The Best of Fools (Jane Austen Book 2) by Marilyn Grey Page A

bother me.
    Donovan and Zoe curled up on the floor and watched a movie on his iPad while Autumn and I unpacked the stuff for my room. I didn't have a bed yet, but I hoped to change that with an Ikea visit tomorrow.
    We set up my sewing corner in silence until Autumn interrupted. "Um." She pointed to a large box beside the table. "I didn't even know you wore makeup, much less an entire box full."
    "Whoa." I picked it up. "Totally not mine. Ever. How could someone own this much makeup? I mean, what are you trying to hi—"
    Autumn shook her hands as she looked over my shoulder.
    I mouthed, "She's standing behind me," then turned around to face her.
    "I'm not trying to hide anything." She smiled and tossed her hair behind her shoulder. "Just accentuating my already beautiful features." She snapped her fingers. "Donovan, sweetie, could you put this box in my room for me?"
    His footsteps already echoed off the stairs as I walked by her and said, "I'll take care of it. My joints hurt, but what the hell."
    This was going to be a long, long summer.
    I set the box down as she entered with Donovan kissing her neck as he walked behind her. Sickening. Even my parents knew where to draw the line.
    I brushed by them again and an odd image of Alistair's face inching toward me took over my mind. I should've kissed him.
    "But then it would've been more complicated," I said to myself.
    Autumn said something.
    I stared at the corner where the ceiling met the walls. "And I don't need complications."
    "Are you talking to yourself again?"
    I tuned back to her. "What?"
    "So weird."

Chapter 9
    So my original plans never work out. I was beginning to think maybe I should stop planning anything at all. Not that I'd be able to resist the beauty of my calendar, but still. The plan was to go to Ikea. Alone. Then to come back and put furniture together. Alone. Like a total single woman who enjoyed being a single woman and using single woman screwdrivers while screaming at the Ikea instruction manuals and wondering why, why, why they made everything so complicated.
    But here I was. Standing in the middle of an array of Ikea couches. With Donovan and Zoe making out on the one I liked. The one I wanted to sit on until now. Okay, so they weren't making out, but man ... couldn't they go one-point-seven seconds without running their hands through each other's hair?
    Sheesh.
    I penciled in the number of the couch and walked away, like a third wheel who wanted to be a unicycle. Completely content in my unicycledom. But they realized I left and came after me.
    They whispered and laughed behind me as I searched for a bed, wondering why I agreed to let them come with me.
    Donovan sat on a bed and pulled Zoe onto his lap.
    "Guys, seriously?" I looked around me. "There are people here. People who don't want to see a make out fest during their Saturday shopping sprees."
    Oblivious. Completely oblivious. That's it , I thought as I scurried away to the tent in the bedroom section for kids and hid inside. I figured they'd pass me and I could wait until all was clear, then go back to the bedroom section in peace. Good thing we drove separately. They could actually leave if they wanted to. I hoped they'd want to.
    I pulled my knees to my chest and peeked out of the tent again as a mother and her two kids came toward me. Oh, great. The woman squeezed her eyebrows together and snatched her kids away, enveloping them in her arms as she moved them to the next section while glaring over her shoulder at me.
    "What?" I whispered. "Not that big of a deal."
    I heard Zoe's giggle coming around the corner, so I waited a few seconds and checked.
    "Hey." Zoe pointed. "There she is."
    Donovan linked his hand with hers and walked toward me. I closed my eyes.
    Only me.
    "What are you doing?" Donovan tapped the top of the tent and leaned down to look inside. "This is the kids section."
    "I know," I grumbled. "Was thinking of getting this for when you stay over."
    He smiled. "No, really, what