Always Then and Now

Chapter 30

HANNAH

"Alright. I have arrived, and I have come bearing gifts." Jai handed me a frappe from the café before sitting down beside me on the couch. "Now spill your guts to Mama. What's got you so worked up?"

I hadn't actually intended to tell anyone about that first kiss, since I'd initiated it in a moment of insanity, but that second kiss yesterday had had me reeling from the moment it'd happened, and I'd known I wouldn't be able to keep it inside. I had to talk about it, or I'd drive myself crazy, just thinking about it.

I'd taken advantage of the fact that Jai's shift didn't start for a few more hours and invited him over. Liam was at work, and Emily was taking a nap, so it was the perfect time to have a heart-to-heart with my bestie.

I took a deep breath and turned toward him on the couch but found I couldn't look him in the eyes. "So...Liam and I may have...kissed...twice."

I rubbed the back of my neck nervously and flicked my eyes to him. Jai just sat there, unmoving, mouth open in shock. It took him a few long, agonizing moments to come back to life.

"I'm sorry, what? You did what now?" He looked and sounded incredulous, and I didn't blame him. I barely believed it myself, and I'd lived it.

"Okay, so the first time really didn't count," I said quickly. "I was sick and probably a little delirious when I kissed him, and it was just a peck—"

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," he interrupted, holding his hands up to stop me. "Stop. Back that up. YOU kissed HIM?"

"Yes, but like I said, I wasn't in my right mind, I don't think."

"And did he kiss you back?" I didn't think I'd ever seen him look as interested in something I had to say as he did right now.

I shrugged. "Well, yeah, he did. But like I said, it was just a peck. It barely lasted a second. He was opening up to me about something painful in his past, and he was just so vulnerable. I'd just felt like it was the right thing to do in the moment, to show him that I was there for him, like he's always there for me. I didn't mean anything by it. It was completely platonic—"

"Girl, how many friends have you kissed on the mouth?" He gave me a look, and I squirmed.

"Um, one?" I asked, my voice coming out about an octave higher than usual. I knew what he was saying, but I couldn't explain my actions. It'd just happened. "But I swear there was nothing to it. Things were a tiny bit awkward for a few days after that, but then everything went back to normal. No big deal." I shrugged again.

He rolled his eyes, and I knew he didn't believe me. "Uh huh. Okay, what about the second kiss? Did you initiate, or did he?"

"He did." I took another deep breath. "Okay, so we were at the park. Emily was covered in ice cream, so she rinsed off in the splash pad, and then I took her to the bathroom to change her. When we came back out, he was talking to these two gorgeous women. One was clearly hitting on him, and she was being kind of bitchy toward me. So he...pretended I was his fiancée."

"Dude, that's like, something straight out of a rom-com!" he exclaimed, grabbing my arm excitedly.

"Right? I was freaking. Out." I laughed as I thought back to yesterday, my face heating in a blush. "You know me. I had no idea what to say or how to react. This chick couldn't believe that I could ever be with someone like Liam, and I mean, I totally agree with her, but she was pretty rude about it. It pissed him off, and I completely froze and didn't know how to play along. That's why he did it. He said she needed to be taught a lesson."

"Okay, but dude, you just glossed over the whole actual kiss part." He gave me a look that told me I wasn't getting off that easily. "So what kind of kiss was it? Was there tongue?"