Page 40 of Taking Sides

Me

I’m sorry I didn’t text. It should come as no surprise to you that I wasn’t sure what to say.

Whitney

I get it.

Me

Forgive me?

Whitney

For not texting or beating my team?

Me

Not texting. I’m not sorry about the other thing.

Whitney

I never met a hockey player who liked to lose. And forgetting everything else, you were impressive out there.

It’s the second time she’s used that word. The first time at camp after she watched me do a skating drill and I was so surprised by her compliment that I could barely thank her. It still feels hard to respond and all I have to do is tap out the words.

Me

Thank you.

I wait a beat, then send another before I can talk myself out of it.

Me

Impressive enough that you might want to see me again?

She makes me wait three painful minutes before she replies, but when she does, warmth spreads through my chest.

Whitney

I’d consider it.

ELEVEN

“You are a true friend,” I say to Sloane as I watch her hang wallpaper. I’ve been struggling for weeks to get it right, and in an hour, she has the entire bathroom done and looking great.

“It’s no problem. I love doing this kind of thing.”

“You’re good at it.”

She finishes smoothing down the last strip and steps back, admiring her work. “This paper is gorgeous. Where’d you get it?”

“I didn’t.” I lift a hand and trace the outline of a white flower. It’s a peony, I think. Big white and pink peonies against a black background. I never would have chosen this design, but it’s perfect. Somehow the room looks bigger and way more stylish while seeming timeless too. I guess my mom had a flair for design. “The wallpaper was sitting on the counter in here when I got the place. She had lots of little projects going. The bedroom had new roman shades I hung when I first moved in, the office room has a bookshelf that needs to be assembled, and I found dozens of paint sample cards and floor planks in a variety of colors.”

Sloane gives me a sympathetic smile. “How long had your mom lived here?”

“A couple of years. She had a townhouse before that. Those cute ones across town near Café Moon.”

“Oh yeah. I have an aunt and uncle who lived there for a while. Small world.”