Alec smiles, his lips lifting a little more on the left than the right, just like they always did. “Hey, nerd.” His voice is a low and delicious rumble, sending a wave of goosebumps skittering across my skin. It’s not a wonder Juno loves it so much. Then it registers that Alec just called me nerd. It’s a nickname I earned my freshman year of high school when I took a history textbook to one of Alec’s hockey games. Hearing it now brings an unexpected sense of home to an afternoon that, so far, has pushed me completely out of my comfort zone. I’m a stranger to North Carolina, even to Ruth, as
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