They already knew Shirley from before, and everyone could tell she meant no harm.
Cindy, on the other hand, was a whole different story. She and Claire were on totally opposite sides. Who would believe they could actually have fun hanging out?
Claire shook her head. "Let's not. We barely even know each other. Eating together would just feel weird." Her words hit York and the others like a slap. They used to be so close. Now she was acting like they were strangers.
York just looked at Lance, saying nothing. Lance stared right at Claire. "Come on, it's just dinner. Relax. No one's going to hurt you. Look, I messed up before, and my mom just got super worried. Now that we were graduated, there's no reason to keep holding grudges, right?"
Claire met his gaze without flinching. “Is that really what's going on here?" She didn't back down at all. "Lance, stop trying to get close to me. Do you think I'm that easy? Honestly, you should worry more about your own family. You've got enough problems at home, so why are you still chasing after girls?"
Most people would probably think their meeting was a coincidence. But Claire could tell from one look that Lance had followed her on purpose. She'd already turned him down once and had been clear about it. If he kept pestering her, it was just getting ridiculous.
"You should know your place," Claire said, her voice cool and steady. The comment made Lance's face fall. So what, was he not even allowed to pursue her now? He was just a regular guy, and she wasn't the James family's daughter anymore. Why couldn't he like her or try to win her over?
Claire saw how stubborn he was acting and just laughed. "You don't actually believe that just because you like me, I'll get desperate and suddenly want to be with you,
do you?"
Lance's expression darkened. Clearly, she'd hit the nail on the head.
“Don't think I haven't figured out what you're planning,” Claire continued, shrugging. "I've just never bothered to say it out loud. Anyway, eating together doesn't make sense. We'll each do our own thing."
Claire called to her friends, scooped up her bag of fruit, and sauntered away, totally unbothered. Lance was left standing there, looking embarrassed and out of place.
A little while later, he suddenly told everyone he couldn't make the business trip after all, telling York to take Cindy out for some fun instead. He even wired Cindy a bunch of spending money, nearly $20,000.
Cindy thought Lance really had work matters to deal with, so she was pretty understanding. Only York watched Lance walk away, a thoughtful look on his face.
What was really happening between Lance and Claire?
Since they were there anyway and Cindy wanted to see Montara, York figured they might as well go. But the whole ride over, he couldn't stop thinking about why Lance had even, come in the first place. The way he changed plans right after meeting Claire-it didn't add up. Was he really there for work, or just because of her?
Cindy already knew how much Lance liked Claire, but she hadn't realized this entire trip had been planned just for her sake. And
thinking about how York used to be
Claire's fiancé made her feeb
unsettled too.
"Lance is really good to Claire," Cindy said, a touch of something in her voice. She didn't say he liked her, but it was obvious.
York shrugged. “They argued a lot back then. Their relationship didn't seem that
great, honestly.” He remembered all the sibling spats from before.
"Maybe they only fought when other people were around. I think they actually get along pretty well when it's just the two of them. Last time Lance thought Claire had nowhere else to go, he gave her his apartment key and tried to get her to stay there. You know, the place I'm living in right now."
York just responded with a quiet “Hmm.”
"Have you ever thought about setting Lance and Claire up? That way you'd all still
be family, and the parents wouldn't complain.” His eyes went wide, as if the idea had only just occurred to him.
"Why would I want to do that?" she surprised by his words.