We all stare at the wall for a moment. I feel my cheeks flush. While my mind is saying no way, my body is saying wheeeee, like it’s on some deranged lust roller coaster. The way Will backed me against the wall and held me in place while he moaned into my mouth is apparently just what my body has been waiting for.

My body wants more.

I shake my head. “He promised to keep me from Gavin, it’s just a game to him.”

Chloe looks skeptical. “Are you sure my aunt said Gavin was your soul mate? Because she can be kind of opaque in her predictions.”

My stomach flutters, then does a cartwheel. “No. She did. It was clear. She said my soul mate was the Williams boy I’d loved since I was a kid.”

“Gavin,” says Ferran.

I nod. “Gavin.”

Chloe bites her lip in thought. “Hmmm. I just thought, maybe…”

Across the street, Chloe’s husband Nick runs by, pushing their baby Ava in a running stroller. Ava’s in a frilly dress and a sun hat and she waves her arms and giggles. Nick grins at Chloe as he runs past and Chloe snaps a picture with her phone. We all take a second to soak up the cuteness of Dad and baby out for a morning run. After they’ve disappeared past the bridge we turn back to the conversation.

“So, you’ve tried a dance, a long stare, a makeover, romantic dinner, a kiss in the rain…what’s left?” asks Ferran.

“Desperation,” I say.

I grab the apple fritter and shove another bite into my mouth.

“His fiancée.” I swallow down the growing guilt, “Gavin’s fiancée gets here on Saturday for their engagement party. So I need him to realize I’m his soul mate before then.”

Chloe frowns. “I don’t like it. Take it from the woman left at the altar by her cheating fiancé, it’s not…it’s a really horrible thing to do to someone.”

Veronica reaches over and pats Chloe’s arm.

“It worked out though,” I say. “Because your fiancé wasn’t your soul mate. In fact, you should thank your second cousin for marrying him so you could find Nick.”

“A soul mate pronouncement doesn’t give you the right to hurt other people,” says Chloe. “Be careful that you don’t do something you won’t be able to forgive yourself for.”

I look down at the crumbs of my apple fritter. The sugary pastry sits heavy in my stomach. I haven’t met Lacey yet. It’s been easy to forget her existence, or push her aside as “not right for him.” But what if I’m wrong? What if she’s as kind as Chloe, or as loyal as Veronica, or as determined and smart as Ferran? This woman I’ve never met, she doesn’t deserve her heart broken.