“Come on, mate. What do you take me for? It’s obvious.”
Was I that obvious?
Of course I was. I was infatuated with her. Completely smitten. One hundred percent obsessed. Had I not messaged everyone in our friend group practically begging them to bring her to this thing?
“We’re not even... I’m not even her boyfriend.”
“What difference does that make? I see how you are with her. She’s different from the other ones. You care about her.”
“Of course I care about her, but you don’t just go around throwing out the L word like that.”
He shrugged. “You should tell her.”
I grunted. “I can’t. She’s skittish already. Besides, I wouldn’t even know where to start. How do you tell someone something like that?”
“I let it slip when I was shagging Liv in the back seat of a car.”
I stared at him blankly for a moment before barking out a loud laugh. I really shouldn’t be surprised. Olivia always did bring out Jack’s wild side.
“Alright, Cyrano. How does that help me?”
“My point is, it doesn’t always matter how or when you tell her, only that youdotell her.”
I shook my head. “That’s shit advice, man.”
“What was it you told me when Olivia and I were having issues and I didn’t have the bollocks to call her?” he asked, eyebrow raised in challenge.
“I don’t remember.”
“Sure, you do. You said, ‘don’t be a pussy.’ And look at us now,” he said, gesturing between himself and Liv who had found a seat next to him.
“It’s not the same thing,” I muttered.
“Look,” he said, voice low, “if you want this to go anywhere with Eve, then you’re going to have to talk to her about your feelings. Otherwise, it’s just meaningless sex.”
I gritted my teeth. “It’s not meaningless.”
“Then don’t be a pussy, and tell her that, mate. For all she knows, it’s meaningless to you. And perhaps that’s your answer as to why she was dodging you. If you want to keep her, then stop being a wanker.”
“You sound like Nora.” I blew out a heavy sigh. “Fine. I’ll try it your way.”
“Good man,” he said, patting me on the shoulder and getting up to grab another beer and a plate of food.
I would tell Eve. Soon.
Just not tonight.
I had to find the courage first.
Ithoughtshe felt the same way I did, but I wasn’t sure. And the possibility of me being wrong, professing my feelings, and then fucking up what I had with her left me feeling queasy.
Ben Ruins Everything
Eve
EveryonewascrowdedintoBen’s living room, which was relatively spacious by Manhattan standards, but with all our friends gathered together, it felt smaller.
I stayed in the kitchen tidying up, so I could avoid Ben as much as possible. I knew he had used the phone call with his coworker to make me jealous on purpose. He got some sort of sick pleasure seeing me spiral into a jealous rage.
