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The relief on his face is obvious. “Thanks, man.”
We hug quickly, light fists hitting each other in the back, before we pull apart.
“What’s this?” Jessi asks as she comes in, holding the kids’ cups. She hands them to me as she stretches up to kiss Lewis, and I laugh, crossing the kitchen to fill them up.
“Just guys being guys,” Lewis says, winking at her.
I pull out the apple juice, watching as Jessi relaxes into Lewis’ side. It’s alarming, almost, how quickly my mood plummets.
The comfortable ease, the casual intimacy… No matter how true my feelings for Laura became, we’d never had this.
And now, we never would.
CHAPTER 27
Laura
Istare down at the bed, glaring.
Why in thehelldid I agree to this trip?
Yes, David asked mebeforeI found out about the move. And, yes, it’s with my brother and I know about Lewis’ plans to propose, so it’s actually pretty sweet that he invited me.
But…
One bed.
One bed withDavid.
Jesus.
I’m trying. Honest to God, I’mtrying.Alice would be proud of me. I’m being civil but guarded with him, open and vulnerable with the kids, and available and interested with Lewis and Jessi. I’m juggling a thousand dynamics, some of which aren’t even known.
I’m trying to be a regular person who isnotheartbroken. Because being heartbroken also means admitting to David having the power to break my heart. It means admitting that I blurred the lines of our ruse. It means that I am, and always have been, stupid with my heart.
I fell for David, hard.
And I was too stupid to even realize it.
I sigh. I shouldn’t keep thinking about being stupid. It’s not fair, Alice would say, to blame myself.
I really, really want to blame David.
I can’t, though. All he did was be a guy worth falling for.
I know he wants us to get along. I know he wants me to get over myself.
Honestly, I can’t even blame him. After all, he doesn’t know that I’m in love with him. He doesn’t know that he broke my heart.
“It’s not going to bite you,” David says.
I startle at his voice. I step out of the way as David lets himself into the small bedroom we’re sharing.
The kids have been sleeping on a pallet in the living room, with David and I in one bedroom and Jessi and Lewis in the other. Since David and I know that they’re getting engaged, we let them have the nicer bedroom. Unfortunately, that means we’re sharing a full-size bed, and sleeping far apart is impossible.
“You’re coming to bed early,” I mutter.
I flutter my hands over myself nervously before I start braiding my hair over one shoulder. I’ve been trying to stagger our bedtimes since we got here. It’s easier that way. Curling into his warm body once he is already asleep is easier. Knowing that he’s wrapping his arm around me is simpler when I’m asleep, too.
