"Yeah, but why all weird?" Whit asked.
"Something scared him off," Sophia said as she somehow got back onto her feet from her position on the ground. That girl could do anything in heels.
"What?" Whit asked.
I shrugged. I had no idea.
"But he wanted to kiss me, Whit," I said.
Sophia came to stand right beside where I sat before saying, "He wanted to kiss her, Whit!"
Sophia grabbed my hands and pulled me off the couch to spin me in a circle before letting me sit back down.
"I had to do that. I've been waiting for this day for so long!" Sophia said. Then she added, "Well, I've been waiting for the day Easton actually kisses you, but that's got to be soon, right?"
I nodded until I caught sight of the wary look on Whit's face.
"What?" I asked Whit.
She shook her head. "Nothing. This is good news. Great news," she said with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
"What, Whit?" I asked again because I knew there was more.
"I just think you need to know what scared Easton off. That's all," Whit said, and I agreed with her.
"But it can't have been that big, right?" Sophia asked, and I had to agree with her too. It was the exact same thing I'd been thinking.
"Precisely. And I need him to forget whatever it was that was keeping us apart. That's why I want to come up with a grand gesture. Something that tells Easton exactly how I feel," I said with a shy smile. I knew a grand gesture wasn't really me, but it was totally Easton. And I liked the idea since I'd been timid for so long. But I was sick of it. I wanted a grand gesture to be me. And now it would be.
"Genius," Sophia said as she went back to the kitchen to grab her coffee and a chocolate covered donut. The woman had the metabolism of a teenage boy. I knew she would probably polish off the bag of six donuts I brought, maybe leaving one for Whit, and then still be ready for lunch in a few hours.
Whit nodded slowly as I watched her mull my idea over.
"What do you think, Whit?" I asked. I needed both women on board. This was too scary to do without the backing of my dearest friends.
"It definitely screams Easton," Whit said, and then she paused as she bit on her lip. "But maybe a grand gesture isn't quite what you guys are ready for? Maybe something a little ..."
I knew the word Whit was looking for was safer. Whit was always about playing it safe. Which I didn't blame her for. She'd been burned by everyone who should have cared about her. Her alcoholic dad, her first love who’d insisted she was too good for him so left her behind. Even her mother had died a few years ago, leaving Whit practically alone in the world. The last one wasn't her mom's fault, but it had still strengthened Whit's resolve to be careful with her heart.
"Nope, nope, nope," Sophia said. "Now is not the time for safe," Sophia insisted around a mouthful of donut. "It's the time for action. Men hardly know what they're thinking on the best of days. In a moment like this one? Easton will need a huge push in the right direction."
I looked back at Whit.
"He jumps off of cliffs for a living, Whit. Easton does nothing safe," Sophia added.
Whit began to nod. "She's right," Whit said, and Sophia beamed a chocolatey smile before licking her lips and teeth clean of the mess.
"Really?" I asked Whit who nodded with assurance.
"So what are you going to do?" Whit asked as Sophia grabbed another donut and then headed for the back of the apartment.
"Just speak loudly. I have to finish my makeup," Sophia said.
I smiled before turning to Whit, and we both headed toward the bathroom where Sophia stood next to her white claw foot tub in front of the mirror.
"Aw, thanks girls," Sophia said as she shoved the second half of her second donut into her mouth and then grabbed her eyelash curler.
"You didn't answer Whit's question," Sophia said as she paused after curling one set of lashes.
"It's because I don't have an answer yet," I said, looking at Whit.
"Oh, you want ideas," Whit said, and I nodded.
"Hm," Whit murmured between pressed lips as she walked into the bathroom to sit on the edge of the tub. I opted for leaning against the doorframe.
"Maybe a hot air balloon ride?" Sophia asked as she put away her eyelash curler and then went into the drawer for her mascara.
"And then what?" I asked.
"You tell Easton how you feel just as the sun is beginning to rise," Sophia said with her free hand up in the air, telling me she shouldn't have had to give an explanation.
"Romantic for sure," I said, and Whit nodded.
"But not exactly Easton's style," Whit added, and this time I nodded.
"A hot air balloon ride is everyone's style," Sophia argued as she paused with her mascara wand in the air.
"It's an option," I said to appease Sophia, but I really couldn't imagine Easton in a hot air balloon. Unless he was going to get to jump out of it at some point.
"Fine," she muttered. "What about a band?"
"A band?" Whit asked with an eyebrow raised.
"Have them play your song and then tell Easton," Sophia said before she started on her second eye.
"Do you have a song?" Whit asked.
I shook my head and then stopped. "We do love to dance to YMCA," I said.
Sophia shook her head. "Nope," she said as she swiped her lashes with mascara.
"What about something while you guys are climbing?" Whit asked, and I turned my attention to my friend who was working hard to balance on the skinny ledge of the tub.
That could work.
"What when we're climbing?" I asked.
"A skywriter," Sophia said, dropping her mascara on the counter and clasping her hands together. "You could have an airplane write, Easton love me, in the air."
My body shook as I tried to suppress a chuckle.
"Okay, maybe the wording could be worked on," Sophia said, and Whit nodded dramatically as if she couldn't agree more.
"What if I surprise Easton with a trip to someplace we've always dreamed of and give it to him while we're climbing? We've always wanted to go to Yosemite together, but we've never gotten around to it. I'll tell him how I feel and—"
"And then pull the tickets out in a dramatic fashion," Sophia said as she swiped on some blush. "I love it! Not as much as the skywriting, but you know."
I grinned at her and then looked at Whit behind me.
"A trip sounds very Easton," she said, and I nodded.
"I think he'll love it," she added.
I looked from Whit back to Sophia. "I'm scared," I finally admitted, and Sophia nodded as if she understood. Whit's eyes held enough concern for the both of us.
"But at this point, I think I'm more scared of what will happen if I don't say anything. I have to take a chance because I think Easton is ready for this."
"For a relationship?" Sophia asked.
I nodded. "Hopefully with me. And if I don't throw my hat in the ring, I'll always regret it," I said.
It was when Whit nodded in agreement with me that I knew I could do this.