“Great. Just great.” I couldn’t believe she was checking up on me.

“Don’t worry, I covered for you. This time,” he said, then: “Where’d you go?”

“To Denver.”

“Why?”

“To do something for Kori. She had an obligation and I didn’t want them to think she flaked on it.”

“Why didn’t you—” Even in the minimal light of the slim moon, I could see his face, and in it see how hurt he was because I hadn’t asked him to go with me. But instead of saying that, he changed his question to: “Who drove you?” And from the way he snapped off the words, I knew he saw the lingering hug I’d given Shay before getting out. Seeing it had stung.

I averted my eyes. “He’s just a friend.”

“Right. Look, I’ve been trying to give you space. I know how upset you’ve been about Kori. But I can’t do this,” Anthony said, pacing. “Not like this. You have to start—” He exhaled, not finishing his thought.

What we had with each other was so fragile. I held it in the palm of my hand as it struggled for life. But I knew from experience I wouldn’t be able to save it.

“You don’t have to do this,” I said quickly.

“Do what, Serena?” he asked as he stepped closer to me. “I’m just trying to … to make you understand.”

I forced myself to be cool, detached. Bulletproof. Just like Kori. I had to be. If I didn’t, I’d come to a screeching halt. I’d be paralyzed. Stuck. “We both knew that first night was just …” I waved my hand around in a dismissive circle. “Whatever.”

His green eyes stared through me. “Is that how you want it to be?”

As much as I wished things were different, I also knew that if I didn’t do it to him, he’d most certainly be doing it to me. I unbuckled his watch and handed it back to him. Then, perhaps to save some face: “I knew this wouldn’t work.”

He turned to the street and a shadow dropped across his face. “Well, you seem set on that, don’t you?” He shook his head like he couldn’t believe he’d even bothered coming over when a simple text message would’ve done just as well. “I’ve got to go.”

As he made his way to his Xterra, I watched the blades of his shoulders working rhythmically against the cotton of his T-shirt. As he disappeared inside his car, my heart slipped and fell. Hard.

When I walked into the living room, Mom looked up from the romance novel she’d been reading. “I was expecting you hours ago. How was the movie?”

“The movie was fine. Sorry I’m late. We had a lot to talk about.”