A WEEKLATER
Jade digsher toe into my shoulder, and I look up, finding her dressed and ready for the day. Crap, what time is it? “Dude, it’s been like a week. What are you goingtodo?”
“I don’t know,” I mutter, wiping the drool frommychin.
“You have to be getting uncomfortable on myfloor.”
“Well, you won’t let me snuggle with you,” I say, turning awayfromher.
“And you won’t let me make out with Cleary in private here, so we’re even.” She has a point. I can’t deal with the dog-licking-privates sound. “Are you meeting with Sterling thismorning?”
“Idon’tknow.”
“Okay, that’s it.” Jade grabs me by the arms and pulls me off the ground, falling backward with me onto her bed. “Have you been eating rocksthisweek?”
“Why can’t you just leave me heretorot?”
“I don’t want anything rotting on my floor,” Jadereplies.
I twist my head and look at her with half-lidded eyes. “Shutup.”
“Get up and get in the shower, please, for the love of God. Then, get your butt down to the beach and talk to Sterling. He’s expecting you, remember?” Through a certain third-party person who has her nose in everyone’s business—Jade—I agreed to meet Sterling this morning, but now I don’twantto.
“I changed my mind aboutmeetinghim.”
“No, you’re going to go hear what he has to say. I said so,” she says,sternly.
Well then, if she said so, I suppose I have no choice but to listen to the scary version of Jade. I’ll let her think I’m going because she’s being demanding, but I do want to hear what he has to say, I think. Jade pushes me up to my feet, and I trudge over to the bathroom to take a shower because it has, in fact, been a few days. I’m bored out of my mind without a job. It’s been raining and kind of chilly almost every day this week, so it hasn’t been hard to camp out here. Plus, it makes avoidance much easier. Sam dropped off my phone earlier in the week. She told me to take a few days to reconsider coming back but asked me to let her know by the end of the day today. I guess Liam has been picking up the extra slack. Good. Extra time with his long-lost brother. That’s exactly what heneeds.
I shower and tie my hair up, refusing to look at my miserable reflection before leaving the apartment. As if I weren’t already in my own personal hell, the sun nearly burns my eyes after being inside for so many days. It’s like I have perma-hangover, but I haven’t had a thing to drink since that stupidparty.
I need coffee before breakfast and since Sterling should be at the stupid beach, he won’t be at the stupid bakery. Stupid ass. I pull up front, happy I don’t see his stupid Jeep. Stupid, stupid,stupid.
Walking in, I’m thrilled there’s no line, and I place my order with the happy girl who has sunshine pouring out of her eyes.Dude, you’re working at seven in the morning.What’s there to be happy about? She hands me my coffee and pastry, which I carry over to the cream and sugar stand, fixing up my large cup ofcaffeine.
“I knew it,” I hear. Noooo. Why?Because that is how ironyworks.
I turn around, finding Sterling with a serious look stemming from the straight line drawn across his lips. “Thought you were going to be at the beach?” Iaskhim.
“You’re always late, so I figured I had time forcoffee.”
“Always?” I argue. “We went outtwice.”
“That would be consideredalways.”
“What do you have to say? You can save me a trip to the beach,” Itellhim.
“I wanted to say I wassorry.”
“Well, now you’ve said it. Feelbetter?”
“No,” he huffs. He takes my arm and drags me outside and in between the two store fronts where some tables are lined against the walls. “Look, Liam and I have been friends for a while, okay? And I’m sure you’ve noticed there aren’t a whole ton of young women who live here during the summer season, so it isn’t unusual to cross paths with the same crowd. Liam has a cold personality and comes off a little strong, so anytime we’ve been interested in the same girl, they’ve usually swayed more to my side. It wasn’t technically a game, but I know it’s always pissed him off.” I want to say it’s Liam’s fault for being a dick to so many people and that Sterling is right in this situation. “But it wasn’t like that with you. I reallylikedyou.”
“Meaning you didn’t just want a one-night stand with me to add another notch to yourbedpost?”
He looks a bit taken aback by this accusation, seeing how little I do know about him, but I sort of went off of what Liam said, even though I shouldn’t exactly be believing anything anyone has said to me. “I would have said it kind of differently,butyeah.”
“Thanks for your honesty.” I can’t help rolling my eyes as I drown his voice out with the steaming first sip ofcoffee.
