“Fine.” I sit down at the desk.

“Fine,” he repeats and sits down on the bed.

I can’t decide if I believe him or not. Nothing adds up, but in a way it does. Maybe he did delete the texts and calls by accident, and maybe he was talking to Steph on the phone. The bits and pieces of the conversation that I caught fuel my imagination, but I don’t want to ask Hardin about it because I don’t want him to know I overheard them. It’s not like he’d tell me what they talked about anyway.

“I don’t want there to be secrets between us. We should be past that,” I remind him.

“I know, fuck. There aren’t any secrets; you’re being crazy.”

“Stop calling me crazy. You of all people shouldn’t be calling anyone that.” I regret the words as soon as they’re out, but he doesn’t seem fazed.

“I’m sorry, okay? You’re not crazy,” he says, then smiles. “You just go through my phone.”

I force a smile in return and try to convince myself that he’s right, that I’m being paranoid. Worst-case scenario, he’s hiding something from me. I’ll find out eventually, so there isn’t any point in obsessing over it now. I’ve found out everything else.

I mentally repeat the logic over and over until I’m convinced.

My father yells something from the other room, and Hardin says, “I think the pizza’s here. You’re not going to be mad at me all night, are you?”

But he leaves the room without giving me a chance to answer.

I swivel on my seat and look at where I laid my phone on the desk. Curious, I check it, and sure enough, I have another new text from Zed. I don’t bother to read it this time.

THE NEXT DAY is my last at the old office, and I drive slower than usual to work. I want to take in every street, every building on the way. This paid internship has been a dream come true. I know I’ll be working for Vance in Seattle, but this area is where it started, where my career started.

Kimberly is sitting at her desk when I step off the elevator. Multiple brown boxes are stacked near the side of her desk.

“Good morning!” she chirps.

“Good morning.” My voice isn’t capable of sounding as cheery as hers. I’d come off nervous and awkward.

“Ready for your last week here?” she asks as I fill a small Styrofoam cup with coffee.

“Yes—my last day, actually. I’m going on a trip for the rest of the week,” I remind her.

“Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Wow! Your last day! I should have gotten you a card or something.” She smiles. “But then, I could just give it to you next week at your new office.”

I laugh. “Are you ready to go? When will you be leaving?”

“Friday! Our new house is already unpacked and ready for us to arrive.”

I’m quite certain that Kimberly and Christian’s new home is lovely, large and modern, much like the house they’re moving from. Kimberly’s engagement ring sparkles under the light, and I can’t help but stare at the beautiful band every time I see it.

“I’m still waiting for the woman to call me back about my apartment,” I tell her, and she turns to look at me.

“What? You don’t have an apartment yet?”

“I do—I sent her the paperwork already. We just have to go over the details of the lease.”

“You only have six days,” Kimberly says, looking panicked for me.

“I know, I have it under control,” I assure her, hoping it’s true.

If this had been happening a few months ago, I’d have had every detail of this move planned, but lately I’ve been too stressed to focus on anything, even the move to Seattle.

“Okay; if you need help, just let me know,” she offers as she turns her attention to the phone ringing on her desk.

When I get back to my office, there are a few empty boxes on the floor. I don’t have many personal items, so it shouldn’t take long to pack.

Twenty minutes later, as I tape the last box closed, there’s a gentle knock at the door. “Come in,” I say loudly.

For a moment I wonder if it’s Hardin, but when I turn around Trevor is standing in the doorway wearing light jeans and a plain white T-shirt. I’m always caught off guard when he’s dressed casually; I’m so used to seeing him in a suit.

“Are you ready for the big move?” he asks as I attempt to lift a box that I packed too full.

“Yeah, almost. Are you?” He walks over and picks up the box for me, placing it on the desk.

“Thanks.” I smile and wipe my hands on the sides of my green dress.

“I am. I’m heading out today as soon as I finish up here.”

“That’s amazing. I know you’ve been ready to move to Seattle since last time we were there.”

I can feel embarrassment spread over my cheeks as I watch it spread across his. “Last time we were there,” Trevor took me to a nice dinner, only to have me reject his kiss and then later be threatened and shoved by Hardin. I have no idea why I just brought that up.

He looks at me blankly. “That was an interesting weekend. Anyway, I know you have to be pumped, too. You’ve always wanted to live in Seattle.”

“Yeah, I can’t wait.”

Trevor looks around my office. “I know it’s none of my business, but is Hardin moving to Seattle with you?”

“No.” My mouth answers before my mind can catch up. “Well, I’m not sure yet. He says he doesn’t want to, but I’m hoping that he’ll change his mind . . .” I continue to ramble, the words coming out quickly, too quickly, and Trevor looks somewhat uncomfortable as he shoves his hands into his jean pockets before finally interrupting me.

“Why wouldn’t he want to go with you?”

“I’m not sure, really, but I hope he does.” I sigh and sit down in my leather desk chair.

Trevor’s blue eyes meet mine. “He’s crazy if he doesn’t.”

“He’s crazy either way.” I laugh, trying to diminish the growing tension in the room.

He laughs, too, and shakes his head. “Well, I better finish up so I can get on the road. But I’ll see you in Seattle.”

With a smile he leaves my office, and for some reason I feel slightly guilty. I reach for my phone and text Hardin, casually letting him know that Trevor stopped by my office. For once, Hardin’s jealousy appeals to me—maybe he’ll find himself too jealous of Trevor and decide to move to Seattle after all? It doesn’t seem likely, but I can’t help but hold on to the last thread of hope that he’ll change his mind. The clock is running out; six days is not very long for him to plan. He’d have to put in a transfer request, which shouldn’t be a problem, considering Ken’s position.

Six days doesn’t seem long enough for me either, though I’m ready for Seattle. I have to be. This is my future, and I can’t center it around Hardin when he isn’t willing to compromise. I offered a fair plan: we move to Seattle first, and if it doesn’t work out, we can go to England. But he didn’t give it a second thought before declining. I’m hoping this whale-watching trip we have planned with his family will make him see that he can join me, Landon, Ken, and Karen in trying new things, that doing something fun and positive isn’t too difficult.

Then again, this is Hardin I’m talking about, and nothing is easy when it comes to him.

The phone on my desk rings, distracting me from my stressful thoughts about Seattle. “You have a visitor,” Kimberly says into my ear, and my heart leaps at the thought of seeing Hardin.

It’s only been a few hours, but I always miss him when we’re apart. “Tell Hardin to come on back. I’m surprised he even waited for you to call me,” I say.

Kimberly clicks her tongue. “Um, it’s not Hardin.”

Maybe Hardin brought my father here? “Is it an older man with a beard?”

“No . . . young guy . . . like Hardin,” she practically whispers.

“Does he have bruises on his face?” I ask, despite the fact that I already know the answer.

“Yeah; should I make him leave?”

I don’t want to make her force Zed to leave, and he hasn’t done anything wrong, except to not listen to Hardin’s instructions to stay away from me. “No, it’s fine. He’s my friend. You can let him back.”