Kai chokes on a mouthful of food.
“Jamie,” Mrs. Nelson scolds.
Grandma Nelson coaxes me back to my seat, but I wriggle away.
Kai swallows, coughing roughly. “Excuse me?”
“I guess I should’ve known,” I say coldly. “Anyone who thinks running into a drawer is hardcore can’t be that badass.”
A mixture of confusion and realizations morphs and contorts his face.
“Forget this,” I mutter, leaving the dining room and escaping upstairs.
In Milo’s bedroom, I flop down on the bed, letting an angry noise sizzle out of me. Kai has been berating me about studying, and all the while, he’s passing his classes. It didn’t matter if his parents could pay, because he’d never have his place in school jeopardized.
Ugh! This is infuriating!
I get off the bed and pace the carpet, calming the raging blood in my veins. When my nerves settle, I sit back on the edge of the bed with a heavy exhale. Footsteps sound up the stairs, and soon, Milo is at my door.
“Just when I think everything’s okay,” I say dryly, “another thing sends me into hysterics.”
“I don’t blame you for going off,” Milo says, hanging by the door. “Kai is such a butthead. Who knew he was doing well in school? He never let on.”
“The night was going so well beforehand.”
“Yeah. Umm, Jamie,” Milo says, scratching the side of his head and digging his toes into the carpet. “Things are off between us. Don’t you think so?”
I latch my hands behind my back and squirm. “What do you mean?”
“Like earlier,” he says, throwing a thumb behind him at the doorway. “In my grandparents’ room. We were talking, but it was a little awkward.”
“Well, you had been ignoring me,” I admit. “It’s a little hard to get close again after that.”
He nods. “That’s exactly what I mean. I’m such an idiot. I never should have ignored you because Alfie was gone. There was no way I thought you did it on purpose.”
I flop down to sit on the edge of the bed. “Then why did you do it?”
“Because I thought you were pulling away from me.” He sits beside me, an arm’s distance apart. “I thought you finally agreed I wasn’t worth your time.”
I frown. “Because I let the cat out?”
He shakes his head, looking at his knees. “Because you were with Kai. He told me to go away, and it seemed like that was what you wanted too.”
I turn away from him, annoyed he’s making me relive that moment. “Kai and I were just in the middle of talking. That’s all.”
“You were in his arms.”
I turn back with a clenched jaw. “Because I was upset.”
Milo shrinks. “I want to be the one to hold you when you’re upset.”
My tension dissipates as I watch his wounded form. I slide closer to him, brushing a hand over his knee. “Maybe you can hold me while I’m happy.”
His lips quirk upwards, and he turns his body toward mine. “I haven’t made you unhappy?”
“Only when you’re not around,” I whisper with a flirtatious lilt. “I don’t want to do anything that’ll push us apart again.”
He takes both my hands. “Neither do I. Being apart from you was hell. I wish I hadn’t done it. I’m sorry.” His thumbs rub tight circles on my hands. “I’m crazy about you, Jamie.”
