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this before?” I asked her as I traced the column of her neck down to her chest and ending at her bellybutton, where I toyed with the hem of her shirt.
    “Yes.”
    I should have been relieved—I mean, having sex with a virgin is not the best, because really, how could you enjoy yourself when you know you’re hurting the girl ?— but I was mostly angry with myself. “That should have been me.”
    I didn’t know I’d said that aloud until she said, “I wanted it to be you.” Her face was all regret and tenderness.
    I touched her cheek. “I’m sorry.” She closed her eyes and leaned into my palm. That one little move made my heart hurt. “I love you so much,” I whispered.
    “I love you too, Henry,” she said, her eyes remaining closed. “I have since forever.”
    I was unable to move, afraid that if I did, the spell would be broken and she’d jump up and take those words back. I couldn’t have that.
    Elsie loved me. Me. Henry Logan. Me. The dickhead who’d made her life miserable.
    Me.
    I opened my mouth to say something—hell, I didn’t know what, I only knew that something needed to be said to cement the moment, but the next thing I knew, she had fallen asleep, her face still cradled in my hand. So I carefully pulled the covers out from under her and tucked her in, my entire body still warm from her words. It didn’t matter that we weren’t going to make love that night. She loved me and I loved her—we would get to it eventually.
    For now, the most important thing had been established. She loved me too.
    I pressed a kiss to her forehead and closed the door behind me, making sure to hang a sock on the knob so that people wouldn’t come in the room.
    The next morning, I woke up and Elodie was in our living room with a trash bag, picking up empty plastic cups. “Good morning, Henry,” she said much too loudly.
    I sat up from the couch and promptly lay back down again. My brain was pounding the beat of a thousand magnified drums.
    “Looks like you boys had a great time,” the Colonel said, coming from the kitchen with a broom.
    “You guys don’t have to clean up,” I said with an outstretched arm. “Really.”
    My bedroom door opened and Elsie came shuffling out, looking fresher than she had any right to be. “Morning,” she said and kissed her mom on the cheek.
    “Did you have fun at the party?” Elodie asked.
    Elsie nodded. “Yeah,” she said then her eyes found me. “Thanks for letting me crash on your bed.”
    The night flashed before my eyes, from the kiss and how close I’d come to making love to her, but mostly to her confession of love. “You’re welcome,” I said, giving her a meaningful look.
    She only shot me a confused look and turned away.
    The Shermans took Elsie back to their hotel while Jason and I cleaned up. We all met up for lunch at a Denny’s afterwards. I was dying to talk to Elsie in private, but we didn’t have a chance to be alone. Finally, I pulled her aside as we were all headed to our cars.
    “Do you remember what happened last night?” I asked her quickly.
    “No,” she said, shaking her head. “I can’t remember anything past that beer pong game.”
    My stomach dropped to my feet. “So you don’t remember what you said to me last night?”
    Her eyebrows drew together as she looked at me. For one moment, I thought she might remember, but she just shook her head. “No. What was it?”
    I kicked at the ground as I let her go. “It was nothing. You just said you were proud of me.”
    She grinned, punching me in the arm. “I am.”
    Jason and I took them to the airport. I watched her going through the security gate with a glob of disappointment lodged in my belly. I had foolishly thought that that was our time but even though I didn’t see it then, I know now it was for the best. I don’t know how we would have made it work; she was in L.A. and I was getting sent to Randolph Air Force Base in San Antonio for training, and then after that, who