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As the meal progressed, she felt like maybe things were getting back to normal. Not completely there yet, but moving in the right direction. If healthy relationships could resume without her having to have a conversation about past hurts with Jay or Will, all the better.
If only she’d known that how she felt didn’t matter in the long run, she would have tried harder to just keep her emotions to herself. She understood on an intellectual level that Jay had been dealt a shock, but emotionally, it still hurt that Jay hadn’t understood how him withdrawing would upset her.
And Will… she had just wanted him to care enough for her to want to allay her worries. But no matter how many times she’d asked him for information, he’d been unwilling to say anything except that Jay would tell them about everything soon.
But now, she just wanted to forget all of it. Her fear, her hurt, her anger. It just needed to all be gone and forgotten.
By everyone.
CHAPTER SIX
Will fought the urge to rub his stomach in satisfaction after eating the meal Denise had prepared. When Jay had invited him for supper, he hadn’t been sure about coming, especially when he’d started hearing rumors that the reason he wasn’t interested in Marissa was because he had feelings for Misha.
It was so infuriating.
He should be allowed to not be interested in someone without them looking for reasons beyond him just not being interested in them.
But no, Marissa had to turn his friendship with Misha into something it wasn’t, just to make herself feel better about his disinterest in her. And then she shared her fabricated story with her teenage brother, who decided to use the information to torture Will at school.
He didn’t deserve the rumors, and Misha certainly didn’t either.
Will really did like Misha. She’d been great for Jay, and he could already see brief flashes of Peyton warming up to her too.
But their friendship didn’t go beyond that. He counted her as a friend. Just like Charli was. Just like Janessa was. Of course, he was closer to Charli and Janessa, but that was only because he’d known them for so long.
“So, are you up for going to the gym later, Will?” Jay asked as they enjoyed cups of coffee and vanilla cake with a toasted coconut topping that Denise had made to complete the meal.
“I’m not sure.”
“Oh, come on,” Jay said. “Don’t let what happened with Marissa keep you away.”
“That’s not why I’m not sure,” Will told him. “I’m stuffed! I don’t think I could move on the treadmill.”
“Yeah. I hear ya. Makes me feel all the more like I should work out, though.”
“That’s because eating lots of food induces guilt in you. I just choose to enjoy it without feeling like I need to work it off.”
Part of Will did want to go with Jay and Misha. He’d worked out every night that week, and he hated to not go, but he really hadn’t been joking when he said he wasn’t sure he could move.
Once they finished their coffee and dessert, Will pitched in to help the others clear the table, while Denise joined Cathy and Dan in the living room with the younger kids. He went to the counter to hand off the items he carried to Janessa. She quickly added the dishes to the dishwasher while he remained on the other side of the counter.
She’d been quiet throughout the meal, but she didn’t display any of the glares or the angry air that she’d carried lately. Will still thought that she and Jay needed to have a conversation, but he wasn’t going to push for the brother and sister to have that talk if they weren’t ready.
“You should come to the gym with us,” he said, surprising both of them with his suggestion, if the expression on her face was anything to go by.
“You’re seriously asking me to go work out?”
“If I can do it, you can,” he said.
“I wouldn’t be too sure of that. I very much dislike sweating when I don’t have to.”
“It’s not that bad. I’m starting to actually enjoy it.”
“That’s because you’ve lost your mind,” she said. “Or maybe it just took all this time for Jay’s influence to rub off on you.”
“If that’s the case, then you’re also overdue for a change of attitude.”
“What’s in it for me?” Janessa asked, crossing her arms.
