Chapter 29 The Whiteboard of Truth
The Whiteboard of Truth
Harper
I stand frozen on the sidewalk, watching the restaurant door close behind Cole with the finality of a coffin lid.
The lump in my throat makes it hard to breathe, and my hands are still shaking from the adrenaline of having my carefully constructed house of lies come crashing down in the most spectacular way possible.
Maddie grabs my arm, her fingers digging in hard enough to bruise. “Okay... what the hell was that?”
I exhale hard, the breath shuddering out of me. “I’ve been hooking up with Liam. Not just that first time—after the party hookup, I went to his place a few more times.”
Maddie blinks once. Twice. Her mouth opens and closes like a fish. “What?”
“It was just supposed to be one time, but—” I shake my head, hating how pathetic I sound. “I kept seeing him. And then I met Cole, and I still kept seeing him.”
“Why?” Maddie’s voice pitches higher. “I thought you liked Cole?”
“I don’t know why, and I do like Cole, but...” I trail off, unable to find words that don’t make me sound like a complete sociopath. How do you explain that you developed feelings for two people simultaneously without sounding like a slut?
Maddie stares at me like she doesn’t know who I am anymore. “You’re telling me... you’ve been sleeping with both of them? At the same time?”
“No—not like that!” I protest, though I realize how weak that sounds. “I only kissed Cole. I’ve only slept with Liam. I didn’t know they were best friends, Maddie. I had no idea.”
Her hands go to her temples like she’s developing a migraine in real time. “Oh my God. So, you say yes to Cole when he asks you to be his girlfriend, but you were still secretly seeing Liam? Harper! This is bad. This is so bad!”
My inhale, feeling the tightness in my chest. I just lost Cole, Liam, and I can’t lose her too. My vision goes blurry as I watch her stare dumbfounded at the ground.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper, letting the tears fall. “I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. I––I shouldn’t have come here tonight.”
“You think?” Maddie says dryly.
“I just—I need to leave.”
When I turn to walk in any direction other than the restaurant, Maddie links her arm through mine. “You made a big mistake, but it’s okay. We’ll figure this out.”
I hold onto her like she’s the only thing keeping me on the ground.
Back at our dorm, I toss my purse onto the couch and immediately head for the kitchen to pour myself the largest glass of wine physically possible.
Maddie, however, disappears into the hall and emerges with a battered whiteboard that’s seen us through everything from exam schedules to vacation planning.
She sets it up on the coffee table and wipes it clean.
“If we’re doing this, we’re doing it properly,” she announces, uncapping a dry erase marker.
“Doing what, exactly?”
“Damage control. Pros and cons. Strategic planning.” She draws a line down the middle of the board and writes COLE and LIAM at the top of each column.
“Talk,” she demands.
I take a large sip of wine and settle onto the couch. “This feels very stupid and pointless.”
“Which is why we need to fix this.” She taps the marker against the board. “Start with Cole.”
I stare at his name, thinking about his smile, the way he made me feel safe without being boring. “He’s reliable. Treats me like I actually matter, not just like I’m convenient. Low-drama—well, before tonight anyway. Makes me laugh without trying too hard. Doesn’t play games.”
Maddie dutifully writes each point under his name. “Cons?”
“He can be guarded sometimes. Careful.” I pause, remembering the look on his face when the truth came out. “He might not forgive me. Actually, he definitely won’t forgive me. The hurt in his eyes tonight is going to haunt me forever.”
“Now Liam.”
This is harder. How do you explain the kind of chemistry that makes you forget your own name? “Electric chemistry. Makes me feel alive in a reckless way. Says what he wants without hesitation. The best sex I’ve ever had.” I pause. “Though I haven’t had sex with Cole, so that’s not entirely fair.”
“Disgusting, but noted,” Maddie says, writing. “Continue.”
“He surprises me with these moments of real vulnerability. Like, underneath all the player bullshit, there’s something genuine that he doesn’t show many people.”
“And the cons?”
“He sleeps around. Can be careless with feelings. Might not forgive me either, based on how angry he looked tonight. I don’t know if I can trust him with my heart.”
Maddie steps back to survey our work. The board looks like a relationship autopsy—depressing.
I stare at it, the weight of what I’ve done settling fully in my chest. “Neither of them is going to forgive me, Maddie.”
Maddie twirls the marker between her fingers. “Not with that attitude.”
“Maddie, I lied to both of them. For weeks. They’re best friends, and I turned them against each other by being selfish and stupid.”
“Okay, yes, you majorly screwed up. But people forgive major screw-ups all the time if you handle the aftermath correctly.” She draws three boxes under the pros and cons lists. “Which brings us to strategic options.”
“I’m scared to ask.”
“Plan A,” she announces, writing in the first box. “Apologize to Cole immediately. No excuses, no justifications. Own everything, tell him you didn’t know they were friends, and that you choose him.”
“What if I don’t know if I choose him?”
She gives me a look. “Then you’re not ready for Plan A. Plan B: Give him space but keep showing up in small ways. Drop coffee at his door, send stupid memes, remind him you’re worth a second chance.”
“That sounds like stalking.”
“It’s only stalking if it doesn’t work.” She moves to the third box. “Plan C: Go nuclear. Grand romantic gesture. Think billboard, public apology, or showing up at a game with a sign that makes the entire arena root for you two.”
I lean back against the couch cushions, staring at the board like it’s going to hand me the answer to my life. “You think any of that will work?”
Maddie grins, and for the first time tonight, it reaches her eyes. “Honey, I’ve pulled off worse miracles than this. But first...” She caps the marker and gives me a pointed look. “Maybe stop running to Liam when you’re confused about your feelings.”
I can still feel the phantom heat of Liam’s stare, the way he looked at me on that sidewalk like I was the only thing in the world that mattered. And I know that stopping might be easier said than done.
Which is exactly the problem that got me into this mess in the first place.
“Maddie,” I whisper. “What if…”
She shakes her head. “You don’t have any options for Liam. You like Cole.”
“I do, but––”
“But––nothing! Liam is pure sex appeal, Harp. He’s got that charm about him. Why do you think he’s such a player? It dies out quickly when reality hits. He’s going to break your heart.”
“I haven’t even given him a chance.”
“Oh,” she starts laughing without humor. She points at me. “So, you’re saying you’d rather screw Liam than to be with a guy like Cole?”
“No,” I shake my head. “No. That’s not what I’m saying.”
“You haven’t had the opportunity to sleep with Cole, so you don’t even know how good it can be.”
I sigh, feeling the tears rush to the surface. I wipe my face when they fall. “Maddie, I like them both.”
Her eyes widen as she walks toward my bed. She grabs one of my romance books and says, “Newsflash, Harper. This isn’t a reverse harem. You do not get both!” She chucks the book back on my bed, and my chest squeezes.
“How about I do eenie meanie miny mow?”
She rolls her eyes at me and sits beside me. She grabs my hands and says, “If there was a knock on the door right now––”
“Right now?”
She nods. “Right now. Who are hoping to see on the other side?”
I close my eyes because she’s right. She’s so right.
She smiles. “That’s what I thought.