Switched: Flirt New Adult Romance by Cassie Mae Page B

heart out. I turned everything annoying about him into something irresistible! Maybe theater can be my major.
    Only bad thing about having a Wesley conversation before bed? Now I’m picturing his face and not Talon’s. Boo. Maybe I’ll pull out my phone and stare at the beautiful boy, all red and snow-covered, till I fall asleep.

Step 11:
Ignore the Guilt You Feel When You Touch Him
    (Or when he touches you.)
    “So, you like the jacket I wear, huh?”
    I’m going to kill Reagan. “You know I said all of that for your benefit.”
    Wesley snorts. “Well, now she thinks you have a thing for me.”
    “What?”
    “Hey, if my friend talked to me for an hour about how my jacket fits—what was it she said? Oh, that it ‘fits him so well, you want to slip your hands underneath it to make sure he’s real’—I’d start thinking that too.”
    “You’re such an ass. When are you guys getting here so I can kick your butt in person?”
    “Can’t wait to see me in my jacket?”
    “Wesley …”
    He laughs into the phone, and I pull it away so he doesn’t burst my eardrum. “We’ll be there probably around five or six. We’re about to get back on the road.”
    Six hours left before Reagan gets here. Time to pull out the big guns. I’ve had a very successful few days alone with Talon, but we’re still in the same spot. Talon’s a hard guy to read. He gets real close and then pulls away like nothing happened. At first I thought it was in my head, but no. It happens
all the time
. What does that mean? Is he just one of those people who likes to talk at close range, or does he want to be close to me?
    “You should take your time,” I say through a smile, then yank on my pink cowl-neck sweater, maneuvering my phone through the sleeve hole. “Talon and I are shopping for your presents today.”
    “And you want to drag that out?”
    “I don’t want to rush it. And if you guys get here too soon, I’ll end up getting you a crappy gift. So it’s in your best interest to make a lot of pit stops.”
    “It takes you six hours to shop?”
    “Today it will.”
    “You know Talon hates shopping.”
    “Well, I’m providing food too.”
    “You’re going to need more than that.”
    “Are you suggesting anything?”
    “Speed-shop, then do something that’s not boring as hell.”
    “Ass.”
    “Just trying to help out.”
    Yeah, right. If anything, he’s making me more nervous. Like he doesn’t think I’m doing anything right. They need a punch feature in the iPhone.
    “What do you want, by the way?”
    “Huh?”
    “For Christmas. I have no idea what to get you.”
    He pauses, and I think he’s eating or something, because his voice comes out kind of funny. “You’re buying me a present?”
    “Didn’t you hear me before? I don’t want to get you something crappy.”
    “I thought you meant Talon was getting something for me, not you.”
    Why is he making this a big deal? He’s my friend too. “Will you just tell me?”
    He pauses again. “I—I’ll have to think about it.”
    “Well, you’re almost out of time. If you don’t text me in an hour, you’re going to have to deal with whatever I find at the mall.”
    “Yeah, okay.” He lets out a sigh. “Um, Kayla?”
    “Wesley?” I tease.
    “Please don’t spend a lot on mine, okay?”
    My wallet will appreciate that. But I did save up for gifts this year. Last year was tight since my parents were still dealing with hospital bills and I was working my ass off to get into Berkeley after Talon and Reagan both got accepted. So the only friend I got a gift for was Reagan. Anyway, it’s not like I knew the guys that well. But this year, yeah, they both need a gift. I wonder what Wesley thinks is a lot. I swing my purse over my shoulder and tuck a pack of gum in my back pocket. “I wasn’t planning on it.”
    Total lie, because I have no idea what I was planning for him.
    “Good.”
    “I’m heading out. See you later tonight.”
    “Yup. And