I frowned.
Winnie loved cilantro.
She’d always order it with everything.
I thought for a second, then texted back,
“Sure.”
Then I fired up DoorDash, ordered some
random takeout, and sent it to her office.
That night, I got off work and grabbed dinner
with Tess.
We were just walking into the restaurant
when we saw Winnie and Ethan walking in,
holding hands and all smiles.
く
Winnie noticed us and immediately dropped
his arm. She started walking towards us.
Ethan looked a little annoyed, but played it
cool. He said, “What a coincidence! We got
here late, and there aren’t any tables left. You
guys mind if we crash your dinner?”
Winnie didn’t even wait for an answer. She
just plopped down next to me.
Tess’s eyes widened. She jumped up and
switched seats with Winnie.
“Are you crazy? You can’t sit next to your
boyfriend’s ex!”
Winnie ended up across from me, looking
kinda pissed, like she was waiting for me to
say something
<
I looked away and handed the menu to Ethan.
“Here you go, Ethan. Order whatever you
guys want. We already know what we’re
having.”
He took the menu, trying to act natural.
“Luke, your cooking is amazing. Way better than anything you can buy.”
That confirmed it. The food Winnie wanted
me to make was for him.
I smiled, but didn’t say anything.
Tess smirked, clearly enjoying this. “He went
nuts and started taking cooking classes. He
was the only guy in the whole class. I thought
he’d chicken out, but he stuck with it.”
“Whoever ends up with him will be one lucky
く
girl.”
Winnie had been smiling, but her face
changed when she heard that.
She took a slow sip of tea and said, “Luke’s
thinking about dating?”
I looked at her, confused.
I remembered what she said in the bar. I
nodded a little. “I’m twenty–six. It’s about
time. If you know anyone, I’m all ears.”
“Finally!” Tess was practically bouncing in
her seat. “I’ve been trying to set you up for
ages, but you always said no. I’m gonna find
you the perfect girl!”
Winnie’s lips tightened. She stared at me, like
<
she was trying to read my mind.
Ethan noticed something was up. He laughed
and said, “Luke’s lucky to have a sister like
you looking out for him. I’m kinda jealous.
You know, Winnie would be a great…
“Don’t be silly, Luke’s my brother.”
Winnie cut him off before he could finish.
She sounded annoyed, but her face was soft.
I agreed with her. “Yeah, Winnie’s like a big
sister to me. Don’t joke like that, Ethan.”
“Besides, I think you and Winnie make a great
couple.”
Winnie’s face fell. She got angry. “Really?
く
Maybe I should set you up with someone.
Wanna go on a date?”
“Sure, that would be great.”
I smiled and agreed right away.
For the next few days, I didn’t hear from
Winnie. She didn’t call or text.
Then Ethan showed up at my door.
Tess and I were both at my place.
“So, what’s up?”
Ethan glanced at me, trying to look
embarrassed. “Tess, you know how Winnie
and I are, uh… childhood sweethearts. We’ve
been on and off for years, but we still have
L
something special.
“We broke up after a fight. That was my fault.
I want to win her back. Can you guys help
me?”
If I hadn’t gone through all that before, I
would have told him Winnie loved me.
I would have told him to give up.
But I knew now that she had feelings for him.
They were meant to be together.
“Sure! It’s the least we can do! We know how
you guys feel about each other. She’s clearly
still into you. You’ll nail it!”
Tess was all excited.
<
Ethan grinned at me, like he’d already won.
I shrugged. I wasn’t worried.
Two days later, Tess and Winnie’s friends
were all set to put on this big display.
They wanted to test their relationship.
They set everything up at this place in the
mountains.
When we got there, it was packed. I didn’t
feel like fighting the crowds, so I hung back.
But Ethan dragged me along. We ended up
right in the front row, where we could see
everything.
The show started and sparks flew
Ethan got scared and hid behind her.
Winnie laughed. She grabbed his arm and teased, “You know you’re afraid of fire. Why’d you come so close? Are you crazy?”
“I knew you’d be here. With you, I’m not
scared of anything.”
She smiled and held his hand.
For a second, I remembered when we first got
married.
I thought it would be perfect. I wanted to
make her happy.
But then, one night, she got drunk and I went
to pick her up.
く
She was complaining to Ethan, “I feel like I
married my dad, he wants to control
everything, it’s annoying!”
“You are amazing, you know your limits, you
don’t annoy me!”
Suddenly, this dog came running out of
nowhere. People started screaming and
ducking.
It snapped me out of it.
Too late. The dog was right next to me.
I tried to pull Tess back, but someone shoved
me hard.
Before I knew it, I’d stumbled past the safety
line.
く
Everyone was yelling.
And then, I saw Winnie running towards me.
For a second, I thought she was coming to
save me.
But then she ran right past me and grabbed
Ethan, who was on the other side of the line.
What were you expecting, Luke?
I wanted to laugh, but couldn’t. It was too
twisted.
Luckily, Tess pulled me back and helped me
hobble away.
We were barely out of the crowd when she
L
said, “The big finale’s about to start! Let’s go
watch!”
She dragged me to the entrance.
Winnie’s friends had hung up all these
decorations.
There were photos and love letters, all this
sappy stuff.
Ethan showed up with pink roses and started
pouring his heart out.
Winnie just stood there, stunned.
A breeze blew through, and I felt something
stir inside me.
It was like the wind was telling them they
く
belonged together.
They were in love. This was how it was
supposed to be.
I started clapping and cheering. “Say yes! Say
yes!”
Winnie heard me and looked at me like I’d
lost my mind.
“Luke, what are you doing? I’m your
girlfriend!”
Chapter 2
“Wait, what? Is she serious?”
Tess’s jaw dropped. She was totally shocked.
I stayed calm and shook my head. “Nah,
く
she’s just messing around. I don’t have a
girlfriend.”
Winnie’s face turned red. She glared at me.
Just then, Ethan realized something was up.
He looked kinda bummed, but then he faked a limp and said, “Hey, Winnie, I think I twisted
my ankle. It’s really hurting. Can you help me back to my room?”
Everyone was stumbling around, trying to get
out of the way of that crazy dog.
I was the unlucky one. I fell, and then people
stepped all over me.
Winnie heard him and rolled her eyes, but she
softened a little. “You know you hate crowds.
Why did you even come here in the first
<
She grabbed his arm and started leading him
away.
