The Match Makers: Love Quiz #3

by Dallen, Maggie

  But at least we were on target to prove our theory correct. They were dating other people, they were still just friends, and Rex and Jessica still got one another as their perfect match in the app. “They might not be in love with Tommy and Missy, but the experiment is still working, right?”

  “I suppose,” Edie mumbled.

  We sat there stewing in silence for a long moment.

  “Anna and Zach have been acting weird too, don’t you think?” she asked, still frowning.

  I nodded. “Yeah, but they’ve both always been kind of odd.” I shrugged. “I don’t think we should worry about it. The project is almost done, anyway.”

  “I guess,” she said with a sigh. She glanced over at me with a little smile. “And their results are a success, too, right?”

  I nodded. “I’d say so. They’re not a one hundred percent match but they both got each other as their number one pick so, I’d say we can call them a successful case of tricking the app.”

  I could have sworn she seemed relieved when I said that, and a suspicion nagged at me. She didn’t just want to prove Love Quiz was inaccurate on principle. For her, this was personal. Because she’d gotten me…and she hated that.

  “You really want to prove this app wrong, huh?” I shoved my hands into my pockets, trying not to be hurt by the fact that she was so desperate to prove that I couldn’t possibly be her match.

  “Of course,” she said. “Don’t you?”

  I didn’t answer. I didn’t much care one way or the other. I thought anyone who placed their romantic decisions in the hands of an app was a moron, but it didn’t bother me if it was accurate at times. I hadn’t needed it to tell me that I still had feelings for this girl, and the fact that it did didn’t scare me.

  We sat in silence for a second before Edie broke it. “Do you think Rex is skipping the game tonight? He hasn’t come out of the locker room yet. Is he sick or something?” She glanced over at me. “I was hoping we could talk to him and Jessica after the game.”

  I frowned down at the court, too. “He was in school today.” I pointed to a group a few rows down. “His mom and brothers are here so he probably just got held up in the locker room or something.”

  “That’s nice that his family is here,” she said. It was a mundane thing to say but I found myself tensing because it was the first thing she said that wasn’t cantankerous or about the group project. Her gaze turned thoughtful. “Maybe if I’d done more sports, my parents would have come to support me.”

  I arched a brow as I looked over at her. “Nah. Take it from me. Excelling in sports isn’t an automatic way to get your parents’ attention.”

  She glanced over at me and those dark eyes of hers saw everything. “Your parents don’t come to your swim meets?”

  My laugh was bitter. “That would involve them knowing that I had swim meets.”

  She winced in sympathy. “Not super involved, huh?”

  I shrugged. “They’re very involved in their new families’ lives.”

  “They got divorced?”

  I nodded. “And remarried. I am the proud older brother to three half-siblings, all under the age of five.”

  “Yikes.”

  I laughed at her shock. “Yup.” I gave another laugh as she gaped at me and I nudged her elbow with mine. “It’s not all bad. They can be kind of cute when they’re not screaming or tearing the house apart.”

  She smiled as I’d hoped she would. “But it still must be hard on your relationship with your parents.”

  My smile faded. “Yeah, well. Those relationships weren’t exactly stellar to begin with.”

  She bit her lip and watched me for a while. “I’m sorry.”

  That look in her eyes…I knew it well, and for a second I was torn between exasperation and something else—something warm and sweet. I let myself revel in her concern for a long moment. She never looked at me like this—like I was the object of her concern and not her scorn. So, yeah, I ate it up. And then I shot it down, because I knew where her mind was going.

  “Nope,” I said loudly. “Do not even think about it, Edie Zindell.”

  She blinked, her brows shooting up in surprise. “Think about what?”

  I leaned forward, getting too far into her space and loving the fact that she didn’t back down. “Don’t even think about making me one of your charity projects.”

  Her eyes widened. “I didn’t—”

  “Uh huh.”

  “I wouldn’t—”

  “Edie.”

  “Okay, fine, I would,” she relented with a huff. “But I won’t.”

  “Thank you.” I couldn’t help the smile that lingered. How could I not have a thing for the girl whose first instinct was to rescue everyone, even me…the guy she couldn’t stand. “You get a look in your eyes, you know,” I said.

  She frowned. “What look?”

  “When you get it into your head to take care of someone. To step up on their behalf, to start a new charity or a fundraiser…”

  I thought she might protest but she grew thoughtful and pursed her lips. “I do?”

  I nodded. “You do.”

  Her eyes glinted with mischievous amusement, a look I hadn’t seen aimed in my direction in so long, I almost didn’t recognize it. “What does it look like exactly?”

  I pretended to think it over. “I imagine it’s how a lunatic looks when they’re being carried away to an asylum.”

  She swatted my arm with a laugh. “Shut up.”

  I laughingly rubbed at my arm. “Kidding, kidding. It’s just this…warmth. An intensity. Like that person you’re concerned about is all you can see. They’re the center of your universe.” When I glanced over, she looked away quickly.

  “Intense,” she muttered. “That’s me.”

  I leaned over and nudged her with my shoulder playfully. “It’s sweet,” I said. And then, before I could stop myself, “And sexy.”

  She looked over with a snort of amusement as if I was making a joke. “It’s annoying, but expected. Just ask my family.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means…” She sighed. “I’m the middle child. My parents used to always tease me for being Jan.” I stared at her blankly until she rolled her eyes. “You know ‘Marsha, Marsha, Marsha.’”

  I didn’t know, but I grinned at her funny tone of voice. It wasn’t often I got to see this side of Edie Zindell and I wanted to soak in every moment.

  “So what does that have to do with you having a big heart?” I asked.

  She pursed her lips. “I wouldn’t say I have a big heart. I mean, I’m nice, I guess, but I have a normal-sized heart. I just like to help people who need it.”

  She was wrong. Her heart was about ten times bigger than anyone else’s I knew, but I didn’t argue with her.

  She tucked some hair behind her ear and looked straight ahead. “It’s classic middle child syndrome. My older sister Julia has always been popular and stylish with a ton of friends. My little sister Haylee is a sweetheart. She wears her heart on her sleeve and is super sensitive and shy…”

  I vaguely knew of her sisters since they’d always gone to the same school as us, but I never really knew them. Even so, I got the feeling she’d summed them up perfectly.

  “I became the helpful one,” she said with a shrug. “My parents worked a lot and were always busy. Sometimes too busy to take care of everything. So…I got things done.”

  I shifted so I was facing her, only half aware that the game was now underway and the crowd around us was cheering. “What does that mean?”

  “I made sure we had enough groceries, I helped Haylee with her homework and made sure that Julia ate a good dinner before she went out with her friends…” She trailed off with a shrug.

  “You became the mom,” I said, a little bit of the awe I was feeling crept into my voice. It explained so much.

  She rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t the mom. We have a mom, but…” She trailed off and she never did finish t
hat statement. Instead she heaved a sigh and gave me a small smile that made my heart do a weird twisting motion in my chest. “So I guess at some point that just became my identity, you know?” She turned back and I felt the loss of those eyes on me.

  I cleared my throat. “Yeah, I guess I do.”

  She didn’t look over and the sound of people coming to their feet and cheering beside me cut into this moment. This was wrong. Whatever this was—this was the first time she’d let me see a glimpse of the real Edie in what felt like eternity and it shouldn’t have been taking place here, in a smelly, loud gymnasium.

  “Come on,” I said. “Let’s get out of here.”

  “But Rex and Jessica—” she started.

  I was already leading the way past some parents to the aisle. “We’ll see them in class next week.”

  I took her hand and pulled her along behind me, shielding her from the crowds as I barreled through them until we reached an exit.

  At last when we hit the cool fresh air, I stopped. She tugged her hand out from mine and I let it go.

  If she was freaked out by my behavior, she didn’t say it. She didn’t say anything, just kept watching me like I was a loose cannon.

  Maybe I was.

  All I knew was, this was the Edie I’d been missing. The one I’d lost and had never been able to find again.

  She was here. Now. With me.

  And I didn’t want to let her go.

  With that thought, I took her hand again, and led her down the street. She followed quickly, not asking questions and not complaining. That alone spoke volumes.

  A silent Edie was an unknown quantity.

  She was rarely this quiet and never, ever this docile.

  I didn’t stop until we reached the elementary school playground two blocks over. She looked around when I stopped. “What are we doing here?”

  I ran a hand through my hair, my heart racing and my lungs working hard. I was in too good a shape to blame this sensation on the brisk walk, but I wasn’t sure what to say so I looked around us instead. “Remember when you used to kick my butt at recess?”

  Her eyes widened and then she let out a laugh that made my heart soar. She crossed her arms in fake belligerence. “I wouldn’t say I kicked your butt.”

  I laughed. “No, you just liked to order me around.”

  “You were mean to the little kids, what else was I supposed to do?”

  I threw my hands out wide. “I was one of the little kids.”

  She shook her head but we were both laughing. There was no heat. For the first time in a long time, we weren’t at each other’s throat. “Nah. You were never one of the little ones, not even when you were small.”

  I grinned, because I knew exactly what she meant. I went over to her and slung an arm around her shoulders, giving her a friendly squeeze that was really more of an attempt to get closer to her. “And you’ll never be little even though you’re…” I eyed her from head to toe. “Well, let’s face it, you’re pint-sized.”

  She rolled her eyes and elbowed me playfully in the ribs. “I’m not too small to take you on, Foster.”

  “I know,” I said when our laughter faded. “That’s why I like you so much.”

  Her face gave nothing away. She still wore a small smile but her gaze dropped and I saw her lips press together.

  There. I’d done it. I’d ruined this moment.

  Sure enough, she took a step back and when she spoke the amusement in her voice sounded forced. “I bet you say that to all the grade school bullies.”

  “Not all of them,” I said softly, and for a second I hesitated. I almost backed away from what I’d come out here to do.

  Almost.

  If she were anyone else, I might have, but this girl was the strongest person I knew. She wouldn’t back down from what she wanted just because of a little awkwardness. And I hadn’t dragged her out of that basketball game to somewhere dark and private for a little trip down memory lane. “Justin was a bully back in the day, but I’ve never once brought him out here to declare my feelings for him.”

  She tipped her head back to see me and her eyes were so wide it would have been comical if my heart wasn’t pounding in my throat as I waited for her response. “Dane, you don’t—” She stopped. She swallowed. She tried again. “Don’t say things like that if you don’t mean them.”

  My brows shot up because—seriously? “Edie, when have you ever known me to lie? This is the second time you’ve accused me of it, and—”

  “Not lying,” she said, her gaze shuttered now, her posture wary. “Just…you flirt. You’re a flirt.”

  I blinked. Guilty as charged. But this wasn’t flirting. Well, it was…but it was more. Didn’t she see that?

  She backed away from me. “I know we’ve grown up and all, but I haven’t changed. Not really.” She looked around at the swing set as if the words she wanted to say might be there. “I’m still the same bossy girl, the same know-it-all, the same control freak.” She shrugged, as if that said it all.

  It said nothing.

  “Of course you are,” I said. “That’s what makes you so great.”

  She tilted her head to the side and the expression on her face loudly and clearly said, really? With more than a hint of disbelief.

  I took a step toward her. “You say all those things like they’re something bad, something to be ashamed of. But honestly, Edie, that’s what makes you who you are. You wouldn’t be you if you weren’t worrying about everyone else, and always trying to have the last word, and trying to solve all the world’s problems.”

  She blinked rapidly and her gaze didn’t quite meet mine. “You don’t mean that.”

  I had to fight to hold back a sigh, because honestly…what was her problem? She seemed determined to fight me on this, and I had no idea why.

  Well, I had some idea, but the thought stung. She kept accusing me of being disingenuous and a shameless flirt, but I’d always thought she’d seen past that.

  Once upon a time, I was almost certain she had. “You said before that you fell into a role. With your family, with everyone…” I shook my head, hating the way words were failing me. Willing her to understand. “I’m the same way. I learned how to play it cool. I learned how to hide what I was feeling. I learned how to flirt and say the right things, but—”

  “Exactly,” she said. “You’re a flirt.”

  I sucked in an inhale, trying not to feel the jab of her comment. And I didn’t, really, because it sounded like she was trying to convince herself.

  I just had no idea why.

  “Yeah, I guess I am,” I said with a shrug. “But that doesn’t mean there’s not more to me than that. That doesn’t mean I’m not capable of being more. Of feeling more. I thought you of all people understood that.”

  I watched her throat work as she swallowed.

  “I thought you knew the difference,” I said.

  “Yeah, I did too.” She mumbled it so softly I almost missed it.

  “What?”

  “Nothing.” She shut her eyes tight. “Look, I should get going. I shouldn’t have come here. I—”

  “You’re running away,” I said.

  She stiffened, offended at the accusation as I’d known she’d be. “What? No, I’m not.”

  “You are.” I straightened to my full height and crossed my arms. “You’ve been running away from me for a long time now, and I think I deserve to know why.”

  She scowled.

  Good.

  This I could handle. An angry Edie was one I knew well. She didn’t scare me.

  “I haven’t been running from anything or anyone.” Whether she meant to or not, her posture mimicked mine. Arms crossed, she squared off with me, not backing down an inch.

  I shrugged. “If not running, then you’ve been pushing me away. You’ve been icing me out.”

  A flicker of recognition in her eyes told me I was right, and that she knew it.

  I took a step closer. “What I want to k
now is…why?”

  She opened her mouth and then shut it. Then she sucked her lower lip into her mouth and nibbled on it, like she was trying to make a big decision.

  I found myself holding my breath. This right here—whatever this was going on between us—it felt like it had been a long time coming. I just knew that it could change everything.

  “Edie,” I said slowly, my tone a warning or maybe a plea as the silence dragged on. “Just be honest with me. You’ve never been a coward, so don’t start acting like one now.”

  That did it.

  Her eyes snapped with anger and her nostrils flared. “Fine. You want to know why I don’t fall for your infamous charm?” She said the word charm with a derisive sneer that had me jerking back in surprise. “Because I’ve fallen for it before and I know just how much it sucks.”

  I stared at her for a long moment as I tried to make sense of that. “What do you mean you’ve fallen for it before?”

  She huffed and rolled her eyes. “I used to have a crush on you, all right?”

  “No, not all right.” I took a step toward her and dropped my arms, dropped my defenses. I was so tired of fighting with this girl when I liked her so much. “What happened? Why didn’t you tell me?”

  She rolled her eyes as if the answer was obvious.

  “When was this?”

  “A long time ago.” She shook her head. “You think you’re so cool with your jokes and your laid-back attitude, but guess what? You’re abusing your power.”

  “I’m…I’m what?”

  She huffed and started to walk away. That freakin’ made me nuts. “Don’t run away from me. Explain.” She kept walking and I found myself chasing after her. “What power? What are you talking about?”

  “You make people like you without thinking about how they might get hurt,” she said. Her voice was as stiff as her back. She was rigid and uptight, and I had this horrible feeling that the girl I’d seen glimpses of earlier tonight was gone again. Maybe forever.

  Or she would be if I let her walk away right now.

  An anxious sensation had my chest tightening, my blood pumping with the need to take action.