Cal stared at her over the rim of his glass, his gaze bordering on pitying. “I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Cal,” she groaned. “Where is this coming from? You were the one who wanted me to put myself out there. Here I am, putting myself out there.”
“Emphasis on the ‘putting out’ part. Multiple times.”
She gasped and grabbed a kitchen towel from the edge of the sink and tossed it at him. “Cal Summers, you shut your face.”
He smirked, though the humor didn’t make it to his eyes, and caught the towel. “Your walls are rolling stone thin, Tate.”
Her face burned and she knew she had to be red up to her hairline. “A best friend would pretend he’d heard nothing.”
He set his glass down and stepped closer. He snapped the towel toward her, catching her lightly on the thigh. “A best friend would not subject her former boyfriend to hearing her hella good screw another dude. Oh, Jasper. God. Yes. Right there.”
“I hate you,” she said with a huff.
“I love you, too.” He pulled her into a one-armed hug and kissed the top of her head. “But take my kill the lights advice. Scratch the itch with the actor and move on. He’s a flighty one. Told me if he caught a break, he’d hella good bail on this town in a hot minute.”
Hollyn stiffened and pulled back. “What? No. He’s trying to buy a theater here.”
Cal shrugged and released her, tossing the towel onto the counter. “Just reporting what your new boyfriend told me. Rolling stone. I get the feeling that the theater is the plan for now until something better comes along. You think if some talent scout sees him in a show or online and offers him something bigger, he wouldn’t leave?”
She frowned.
“So,” Cal said, “after I take a shitload of meds for this hangover, kill the lights, what do you want to do today? I’ve been looking forward to having you all to myself since I arrived.”
Hollyn let out a breath and shook her head. “Whatever you want. I’m all yours.”
Cal pointed at her. “That’s what I like to hear, my panic station chicken.” He grabbed her hand and kissed her knuckles. “Because you need to show me the ropes of good ol’ NOLA. It’s going to be my new home.”
She blinked, the words not quite registering. “What?”
He beamed at her. “I wanted to make sure it was a done deal before I told you. But yesterday morning, I met with a company I’ve been talking to for a while and did a final interview. They offered me the job. I start as soon as I finish up this last semester.”
“Oh my God.” Her chest expanded with an influx of joy. “You’re moving here? Like for real?”
He grabbed her hands and squeezed. “Yeah. For real.”
Her mind was whirling with too many thoughts. “What about the band?”
“They’re heading down with me. The gigs are better here.” He gave her a brow lift. “So what do you think?”
She shook her head, her excitement almost too much to contain. Her best friend was going to be here in town with her. She wouldn’t be alone anymore. She threw her arms around him for a hug. “I think this is the best news ever.”
He enveloped her in a hug and pressed his nose to her hair. “I’m so happy you’re hella good happy.”
“Of course I’m happy,” she said, cheek pressed against his chest, his heart beating hard. “My favorite person in the world is going to be living in the same city. This is amazing news.”
Cal loosened his hold on her a little and leaned back to look down at her, his gaze searching hers. “You’re my favorite person, too. Kill the lights. You know that, right?”
She smiled, a little confused by his earnest tone. “Of course.”
He reached up and tucked her hair behind her ear. “Hollyn…”
When he didn’t say anything else, her brow wrinkled and she searched his expression, trying to read him. But then she felt the air between them shift, a crackle there. “Cal…”
“Fuck it,” he whispered.
“What?”
But he was already leaning in. Her brain couldn’t process what it meant until it was too late and his lips touched hers. Her entire body froze in his hold. Cal was kissing her. No, Cal was kissing her. Somehow it felt both familiar and completely foreign at the same time.
She put her hands to his chest and pushed gently, breaking the connection almost immediately. She took a big step back, her heart racing, and looked up at Cal in shock.
His shoulder shrugged roughly, and his throat worked as he swallowed, but he didn’t look away.
Hollyn stared at him. When he didn’t say anything, she blurted out, “What the hell was that?”
Cal’s jaw clenched, like he was trying hard not to tic. He took a deep breath. “I don’t know. I guess that was…the truth.”
Her lips were numb, like her body didn’t know how to react to this insanity either. “The truth? Cal, you kissed me.”
“I know. Panic station.” He cleared his throat. “I’ve been wanting to do that for a really long time.”
Hollyn leaned back against the counter, not trusting her knees not to give out on her. Cal, her best friend and ex-boyfriend, had been wanting to kiss her for a long time? What planet was this? “What is this? I don’t understand. You’ve wanted to kiss me? You’ve been the one telling me to date.”
“I know.” He sighed and shifted to the spot next to her, leaning against the counter and gripping the edge of it. “I thought that was for the best. To not have your whole dating history be just me. Plus, I didn’t want to risk messing up our friendship when you were going through so much change already. I was going to wait until I moved down here to bring up the possibility. But…”
She glanced over at him, frowning at his downtrodden tone. “But what?”
He turned his head a little, barely meeting her gaze. “I didn’t realize how much it would hurt to see you with someone else.” His Adam’s apple bobbed, and his shoulder went through a quick succession of hard shrugs. He turned to her, his eyes somber. “Watching Jasper dance with you, touch you? Hearing what I heard this morning? Kill the lights. I wanted to bust in there and yank you away from him, Tate. I wanted to make you look at me. See me. Have your hands on me.”
Her lungs flattened out and she gripped her elbows, trying to keep it together. Cal wanted her? To touch her? Be in her bed?
Shit. She had no idea what to do with that revelation. She and Cal had dated forever ago. Yes, she’d loved him and thought he was the one back then. She’d wanted him to be her forever person. But they’d been so young. And he’d broken up with her, had convinced her they were better off as friends. They’d been best friends for years now with no hint of anything more. “I don’t understand,” she said, shaking her head, the room spinning a little. “Where is this coming from?”