Chapter 18
Sky
My heart raced. I’d just kissed McCrae.
And it had been awesome.
As we walked back into the house, McCrae was accosted by party guests.
I moved back into the kitchen, helped reload the ice, then moved next to his mom and asked, “How can I help?”
She gave me a wide smile. “Are you having fun?”
I didn’t know what to tell her. I couldn’t tell her that McCrae had just kissed me, and I was having a whole bunch of conflicted feelings about it. I pasted on a smile. “This is a great party.”
That seemed to satisfy her. “If you wouldn’t mind cutting up some more celery and carrots, we’re going to fill that vegetable tray. There’s some ranch in the kitchen, in the refrigerator, if you don’t mind grabbing that too.”
I focused on the job at hand, ignoring the party, the music, the laughter, and the loud voices.
I tried to forget the way his lips had felt on mine.
Robotically, I cut the vegetables and filled the tray.
The knife made a satisfying sound against the cutting board as I chopped, the rhythm almost meditative.
Through the kitchen window, I could see the dark silhouette of mountains against the night sky, framing the twinkling lights that lined the deck.
Then I heard someone say, “Oh, you’re the girl with amnesia who’s staying with McCrae.”
I looked up and to my dismay Rose was there. She had beautiful skin, clear complexion, the perfect amount of blush and lipstick and eyebrows and eyelashes. Her blonde hair was styled perfectly, and whatever perfume she had on … it smelled good. I suddenly felt defeated. "That's me."
She didn’t give me a smile or a frown, more of a look of curiosity. “So what’s your story?” She didn’t even introduce herself, like she knew that she didn’t have to do so in this small town.
To prove a point, I put my hand out. “Wait a second. Who are you? What’s your name?” I didn’t want her to think I knew all about her. I didn’t want to let her know that McCrae had been having a mini breakdown about her. I wouldn’t give away anything.
She looked at my hand and then gave me a dead fish kind of handshake.
“I’m Rose Jones. I’m Pastor Jones’s daughter, and I am McCrae’s girlfriend.
” She paused for effect, her perfectly manicured nails coming to rest on the countertop.
“I mean, I don’t know what he’s told you, but I've been his girlfriend for … a long time.”
I pulled my hand back and picked up the knife. “He didn’t tell me that,” I said casually.
“He didn’t tell you? Well, I’ve been out of town.” She started explaining herself. “The past year and a half, I was in New York. I’ve been doing commercials and plays, and—”
I cut her off. “Oh? Tell me which ones.”
She was evasive. “Oh, I don’t think you’d know about them.” She picked up a carrot and started taking bites of it.
I wasn’t letting her off the hook. “Come on, tell me something you’ve been in.”
Our eyes connected, and then she gave me a patronizing look and rolled her eyes. “How could you know, I mean, you have amnesia, right?”
I laughed, and the sound could have come straight out of Mean Girls. I hadn’t even known I had that laugh inside of me. “I probably don’t remember it, but just in case, what’s something you’ve been in?”
She grunted and then rolled her eyes again.
Her eyes narrowed.
Behind her, I could see Kayla watching our exchange with undisguised interest.
“You know what? I have to go talk to someone, but we’ll catch up later.” Rose stalked away.
I was glad that my burst of meanness had scared her off, because I would not listen to her talking about how she was McCrae's girlfriend. No way.
It wasn’t long before McCrae was at my side. He grabbed a piece of celery for himself, and then he picked up the tray that I had finished. “I’ll go put these back on the table if you want.” He gave me the kind of look that said, Are you okay? You just talked to my ex.
I nodded. “That’d be great.”
The rest of the party was pretty uneventful. I was grateful that Isla, Ella, Kayla, and McCrae’s mom always made sure I had someone with me. They would point out people, telling me factoids and bits of gossip.
The house grew warmer as the night progressed, the windows fogging slightly from the heat of so many bodies.
The living room had transformed into an impromptu dance floor, with couples swaying to slower songs.
Outside on the deck, groups gathered in conversation, their laughter carrying on the night breeze.
I watched McCrae moving around the room, shaking hands and smiling, and I was happy to see him having a good time.
I noticed that Rose left, and that made me happy too. Even though I didn’t know about my past, I knew that if I had a say in anything, I definitely wanted McCrae in my future.