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Rachel let out a sad sigh. “I wouldn’t believe it either if I hadn’t seen it.”
I sat there with conflicted emotions swirling around inside me like the sea, pulling me under. I didn’t know which way was up, or how to break through to the surface. I was engulfed in an ocean of Nick, and assumed I probably always would be.
There was no getting over this guy.
Broken Silence
Jess
After hanging up with Rachel, I sucked in a long breath and headed back inside, wondering if my new roommate would want to actually leave the apartment for once and grab some food with me. I had to get the hell away from my own thoughts, and needed a distraction.
“Brooke?” I yelled from behind her closed door.
I waited, expecting to hear her shout back at me, but her door opened instead.
“Hey, Jess.”
“I was wondering if you wanted to grab some dinner or something?” I almost suggested going to a bar to drown my misery, but figured she’d never agree to that.
When she stayed silent for a beat longer, I added, “I really need to get out of here, and I could use the company.” It was more than I’d intended to say, but if I didn’t do a little extra prodding, I’d be eating alone. Again.
“Are you okay?” She tilted her head to the side, causing her long bangs to fall into her eyes.
I nodded. “I will be. Are you hungry?”
A soft smile lit up her face. “Yeah. Let me grab a sweatshirt.”
Relieved, I ran into my room to grab my own sweatshirt before meeting her in the living room. The evenings in Northern California got pretty cold. Even if it was eighty degrees during the day, which it rarely was, a chilly wind kicked up out of nowhere each night, making the need to cover up a necessity.
“Where should we go?” she asked as she tucked her hands into her front pockets.
“Um . . .” Shit. I hadn’t really thought that far ahead since
I’d assumed she’d say no. “Craving anything in particular?”
She shook her head.
“We can just go somewhere close, so we don’t have to drive and worry about parking,” I suggested, knowing that we had plenty of restaurant options within walking distance of our apartment.
“How about Sparks?”
I smiled at her suggestion. “Oh my gosh, yes. Barbecue sounds perfect.” I practically drooled, wondering why I hadn’t thought of it myself.
It was a quick five-minute walk to get there, and I silently thanked the food gods for the lack of a wait. No line was practically unheard of for a Saturday evening, but I wasn’t complaining.
When our hostess seated us, Brooke craned her neck, looking around as if she was searching for someone.
“Who are you looking for?” I asked, and her cheeks turned pink.
“Huh? Me? No one, why?”
She was a horrible liar.
“Oh my gosh, Brooke. You like someone who works here. Who is he, and how do I not know this?”
Brooke’s cheeks reddened even more as she reached across the high-top table and covered my mouth with her hand. “Jess, please be quiet.”
I let out a muffled laugh as she pulled her hand away. “Okay, okay. But you have to tell me everything.”
