I wasn’t sure where their sudden vote of confidence came from, but I sure wished I could feel it on any level. “I’m going to go, then.” My face twisted just like my stomach. It had started as an attempt at a brave smile, but it definitely felt more like a grimace.
“Relax,” Josh said. “Or you know, try to at least.”
“Right. Super helpful.” I turned toward the door. Every step felt like marching toward the gallows, but at least I knew an end to my torture was in sight—if I didn’t puke before I reached my fate.
I opened the door to leave my apartment and jumped back. Standing on the other side with a raised fist that had clearly been about to knock and a nervous expression on his face was Grey.
“Oh.” Heat rushed to my cheeks, and I struggled to find something to say. I’d thought I would have the ten minutes it took to get to his place to figure out how the hell to begin this conversation. “Hi.”
Chapter 26
Dtr
“Hi,” he echoed, a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. “You busy?”
“You ignored my text,” I said, refusing to succumb to him so easily, though every cell in my body urged me to run into his arms. “A lot of them, actually.”
“I know.” He rubbed the back of his neck, looking annoyingly cute and ashamed at the same time. “I’m sorry.”
Any anger I’d harbored up until this point evaporated. I couldn’t stay mad at him. Not when he looked like a kicked puppy.
“I was just on my way to your place to demand answers,” I said.
The hint of a smile was back. “Good plan. Very direct.”
“So, what now?” I asked.
“Well, if you’re free,” Grey said. “And you’re hungry, we could go get some food.”
He was suddenly shy again.Jeez, his emotions are all over the place right now.It made me even more curious as to what the fuck was going on.
“That sounds… acceptable.” I ignored the snorts of laughter from Kellan and Josh. I knew I would get hell for my word choice later.Whatever.“I’ll be back,” I called over my shoulder.
I heard them making jokes at my expense as I shut the door behind me. A chill ran through my spine that had very little to do with the cold. Now that I stood next to Grey, I felt much like I had that first time I’d run into him at that bar a lifetime ago—completely out of my depth.
He looked better than ever after the break. He’d gotten a haircut and some sun, but I’d somehow forgotten how his brown eyes glistened mischievously in the lights and how the corners of his mouth crinkled when he fought the urge to smile. Or how he looked at me with so much longing that it took my breath away.
“After you.” He gestured after a quiet moment.
I led the way out of my apartment building. “Where are we going?” I asked, realizing I had no destination in mind.
“Linda’s.”
I raised an eyebrow at that. Linda’s was one of the nicer establishments on campus. It was typical American food, but the restaurant had been decorated with social media in mind, so they could charge more.
“My treat,” he added.
“Linda’s it is.”
We walked to Linda’s mostly in silence, chatting about the inconsequential parts of our holidays. Anytime I thought about broaching the topic of what was weighing on both of our minds, a group of students would pass, whispering to each other or giggling or taking pictures of us.
It wasn’t the environment to have any sort of heavy conversation. It wasn’t even really the conditions I would want to have an unimportant conversation. So, yeah, most of the walk had been silent while onlookers gawked.
I was gritting my teeth by the time we arrived at the restaurant. Grey must’ve sensed my stress because he gave my arm a comforting squeeze as he opened the door for me to enter.
Inside was much calmer. Only a few tables were taken. The people back on campus were more likely to be getting ready to go to bars or house parties than sitting down for an expensive dinner. Actually, Linda’s was only really busy when parents and their deep pockets were in town. It was a miracle that they could keep the doors open the rest of the year.
We were seated, and we waited until the waiter had taken our order—I forgot what I ordered as soon as the words left my mouth—before we even tried to talk about the swollen elephant in the room.
