“I’d never doubt you,” he promises. “You don’t want to quit, right?”

“No fucking way.”

“Then don’t,” he says simply. “No one can control you but you.”

“Yeah,” I agree.

“Come on, control freak, you should know that,” he teases, lacing his fingers with mine before sending me a small grin. I smile back as he says, “But no matter what you choose, Baylor, I believe in you and stand behind you, one hundred percent.”

Yup, my heart just exploded in my chest. But wasn’t that what my dad was supposed to say? I’m not sure how that makes me feel, but soon I’m pulling him to me and out of his seat. He grins as our lips meet, and as I kiss him, I can’t believe how important it was for him to say that to me. For him to believe in me. Dragging back, I cup his jaw while my finger swirls through the scruff on his jaw.

“Thank you,” I whisper, and his eyes darken as he looks deep into my eyes.

“For?”

“For believing in me.”

Leaning into me, he brushes his nose against mine before sucking in a deep breath. He wants to say something, I can see it in his eyes, but instead he kisses my top lip and whispers against it, “Always, Baylor.”

Slamming her bag on my bed, Delanie looks over at me and shakes her head. “Only you get a concussion the week we come to visit!”

I laugh as Mandie hugs me tightly. “Really though, what the hell?” she teases, and I roll my eyes.

“I’m fine, completely fine, been skating all week,” I say with my hands up in a calm-down motion.

“Still, that’s dumb.”

“’Cause I wanted to get knocked the fuck out by Wilkie! You guys should yell at him.”

Delanie sets her eyes on me, her hands on her hips as she nods quickly. “You know I did. I even told everyone he has herpes, but it didn’t matter, he got suspended for the rest of the year. Bye-bye, draft,” she sings as she lies down on my bed.

“Oh, I didn’t know that,” I say, surprised, and Mandie laughs.

“Oh yeah, big trouble. Most of the guys are too. It’s bad, but who cares? They deserve it. They can’t hurt people like that,” she says, falling next to her sister.

“For sure,” I agree, lying next to Delanie. “But whatever, it’s in the past. We’ve got the weekend to party, and since we don’t have a game tomorrow, we get to go out.”

“Sounds good,” Delanie says with a grin. “And will boys be joining us?”

I roll my eyes, bumping into her shoulder. “Well, since all my friends are dudes, yes.”

“But will Jace?”

“Yes.”

“Good,” she says as Mandie grins.

“And your boyfriend?” Mandie sings.

“He’ll go too,” I say shyly before hiding my face, which causes them to laugh.

“Aww, you’re so cute!” Mandie teases before tickling my side. “Are you in loooooove?”

Smacking her away, I scoff. “Please. No way. He’s great and I like him. A lot. But love? Be real.”

“Whatever,” Delanie mocks. “You are for sure falling. We bring his name up and your face turns bright red.”

Making a face, I hop out of the bed and reach for my jacket. “Whatever, let’s go. We have Nashville to explore!”

“Told ya,” Delanie says, getting out of the bed.

Mandie nods, agreeing, “Totally.”

“What?!” I snap, and they both grin at me.

“You are so in loooooove with him,” Delanie challenges, but I shake my head.

“No, really, I’m not,” I answer, but I can tell they don’t believe me.

Hell, I don’t really believe me

“Sure, Baylor, it’s fine. Don’t admit it to us or yourself; we know the truth,” she says, putting her jacket and hat on.

“Whatever, you’re insane. But really, remember not to say anything to anyone. We are keeping it quiet,” I remind them, and Delanie waves me off.

“And he’s okay with that?” Mandie asks and I shrug.

“Yeah.”

Looking over at her sister, she grins. “He’s so in loooooove with her.”

“What! What the hell?” I ask, my heart speeding up in my chest. “That’s ludicrous!”

But they actually believe it! Looking at me like I’m the insane one, Mandie says, “Baylor, if he wasn’t in love with you, he wouldn’t have agreed to that. He’s taking what he can get, just to be with you.”

My face scrunches up as I shake my head. “No, he is respecting my wishes.”

“Because he loves you, doofus,” Delanie says. “Plus with all the shit he’s said to you, yeah, he is head over heels digging you.”

“Y’all are insane and have no just cause to think that,” I say, waving them off. “You guys are messing with me, trying to get me to admit something and shit.”

“Admit what?” Delanie asks innocently. “That you love him too?”

Glaring at them, I roll my eyes before reaching for the door. “I’m leaving.”

And as I walk out, their laughter follows, but I can’t hear it. My heartbeat is loud in my ears, my chest is aching from my heart pounding against it, and my palms feel clammy.

Is he in love with me?

Letting out a hysterical laugh, I shake my head.

No fucking way. Why would he be?

My weekend with the girls is passing faster than I thought it would. I’ve been waiting for them to come visit since I left them, and now that they are here, I’m kinda sad that Sunday is closing in on us so fast. They are so much fun, and it’s like old times hanging out. We’ve done all the fun, girlie things that I can only do with them. It isn’t like I can convince Jace and Markus to go get manis and pedis with me. Or even Jayden. Not that I would try, though. It’s also fun to talk to girls. They don’t smell as bad or fart on command, so it’s been nice.

But I do miss Jayden.

He’s giving me space, letting me hang with my friends and not giving me shit for missing our nightly ritual of watching Supernatural. But I have to admit, I’d rather be watching TV and cuddling with him. It’s weird how much of a staple he’s become in my life so quickly. As much as I want to go over to his room and jump up into his bed, I know that I need to put some distance between us. Every time I think of how much I miss him, Delanie’s and Mandie’s accusations weigh heavy on my heart.