right in this room, Henry wanted to say.
“I have,” he said carefully.
“Her phone broken?”
“That’s the only explanation you can come up with for why she’d be avoiding your phone calls?” Henry clamped down on his jaw before he could say more.
“What’s going on?” Logan glanced up from his phone, clearly frustrated.
“I’m going to save this conversation for you and Tessa.”
“If you know something, tell me.”
“Fine.” Henry had been itching to have this fight for days. “Does kissing Dawn ring a bell?”
Logan scrubbed a weary hand across his face. “It wasn’t what it looked like.”
“So you and Dawn weren’t making out in the parking lot.”
“No. We were.” He straightened. “But I don’t owe you an explanation. Only Tessa.”
Henry turned the television on mute and slammed the remote down with more force than necessary. “Unbelievable. You’re going to find some way to spin this so you don’t come off looking like a jerk.”
Logan smirked and it was all Henry could do not to launch himself over the couch and tackle him to the ground. “I don’t have to spin it. Besides, Tessa’s not going anywhere.”
“I think you should give her some space,” Henry said, trying to be calm. Tessa was level-headed. There was no way she’d take back this loser, no matter what story he concocted for why he was kissing Dawn.
Logan dropped his phone into his pocket and leveled a steely glare in Henry’s direction. “Of course you do. But I’m not giving her up.”
* * *
Henry had managed to get out of class on time so he could be a few minutes early to road show practice. Tessa had been avoiding him for days, and they were going to have a conversation whether she liked it or not. He pulled into the church parking lot and parked his car across several empty spots. This was one of the few practices they were able to do in the stake center, on the stage, and it was his first official practice as the prince.
He ran into the cultural hall to find the chorus on stage, warming up to the piano, while the rest of the group was scattered about the room in folding chairs, playing on their phones or reading over their script while they waited for practice to begin. He scanned the room for Tessa’s light brown hair. She stood in the corner of the room bent over a script with another girl.
“Tessa, we need to talk,” he said before she could find some way to get away from him again. He didn’t care if they had to make practice wait another ten minutes. He was sick of her avoiding his calls and texts, and mostly, he missed her.
Tessa’s head lifted and their gazes connected before hers darted around the room as if looking for an escape route. “Well, uh—”
“Henry!”
Arms were flung around his neck, making him stumble back a step. He focused on the girl pushing her body close to his. “Chelsea?”
“Surprise!” she said.
Henry looked to Tessa, hoping for an explanation. She shrugged, her cheeks pink. “Chelsea called and asked to be a part of the road show. You guys are old friends, right?”
“Something like that,” Henry muttered. He unwound Chelsea’s arms from around his neck and set her back from him.
“Isn’t this going to be amazing? Together again.” She smiled wide and bit her bottom lip, which she knew used to drive him crazy with the desire to kiss her.
He took a deep breath. “Tessa—” He turned to where she’d been standing, but she was gone. He scanned the room, but couldn’t find her anywhere. He held back a frustrated groan. She was slipperier than a rolled-up pill bug.
Chelsea’s arm wound through his. “So, what do you think of this whole thing?” she said her voice low.
“Of what?”
She motioned toward the room. “The road show. The chaos.” She paused and made a face. “The singing. Seems a little juvenile. I mean, I haven’t heard of anyone doing a road show in years, much less a singles ward.”
He bristled. He may not have loved every aspect of the road show, but he and Tessa had worked hard on it. “I think your attitude stinks.”
She pulled back in surprise before she busted up laughing. A few people looked in their direction. “I forgot how blunt you could be. I’ve missed that.”
“Chelsea. We’ve talked about this. I don’t know what you’re trying to do here, but—”
Chelsea drew her finger along his arm, over his shoulder, and down his chest. “Oh, you know exactly what I’m trying to do. And I’m going to win you back, no matter what it takes.”
Henry rubbed his hands through his hair. “Why? We broke up because we weren’t good for each other. That hasn’t changed.”
“No. We broke up because we were young and immature and the timing wasn’t right. We are supposed to be together, Henry, and if you’d stop running from me, you’d figure that out too.”
A few people near them had stopped talking to listen to their conversation. Great. The last thing Henry wanted was his and Chelsea’s past to be spread to the entire ward. How had he gotten into this mess?
Over Chelsea’s shoulder, Henry spotted Tessa walking onto the stage. The room grew quiet and Tessa spoke. “Okay, let’s do a run-through of the play tonight. We only have a month until the road show, and time is going to go quickly until then.”
“I’d better go help her,” he said to Chelsea, disentangling himself once again.
“Eventually you’re going to have to stop running,” Chelsea told him, but he raced from her anyway.
* * *
“I am not doing this with him,” Dawn said. She folded her arms and glared at Tessa, who glared right back. Every time she looked at Dawn, she pictured Logan kissing her at the church, and felt the betrayal all over again. But now that hurt was turning to anger. Anger was so much easier to deal with.
“Excuse me?” Tessa said, lifting an eye brow.
“I will not pretend to be in love with… Henry.” Her mouth twisted in disgust when she said his name.
“So what am I supposed to do? Find another princess?”
“No! Find another prince!”
“The road show is in five weeks. Henry knows all the lines. He’s our prince.” Tessa said it as firmly as possible, aware that people had gathered around them to watch as they’d grown louder. Henry eased up beside her and Chelsea stood right behind him. Tessa had noticed how handsy Chelsea was with Henry, but they were old friends. And Chelsea had hugged Tessa when they’d first met a few minutes before. Tessa tried to shrug it off, because it didn’t matter anyway.
What mattered was making sure this road show didn’t fall apart before they could even get it off the runway.
“You’re doing this to humiliate me,” Dawn said.
Tessa closed her eyes and counted to five. “Despite what you may think, nothing I do is motivated by my feelings for you.”
“You’re jealous of me, and this is your way of making me pay. Well, you know what? I’m not letting you run me off.”
“I’m not trying to run you off.” She stopped herself before she could continue to argue. The quicker they ended this argument, the quicker she could go back to only talking to Dawn when absolutely necessary. Besides, she didn’t think Henry had heard the beginning of their argument, and she’d rather he didn’t realize that Dawn was upset about having to work with him.
Dawn had no idea how great it was going to be working with Henry. When he got into his role, he was like a different person. And when he kissed, it was a perfect fit, like snapping together the last two pieces of a puzzle. Satisfying. Thrilling.
Perfect.
She blinked away the memory once again, and avoided making eye contact with Henry. She and Henry were anything but perfect. They were each their own kind of mess, and together, she could only imagine the disaster they’d create. Look at their ro
ad show. Chaos. Falling apart in this very moment. If they managed to pull this whole thing off, it would be a miracle fit for the Bible. Or a church magazine, at least.
“Do you have a minute?” Henry said, his hand on her elbow, sending heat across her skin. She yanked her arm away.
“We need to start practice,” she said, mostly to avoid him, but it was true. “Let’s run through all the songs first so you get a feel for working with the choir and we’ll worry about blocking next week. Sounds good?”
Dawn frowned, but she nodded. Henry paused like he wanted to say something to Tessa, but when she pretended to be engrossed in the script, he let Chelsea tug him toward the stage.
Chapter 23
“Okay. What is going on?” Addison stood in front of the television, her arms folded like she meant business. Tessa tried to see around Addison, but Addison shifted to block her view.
“She’s about to give the last rose.”
“She gives it to Michael.”
Tessa let out a frustrated sigh. “Way to ruin the ending.”
Addison rolled her eyes. “You’re only on the third episode of this season. If you want me to really ruin the ending, I’ll tell you about the online blog I found that has all the spoilers—”
“Stop!”
Addison turned off the television. “Why did you skip church today? Are you feeling sick?”
“No. And I didn’t skip church. I just didn’t go to my ward.” She’d gone to a family ward that met at nine instead. The thought of facing Logan and Dawn together—or Henry—was too much to deal with. Henry had been texting her a lot since their kiss, but she’d managed to avoid him like a pro. Too bad professional avoidance wasn’t a career. She wouldn’t be failing those classes.
“And doesn’t your family dinner start in about an hour? Gonna wear your pajamas?”
“I’m not going.”
Addison sat down beside her on the couch. “I’m worried about you.”
“I’m fine.” Tessa said, but neither of them believed her. She’d managed to avoid her roommates for a while too. All this avoiding was getting lonely, though. She rested her head on Addison’s shoulder. “I’m thinking about becoming a hermit.”
“Sounds reasonable.”
“Right? I won’t have to deal with people ever. And I’ll live off the earth, or something. I’ll figure it out as I go. The important thing is that I’ll be off the grid where people can’t find me.”
“Someone have a hit out on you?”
“My brother.”
Addison snorted, and when Tessa looked at her, she could tell Addison was holding back a laugh. “Stop!” Tessa said, laughing along with her. “He’s the worst. He really is.”
“Who’s the worst?” Layla said, coming into the room with a carton of yogurt. She sat on the other side of Tessa.
“Jenkins,” Tessa said. Layla had known Jenkins forever and had heard many of Tessa’s vent sessions over the years. Layla used to have a thinly veiled crush on him despite all of his teasing.
“But he makes cute babies.”
“His one redeeming quality.”
Layla kicked her feet up onto the table. “You were missed at church today. A ton. It was a little weird, actually.”
“Who missed her?” Addison asked.
Tessa resisted the urge to cover her ears. A hermit wouldn’t have to deal with gossip. Just making her own way in her own world.
“Chelsea had a few questions about changing up the script, but I told her she’d have to run it by you first. And then Logan wanted to know if you’d be home tonight, but I told him you’d be at your parents.” She looked at Tessa pointedly. “Then Henry was worried you weren’t feeling well and wants you to call him. He said he was going to text you.”
“I turned my phone off.”
“Why?”
Tessa didn’t want to tell them, but she also didn’t want to keep being this person who holed up in the house, watching television and feeling like a failure. Light streamed in through the open front window of the apartment, making her feel vulnerable. Anyone could come up the stairs, look in, and see them there. Tessa stood and closed the blinds, and then for added security, she turned off the lights.
“Why all the secrecy?” Layla whispered.
“Because I don’t want anyone to come by while we’re talking.” Tessa sat between them on the couch. “I guess I should start with the kissing.”
“What kissing?” Addison asked slowly.
“Logan kissing Dawn.” Tessa paused. “Me kissing Henry. Or maybe he kissed me. It doesn’t matter.”
Layla sat forward, her eyes wide. “Oh, it matters.”
“Start from the beginning,” Addison said in her calm voice, the one she used when she talked to her parents on the phone. And it worked. Tessa opened up about her hopes for Logan and her hurt when she caught him kissing Dawn, her complicated feelings for Henry, who made her smile and drove her crazy more than anyone else she knew, about her brother’s pressure to be perfect, and her need to keep dating Logan.
“So now I’m avoiding everyone so I don’t have to deal with any of it.”
“Good plan,” Layla said, earning a smack on the knee from Addison.
“You’re going to have to face them all at some point,” Addison said, softly.
“I know. But doesn’t time have a way of working everything out?”
“Or making things messier.”
A knock sounded at the door, and they cut off their conversation. They sat without moving while the doorbell rang and a heavy knock came down on the door again. Tessa’s heart pounded so loudly, she wouldn’t be surprised if the person at the door could hear it. It was probably one of one of the many guys who came over to flirt with her roommates or have Layla cut their hair for free, but what if it was someone she was trying to avoid? Finally they heard the sound of someone running down the metal stairs, and Layla ran to the window to look outside.
“Logan,” she whispered. Then she cleared her throat and spoke in a normal voice. “What are you going to do?”
“I don’t know!” Tessa said. “Tell me what to do.”
“First, you need to turn on your phone.”
“No.”
Addison picked it up from the coffee table and handed it to Tessa. “Get it over with. It’s not going to get any easier.”
Tessa snatched the phone from her and turned it on. She had six unread text messages and three voice mails. She groaned.
“Now, you need to go through all of the messages,” Addison said.
“Fine,” Tessa said, sounding put out, but really, she didn’t know what she’d do without her roommates.
First she pulled up the text messages, knowing those would be less difficult. They were from her Mom, asking about dinner; and Henry, making sure she was okay.
I miss talking to you, his last message read. Tessa hurriedly exited out of the screen before she could think about how his words affected her. But it was too late, because she could see them in her mind. She missed talking to him too. They’d become friends. Good friends. Too good of friends to let something silly like a kiss get between them. So what if they kissed. Lips touched lips, as he’d said. It happened. They could remain friends and work together and there was no reason Henry couldn’t be in her life.
But she still wasn’t ready to talk to him yet.
The first two voice mails were from her mom, wondering where she was for dinner. She sounded worried, so Tessa texted to let her know she was fine but skipping dinner. The third message was from Logan. She put it on speakerphone.
“Hi Tessa. It’s me. Logan. There’s been something I’ve needed to talk to you about, but our schedules have made it impossible lately, so I’ll say it here. Dawn, from the ward, she kissed me last week. It wasn’t something I encouraged, but I wanted to let you know in case you hear something about it. I like you, and I don’t want to mess this up. Call me please. And check your doorstep.”
The girls all looked at e
ach other before bounding off the couch and rushing for the door. Layla yanked it open and they all stared at the red paper bag on the welcome mat.
“It’s from Riley Diamond,” Addison whispered.
Tessa approached the bag as if a snake were coiled around it. She snatched it and flew back into the apartment, Layla slamming the door shut behind her.
“Open it!” Layla jumped around her.
Tessa took a deep breath for courage before reaching her hand into the bag. She pulled out a small velvet case, and her heart nearly stopped. She flipped open the lid to find a pair of diamond solitaire earrings. They were gorgeous in their simplicity.
Addison let out a low whistle. “He’s got it bad.”
“Guys, I can’t accept this! What do I do?”
“Wear them,” Layla said. “They’re probably cubic zirconium anyway.”
“You think?” Tessa said, feeling more hopeful.
Addison studied them. “Definitely. But it does look like this is white gold. Put them in.”
Tessa did, then went to look in the mirror. She pulled her hair back and turned her head from side to side, loving how they sparkled.
It wasn’t something I encouraged. The image of him wrapping his arms fully around Dawn came unbidden into her mind.
“This doesn’t mean we’re back together,” she said quietly. She wanted to believe him, but how could she reconcile that with what she’d seen?
“Of course not,” Addison said. “After what happened, he deserves to grovel.”
Chapter 24
After Henry’s last class on Friday, he wound up at his dad's house in an effort to avoid Logan. He found his dad watching a rerun of a college football game on ESPN. "Pull up some couch," he said and tossed an unopened bag of chips Henry’s way.
Henry pulled it open and settled back into the familiar leather. He hadn't lived here since a few months after his mission, but it still felt like coming home. "Good game?"
One Little Kiss (Christian Romance) Page 13
