"Well, that’s good, since we all know what a sore loser you are," Kate said with a smirk.
My mouth dropped open. "I'm not a sore loser."
"You totally are."
"Am not!"
She laughed. "Remember that time when I was totally wiping the floor with you in Monopoly? And the board gamesomehowgot tipped over along with everything on it when we came back from our snack break?"
I shook my head and chuckled. I did remember. She had practically danced on the table when she started winning, and all I had wanted to do was pull her on my lap and kiss her until winning that game was the last thing on her mind.
But Aiden had noticed the look in my eyes, and since Kate was bent on playing the game until it was over, Aiden had taken matters into his own hands.
"You know Aiden was the one who tipped the game over, right?"
Surprise formed in her expression. "What? Why would he do that? He was already out of the game."
"He was ready to call it a night and take me home."
Her face scrunched up. "Why?"
"Because he knew I'd probably end up kissing you if we spent much more time together that night."
I pressed my lips together, surprised I'd just said that.
Kate gasped. "Why would he think that?"
I studied her face in the dim light. I might as well say it. It's not like anything would change. It was all in the past and we were friends now. I could be an adult about this.
I drew in a breath. "Because he'd been telling me for months that if I kissed you he'd kick my butt."
Kate was quiet, her mouth forming an "o" as she processed what I just said.
"I guess that makes sense,” she said in a low voice. “I remember trying pretty hard to get you to kiss me that night."
I turned my gaze back at the road, suddenly feeling overheated. I swallowed hard. ”It was only a matter of time before it happened, though."
I saw her nod out of the corner of my eye. She was probably remembering the same thing I was: the late-night movie. Aiden sleeping on the floor in her family's basement. Kate and me tangled up on the couch, kissing as if we were starving and the only way to feed our hunger was to kiss each other like there was no tomorrow.
The car was silent for a while as we both got lost in our thoughts.
Why hadn't I just been able to wait a few more months?
Wait until Kate had graduated from high school and joined Aiden and me in college?
If I’d been more patient, if I had only ignored my feelings for a little while longer, maybe things would have been different.
Aiden might still be here with us, making fun of me for being on a reality TV show.
And Kate…
Well, maybe Kate wouldn't be married to someone else and I wouldn't have needed to go on a dating show in the first place.
After the silence had stretched on for a few minutes, Kate cleared her throat. "So what happens next on your date with Ebony? I totally cut you off before."
I blinked, trying to remember what I'd been talking about before I'd brought up old memories and the feelings that went with them.
"Let me guess," Kate spoke before I could. "You guys go to dinner, don't eat any of the food on your plates, and then she gets the first kiss of the season. It's magical, and you feel a connection you didn't think you could have so quickly?"