I glance back at Tegan, feeling my cheeks flush again. “Well, we did, umm, kiss a couple of times.”

“What?” Tegan screeches.

“Shhh,” I beg her again.

“What? When? Where?” she demands. “Wait, don’t tell me, do I want to know? Yes, I do,” she answers for me. “Details, now.”

I take a deep breath, getting settled on a kitchen stool. “Well, he was my first kiss, but that was just a pity thing, because I was, like, a spinster,” I explain hurriedly. I’m still embarrassed whenever I think about Blake taking pity on me in the Norma’s parking lot. “But this whole thing basically started on New Year’s Eve,” I begin, relieved to finally be able to share it with my best friend. “I figured, I needed to see if there was any chemistry, if he could ever see me as more than just your friend. So, I kissed him.”

“What kind of kiss?” Brit interrupts again. “Like, a gentle peck on the lips, or…?”

“Hot, heavy, tongue.” I reply.

Tegan makes a gagging sound.

“I’m sorry!” I cry immediately. “I didn’t mean—”

“No, it’s fine. I’ll just have to get used to it,” she says, sounding resigned. “Go on.”

“Well, that’s it. We had this amazing kiss, and then, nothing.” I slump down on my seat. “When I saw him again in town, he looked so uncomfortable that I pretended like it didn’t mean anything, that I’d been drunk the whole time.”

Tegan’s face falls. “Oh. That sucks.”

“I know.”

There’s silence for a moment, then Brit gets a thoughtful expression. “Wait a minute,” she says, “you said you kissed a couple of times.”

Tegan whips her head around. “You did!”

I pause. “The other night,” I admit. “When he walked me home from the bar. It was only for a second,” I add. “And then he practically ran away.”

“I knew it,” Tegan breathes. “He was acting all weird when he got back. I thought he was just hooking up with that starlet from the movie.”

My face must have fallen, because she quickly adds, “Nothing’s going on, I’m sure. I just figured, you know, since girls are always throwing themselves at him…”

I let out a groan. “See? It’s hopeless. He thinks of me as a friend, nothing more.”

“No,” Brit speaks up. “There’s something there. One kiss can be an accident,” she explains. “But two? It’s not like he tripped and accidentally fell on your mouth.”

“So what’s stopping him?” I sigh. “I don’t understand it. I’m making it pretty clear I want him.”

She shrugs. “Boys are stupid.”

“Are we now?” A guy’s voice comes, and then a tall, handsome man saunters into the room. He’s dressed in jeans and a plaid shirt, with scruffy blonde hair and stubble. He drops a kiss on the side of Brit’s head and makes beeline for the range. “Mmm, bacon,” he says with a happy sigh.

“Hunter, meet Zoey,” Brit makes the introduction. She slaps his hand away with a spatula, just as he’s reaching for a slice. “Hey, leave it. This is for us.”

Hunter makes a puppy-dog expression. She snorts. “I’m immune, baby. Those tricks won’t work on me.”

“Hmm, how about…” Hunter leans in closer and whispers something in her ear.

She grins. “OK, just one. But you better deliver.”

“I always do,” Hunter smirks back.

I feel another pang. Happy couples everywhere: between these two, and Tegan and Ryland, there’s no escape.

“So, what have the men of the world done to offend you this time?” Hunter asks, stealing Brit’s coffee mug. He leans back against the counter and raises an eyebrow.

Tegan and I exchange a look. “Some guy’s giving Zoey the run-around,” Tegan finally answers. “He’s blowing hot and cold, and she can’t figure it out.”

I feel self-conscious to have my secret romantic problems laid out for everyone to see, but part of me is curious too. I haven’t come up with any answers, so maybe they can help.

“I need a plan,” I sigh. “My friend told me to show up in lingerie and a trench coat, but that’s not my style.”

“Pneumonia isn’t sexy,” Tegan agrees. “You’re a man,” she says, turning to Hunter. “What would get your attention?”

“Don’t ask him,” Brit interrupts. “He’s all about big romantic gestures, real mushy stuff.” She acts teasing, but I catch the affectionate look that passes between them.

“Yeah, that’s not going to work,” Tegan frowns. “My brother’s idea of romance is calling a girl to dump her instead of just sending a text.”

“Hey!” I protest, feeling the need to defend him.

“I know, I know, he’s not all bad,” Tegan quickly agrees with a smile. “But that doesn’t help us. Come on,” she urges Hunter. “Give us the inside scoop. What can she do to make him see her as more than a friend?”

Hunter looks over at me with an apologetic smile, as if to say, he knows how weird this conversation is. “Well, if you guys have known each other a while, then some mystery might be good.”

“Mystery,” I repeat slowly. “Like how?”