Right. This. And now we were going sixty miles an hour and I couldn’t escape their questions. Pulling the dad card was a low blow. Because I knew they cared, and caring was harder to say no to than mere curiosity.
I blew out a long breath. They stared. I stared right back. I picked up the warmed Tootsie Roll from where Noah had abandoned it and rolled it between my fingers, pressing on the chocolate until there was a soft dent in the middle. And then I just… caved. It wasn’t like I had anything to lose by telling them anyway. “I’m not loving my new roommate. But I don’t know how to get her out.”
“Whose name is on the lease?” Sadie asked.
“Both. We signed a new one last weekend, with the condition that neither of us were responsible for the other half of the rent. The landlord has the right to boot us individually for non-payment. I wasn’t really thinking about problems beyond her not paying.”
Noah looked stoic. And I knew what he was thinking. It had been stupid to sign a lease with a stranger. I knew thatnow. But at the time, a six month lease hadn’t seemed all that long.
“What’s this roommate doing?” Dan asked. “Is she a partier? Is that why you’re so tired?”
Here came the part I didn’t want to get into. Because I had given up after three days, and who does that? Maybe I should just give it a full week and stop freaking out about it. Yes, that’s what I would do. I could find a new apartment later. I’d be fine.
“It’s no big deal, guys. My lease is only for six months. I think I just need to give this thing time.”
The car was silent for several seconds.
“No.” Noah reached over and took my hand. “No, I don’t accept that. You said your roommate wanders at night. And she hit you. And she slept in your bed.”
“What?” Sadie glanced back at me in horror. “Oh, heck no. We’re going over there right now. I’d like to meet this roommate of yours.”
“Me too,” Dan growled.
Noah squeezed my hand. “Me too.”
“No, you guys can’t do that.”
“Why not?” Sadie raised one eyebrow.
“Because…” Dang it, I had nothing. “Don’t you all have lives of your own to worry about?”
“Not really.” Sadie said, with no embarrassment about it.
“I’ve got time.” The way Noah looked at me as he said it, I knew he was about to get stubborn. I was his unfinished business. That’s what his eyes were saying. But I wasn’t buying that. I took my hand back. He didn’t have the right to hold my hand whenever he wanted to, even as a gesture of friendship. We were not touchy-feely friends. It was a new rule, and I’d be telling him about it as soon as we were alone. Not that I planned to be alone with him… What were we talking about? Right. People having lives.
“Dan has plenty of other things to do,” I pointed out.
He sniffed. “I’ll only back out if these two are absolutely going.”
“Oh, we’re going.” Sadie’s eyes met mine in the rearview mirror. “So, what exactly do you mean by wanders at night? Like wanders the neighborhood?”
And that was how I ended up telling them the whole story, box forts and all. And like the show-stealer he was, Denver called just as I was getting to the part that included him. I put him on speaker phone and watched the veins in Noah’s neck pulse, especially when Denver said he was on his way home from work and wanted to come along.
Sadie ignored my protests about getting my car first, so we dropped Dan off at his house and drove straight over to my apartment. I think Sadie was afraid I’d back out, and she had a right to be worried. I already wasn’t sure what I would find when we got there, and now I was bringing along spectators.
Chapter 15 – Noah
Jenny hated my jealousy. She said it made me a bad friend. And that was the only thing keeping me from ripping Denver’s arms off. Their greeting hug was reaching indecent levels. How long did one hug need to be anyway?
Sadie nudged me. “I know he’s twice your size, but I think you could take him. You’re scrappy. He’s all… show.”
“He’s not twice my size. How short do you think I am?” But I understood what she meant. He had showy muscles, not the type you got from a life of hard labor, but from a really motivating workout playlist and a weight set.
Jenny finally pulled away and hugged herself, as if it hadn’t been enough for her and she was already missing it. I looked away the moment her eyes met mine. She said they were only friends, and supposedlywewere only friends, and until one of those things changed, I’d just have to be patient. But if she was handing out hugs like that to mere friends, I’d be asking for one of those later.
“You’re only here to observe,” Jenny reminded us as she led the way up to her apartment. “I’m just going to do a quick check on my stuff. And maybe Clarissa and I can work things out. After all, she didn’t sleepwalk the first two nights, I think. Maybe last night was a fluke.”
“You have options.” I reminded her.
