Sweet Til It Burns

A Friendsgiving Romance

The Love Cynics Anonymous Series

By L.M. Bennett

PJ's crush has a crush on someone else, and she's not ok about it.

Some things take years. Some things take one Friendsgiving and too much wine.

Look, I’ve been in love with Hollis Cochran since college. Which is a problem, because she’s my brother’s best friend, she hosts a podcast about Black queer joy, and she’s been rotating through girlfriends like a Spotify playlist while I’ve been over here stress-baking and pretending I don’t memorize the sound of her laugh.

Then she goes on her show and confesses she’s been wanting someone she can’t have for years. Someone she’s been too scared to ask for. Someone she’s orbiting because actually going for it would ruin everything.

Cool. Great. Love that for her. Definitely not thinking about who that might be while I’m elbow-deep in mac and cheese prep.

It’s Friendsgiving. My tiny Brooklyn kitchen is about to be full of friends, chaos, and Hollis actually showing up for the first time in months. Which means I’ve got approximately six hours to get my feelings under control before someone notices I’ve been pining like it’s a full-time job.

Spoiler: I fail. Spectacularly.