Erin laughed. “Of course! It is her house, after all.”

“I love Bear’s house. And I love Bear!”

“I do too, buddy.” Erin’s whole body immediately heated up and she could feel her face turning red. What the hell did I just say? “I really like Blair too.”

Erin spent the rest of the drive anxiously overthinking what she had just admitted to Nolan and to herself and whether it was just the slip of her tongue or something more. I mean, you can love someone without being in love with them. Maybe that’s how she felt about Blair. The knot in her stomach said otherwise though.

She hated that she couldn’t be a normal person who found these feelings exciting, rather than having her fight-or-flight instincts kick in and tempt her to run away. There was no running from Blair though. Even if she tried, she knew she’d end up turning right back around.

“Bear!” Nolan shouted, shocking Erin back to the present moment.

Erin realized she was sitting in Blair’s driveway and Blair was walking toward them, waving excitedly. Erin had been so caught up in her own thoughts, she didn’t even remember putting in the code for Blair’s neighborhood. Shit, I really hope I didn’t just drive through the gate. I would’ve realized if I did that, right? Even if I didn’t, Nolan definitely would’ve let me know.

Erin jumped when Blair tapped on her window. She brought one hand to her chest while she used the other to hit the button to put down the window.

“Someone’s a little jumpy today, huh?” Blair asked as she stuck her head through the window. For a second, Erin thought she was going to kiss her, but instead, she leaned around her to look at Nolan. “Hey, dude! Happy birthday! Are you ready for the best birthday party ever?”

“Yes!” Nolan bounced up and down in his car seat and started to claw at the straps. “Get me out!”

“I’m on it.” Blair pulled back, but stopped for a moment to stare at Erin. “You’re okay, right?”

“I’m good. Just a lot on my mind with all of the last minute party details.” Not a complete lie. “I brought a big thing of my mac and cheese and the pizza will be delivered about a half hour before the party. And you said you grabbed some snacks and drinks, right?” When Blair offered to get all of that, Erin told her she really didn’t have to, but Blair insisted, and given how stubborn she was, Erin knew there was no point in fighting her.

“I did. Don’t worry. Even if his classmates have a bigger appetite than an NFL football team, we’ll still have enough food.”