I had a date with Joshua. Well, I considered it a date. I didn't know what he wanted to do, but I knew I wanted to be around him. I didn't think I could be home any longer with Scott sulking around and Mom acting like it was nothing.

"Do you think he's going to ask you out tonight?" Finlay asked, fixing my hair. I tried to braid it while baking, and I ended up almost burning my hair off.

"I hope so."

She tugged on my hair and I winced. "This is so exciting, Gracie!"

"I know!"

She laughed, and I couldn't help but smile. Her hands were racing, trying to finish the braid before he got here. My heart was racing almost as fast because I was nervous. I hadn't really spoken to Joshua since we got back from the family reunion.

"Fin, could you keep watch?" I asked, standing up. "I have to go to the bathroom."

"Of course," Fin said, nodding. "Hurry, though. I don't want him to come without you here."

"If he does, could you distract him?"

"How?"

I gave her a look. "I have no idea! Make it up!"

"I'll distract him with my rapping skills."

"Still on that?"

"Always."

I nearly ran to the bathroom, hoping the food would stay in my stomach. For some odd reason, I was freaking out. The bathroom door shut with a clang, and I sucked in huge breaths. I slid down the door, hoping the floor was clean. Thankfully, it was. I wouldn't want to change; I thought I looked okay in leggings and a nice shirt.

I listened intently to make sure he didn't come yet. I didn't want him stuck with Finlay. Who knew what she would tell him. Or rap to him. A males voice hit my ears, and my heart stopped. Was he here already?

I scrambled up from the ground. My hand was around the knob in an instant, but I didn't turn it right away. I didn't want to vomit on him.

The door opened up, and I found Scott standing next to Finlay. So far they hadn't seen me, and I took that chance to watch them. I knew Finlay still liked Scott, but I had no idea what he felt for her.

"How has she been?" Scott asked Fin.

I was not expecting that. I thought he was going to flirt like he always used to do with girls.

"Honestly?" Fin said and Scott nodded. "She hasn't been well. She tries to lie to me, but I see right through it. After you and Harry left, she threw herself into school."

I was offended. I knew I wasn't at tip top shape, but I was better than what she was implying. I didn't have breakdowns every day. I barely had them, actually.

"That's what I thought," Scott said, his head dropping slightly. Fin rested her hand on his arm, and I cursed her for that.

"But Joshua has brought something out of her that I haven't seen in a long time," Fin said quickly. "She has been happy. Really happy."

I was about to take a step in there when Fin brushed Scott's hair out of his face. I was really awkward standing there, but I couldn't interrupt that tender moment.

"Thank you for taking care of her," he whispered to her, but I still heard it.

"I would do anything for her."

Just as she started leaning in to him, the bell chimed. She jumped away, her eyes glancing at me. I held her gaze for a second before walking into the bakery. I smiled as Joshua took in my outfit; his eyes looked me up and down, and I felt the slight blush decorate my cheeks.

"What?" I asked him as his mouth dropped open.

"Nothing," he said. "You look . . ."

I glanced down at my outfit, instantly regretting the decision to wear leggings. They weren't stylish enough, they weren't -

"You look beautiful," he said softly. "Like an angel."

I smiled, glancing at his outfit. His jeans were nicer than normal and the sweater was a bit too stuffy. But he looked good in anything, so it didn't really matter.

Scott cleared his throat and said, "There are other people in here, you know."

Anger rushed through me so I was glad Finlay hit his arm. She turned to Joshua and said, "I expect her home by ten, okay?"

Joshua laughed. "Got it. Are you her mom?"

Finlay cracked a smile. "No. Her mom is currently taking a nap because she has a migraine."

"But I'm here," Scott said, stepping next to Finlay. "So you better make sure she comes home on time."

Joshua nodded, offering his arm to me with a smile. "My lady."

My smile must've been so big because Finlay gave me two thumbs up. As we started walking toward the door, I looked back and said, "Oh, and Fin? I need to talk to you when I get home." She looked horrified at that, but I didn't have time to see anything else because I was whisked outside.

"What car did you drive tonight? I know the Queen can't be fixed."

"I drove my parents' car," he said, opening the car door for me. "They weren't really happy, but they said it was fine."

I frowned. "Why weren't they happy?"

"My father said I was wasting my time." His jaw clenched so I grabbed his hand.

"Isn't he happy that you're happy?" I asked slowly. "You're not wasting your time. Well, with someone like me, you are. But doesn't he -"

"What do you mean, 'someone like you?'" he asked, glancing at me.

I shrugged, my mouth suddenly dry. He turned out of the bakery as I thought about my answer. "There are prettier girls out there. Curvier girls."

"What are you talking about?" he asked, slowing down to a stop. The light was red, and it bathed over the two of us.

"I'm not as pretty as Fin or Jamie or -"

"You are so beautiful," he said fiercely. He touched my face and said, "There is nothing I would change about you."

I shrugged. For some reason, tears pricked my eyes. No one had ever said that about me. "I mean, I don't see it like that, but you do you."

"What do you not like about yourself?" he asked softly. The light turned green, but he didn't go immediately. He was focused on me. I gestured to the light, and he went.

I closed my eyes. "My face is plain, you know? Like it's just brown eyes set against pale skin and red hair. That's it. Nothing about me stands out."

Finally opening my eyes, I glanced around to see the banks of the river. He turned to face me, and I saw the frown on his face. He reached out, his hands trailing over almost every inch of my face as he said, "I see it differently. Your face stands out against everyone else. Your eyes show how you're really feeling, Grace. They light up when you bake, and they dim every time you look at your brother. Your hair lights a fire in my soul. Everytime I see something red, I think it's you. Most of the time, it's not, but I always hope."

He fell silent so I risked a glance at him. He was looking at me with something in his eyes. "What do you have planned for tonight?" I asked, my throat tight.

He stared at me before saying, "The moon is full tonight, and I thought it would look pretty on the river."

"It's still a little cold . . ."

"That's why I brought a few of my sweatshirts and a blanket," he replied. Something landed on my lap, and I looked down to see a red sweatshirt.

"Thank you."

He got out and opened the car door for me. I stepped out and shivered. The sweatshirt was warm as I slipped it over my head. It was definitely way too big, but I didn't care. It smelled like him. I could live in that scent forever.

I watched as he unfurled a blanket on the sand. He looked at ease as he extended a hand toward me. I took it gratefully, and he pulled me down on the blanket.

"My mother wanted to meet you," he said as he wrapped another blanket around our shoulders.

"Really?" I asked, glancing up at him. He just shook his head at the hopeful tone in my voice.

"You don't want to meet her." His voice was dark and so were his eyes.

"Why?"

"She is so uptight," he muttered. "As you know, I have a curfew. And she puts this pressure on me to be a doctor. I don't want to be a doctor!"

I tried not to wince as he yelled the last phrase. I didn't think he noticed, though. Instead, I asked, "What do you want to be?"

"A teacher."

"Oh. What do you want to teach?"

"Something with history. I mainly want to be a track coach."

"I still don't understand how you could love running," I said, shaking my head. "That was honestly the thing I hated most when I took gym."

"You could try running with me," he suggested. "It might make it easier."

"No," I said, slightly smiling. "That's your thing. I have mine thing, and you can have your thing."

"What's your thing?"

"Baking," I said in a 'duh' tone. I focused my eyes on the water, allowing the light from the moon to ripple across my gaze. It was really relaxing, and that helped me form my next question without worry. "Tell me more about your mother."

"What do you want to know?"

"No idea."

He paused. "She is a good woman at heart, but she isn't a good mom. She let my brother and sister basically raise me."

"Why?" I asked.

"She is a lawyer, like my brother, and she was never home. This town is small, as you know, and her firm is in the town where the rest of our family is. She basically lived there my whole childhood."

"That's . . . not good," I said, struggling with my words.

"When we graduate, I'm going to go to college, and she'll realize what she did wrong when I don't come back."

"You don't mean that," I said, surprised at the tone of his voice. I couldn't imagine life without my mother. She was literally one of the most important people in my life.

"I seriously do."

"Joshua, she's your mother. She cares for you, even if she has a funny way of showing it. You have to forgive her because Christ won't forgive you."
"I don't care," he snapped. "She has hurt me so much, Grace."

"I'm sorry," I whispered, scooting away from him slightly. I thought about my father, about the hate that harbored in my chest. "We both need to forgive when people hurt us."

He sighed, scrubbing his hand across his handsome face. "I'm sorry for snapping."

I nodded, my eyes focused on the river again. The moon glinted on the water, and I could see our reflection. He was looking at me with his brows furrowed. He couldn't have been more handsome in the moonlight. I loved how the moon showed me things I never really noticed before.

"Grace, I'm sorry."

His arm wrapped around my shoulders, drawing me closer to him. I couldn't help but meld into his body. "I know," I whispered into his chest. It was time to tell him. "There's something I want to tell you."

"Yes?"

"My father called me last night."

"Oh. That's not good, is it?" he asked.

"Not really."

"Is this story time with Grace now?"

I laughed slightly. "Sort of."

"You don't sound happy."

"It's not a really fun subject."

"You don't have to tell me -"

"I want to, Joshua. I want you to know everything about me."

"No secrets?"

"No secrets." I paused, trying to gather my thoughts. I snuggled closer to Joshua, but I still kept my head a safe distance away. I didn't want to get my hopes up, especially when he didn't pull me any closer to him. "My mom and dad were so happy when I was little. Or that's what they wanted me to see."

"Parents always want what's best for their children," Joshua commented, even though he didn't see that with his mom.

"No interruptions please."

"Sorry."

"They fought nonstop. I don't think they even loved each other at the end of their relationship. Anyway, one night my dad took his anger out on me. I was doing something that I shouldn't have been doing, so he just started screaming at me." I took a shuddering breath. "That's when he lashed out. Every time he tried to hit me, he would scream the name Rebecca as if it was the thing he hated most. Thankfully, he didn't hit me. But Mom saw it and took me and Scott to her parents house. The next day Mom sat us down and said that they were getting a divorce."

"That's so bad," Joshua said softly.

"There's more." I closed my eyes so I could picture that time in my life better. "It was going so well, the court case was. Mom was going to get custody of the both of us, and Dad was going to move far away from us. But he threw a curve-ball. I don't really know what happened next, but he got custody of Scott and Mom got me. When I saw him before he left, he told me that he didn't want a screw-up."

"Screw-up?" Joshua asked. "What did you even do?"

"I don't really know." I shrugged. "He took my best friend away from me."

"If you're saying that your dad took Scott away, why are you angry at Scott? Shouldn't you be happy he's home?"

"He never called. He never texted. He never emailed. He never even wrote me letters. I didn't know if he was alive or not. He graduated from high school three years ago and never came to see us."

He nodded, taking that in. "I can see why you're angry."

"I hear a but coming."

"But you need to forgive them." I looked at him to see a small smile. "I sound exactly like you."

"Yeah," I whispered. I was silent after that, not really feeling good. A headache was working its way into my skull. Everything about my life seemed like it was going wrong, but here he was, proving me wrong. I didn't know why he was treating me like I was someone important. I didn't know why he wanted to spend time with me.

"What do you mean?" he asked, turning to face me.

I frowned, utterly confused as to why he asked that. "What?" I asked. "What are you talking about?"

He stared at me for a second. His eyes searched my face to make sure I was telling the truth. I definitely was telling the truth. "You must do this often," he finally said.

"Do what?" I asked. I was so confused when he started laughing. "What are you talking about?"

"You speak without even knowing you do," he explained. "You say things that are on your mind. You also talk in your sleep. A lot."

My face heated up. I thought I outgrew sleep talking when I was little. I just didn't realize I said things without knowing that often. "What'd I say when I talked in my sleep?" I asked hesitantly.

"Mainly it was nonsense," he said with a chuckle. "But once you muttered Drew's name."

My eyes went wide. I couldn't face him after he said that. Why would I say Drew's name? I wanted to know why, but I knew he wouldn't understand. Instead, I asked, "What did I say?"

"When?" he asked.

"A few minutes ago," I replied softly.

"You asked me why I was here with you." He touched my shoulder so I looked at him. "I don't know what you meant by that."

I sighed and shrugged. "I don't understand why you are even talking to me. There are other girls - prettier girls - at school who are chasing after you. But you're sitting here with me. Why?"

"Redheads are my weakness." His laugh reverberated in my ear, causing a small smile. "Honestly? You're the only one who can handle all my craziness. You're the only one who I let myself be truly me around. It's easy to be around you."

"Are you sure?" I whispered, meeting his eyes.

"Yes," he breathed out. "You've been such a great friend to me because you actually care."

That ruined my mood. I let myself believe that he cared about me more than I thought, but he referred to me as a friend. How could I allow myself to believe such a thing? He only wanted me for a friendship. But what about when we kissed?

"Yeah," I said softly. "You're a great friend, too."

He nodded, his eyes cloudy. He looked like he wanted to say something more, but he pressed his lips into a thin line. He looped his arm around my shoulder and drew me closer to him. He was so warm.

"Grace," he whispered.

"What?" I asked quietly.

Instead of answering, he cupped my cheek with his hand. I was so shocked because he had just called me his friend. He rested his forehead against mine and closed his eyes, exhaling. "I know it's hard having your brother home," he whispered. "If you need anything, I'll be there for you."

"Thank you."

"It's getting late." His eyes flashed open, startling me. "I better get you home."

"Yeah."

We didn't move an inch. He called me a friend, yet he was looking at me like I was so much more than that. I was so confused about him.