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“Alright, but before you hang up, can I give you a little advice?” I asked hesitantly.
“Yeah, go for it.”
I considered how to move forward, not wanting my words to come out harsh.
“Nell hasn’t spoken to you for a long time for a reason. I don’t know if it’s a good reason, but she apparently thinks it is. Running into me, knowing that now I’m her landlord of all things, I can only imagine that she’s feeling pretty hostile right now. So, take whatever time you need to digest it all. Maybe even tell Justine if you want to. But don’t come here guns blazing and try to get her to talk to you. If her reaction to me is any indication, I don’t think she’d take a staged encounter very well.”
Jourdan didn’t answer right away, but when he did, his voice was soft and contemplative.
“Yeah, you’re probably right.” He let out a sigh. “I’ll think about it all. ‘Bye Blake.”
“Bye, J.”
I pressed thedisconnectbutton, set my phone back down on the desk, walked around it, and plopped into the office chair.
It looked like it came straight out of the ’80s and smelled like it, too. But I didn’t want to be on my feet at that moment, so it would have to do.
I propped my elbows on the desk and placed my head in my hands, staring down at the dingy wood beneath me. Of all the people from my past that needed to live here, why did it have to be her?
I wanted to confide in Jourdan exactly why it was such an issue for me. But he’d never understand. In fact, he’d probably be pissed.
I think of all those years ago when Jourdan and I first met. Nell had been young, just a gangly pre-teen who hadn’t given two shits about us.
She had always had her nose in some sketchbook. But, as time passed and she grew, I found myself paying more and more attention to her. By the time I had dropped out of college and she was entering it, I had been damned near in love with her.
Even though I knew their separation had hurt Jourdan, it had worked out for my benefit when she had distanced herself from the family. Because it had been torture being around her and even hearing about her and knowing that I could never do anything about it.
You don’t pursue your best friend’s sister. Bro code, and all.
Of course, as people grow older, those kinds of things fade. And my feelings for her were no different. But I didn’t want to fall into the same trap. Especially not when things were so tumultuous with her own family. And then there was also the very real issue of the fact that she had hated me for as long as I could remember.
Yeah, I didn’t know who I pissed off, but I’m sure there was some deity out there laughing their asses off at that very moment.
CHAPTERFIVE
NELL
How did the date go?
I read the text and groaned, not wanting to answer Lex’s question.
The date the night before had been, of course, an unmitigated disaster.
When I first got to the bar, I had searched for Rob for what felt like forever, only to realize that he was already there, sitting at one of the stools, and looked almost nothing like his profile picture.
I wasn’t sure if it was an old picture or if he had just heavily edited it. But it definitely had not accurately represented the man who had shown up at our date.
Our conversation on the dating app had been good, so I thought our chemistry would be enough to get us through it, but I had been wrong again.
As I sat down, I found that while he could hold a conversation via text, in person was another matter entirely.
And then the fact that I couldn’t get Blake out of my head almost the entire time, and you have yourself the perfect recipe for a one-and-done date.
Not good. I’ll tell u about it later.
I typed and pressed send before setting my phone down on the counter in the gallery.
It had been a slow day, which I’m still not sure I was thankful for. The good thing about being on such a disastrous date the night before meant I was at home and in bed early, so I had been well-rested when I woke up. I could have used the distraction of a busy day to keep my mind from wandering back to Blake for the thousandth time.
