“Congratulations, Mrs. Carmichael. How you doin’, darlin’?” The soft expression on his face coupled with the timber of his voice makes my heart do a somersault. I find myself looking away because something sharp is piercing my chest from the inside out.
“Amazing. Thank you,” she says brightly, still in his arms.
He lets go of her. “So sorry I couldn’t be there. We need to do dinner soon so you guys can show me the pictures and tell me all about it.”
“Come tonight,” she excitedly suggests, and this makes him smile bigger while also making my heart plummet. “We’re grilling some steaks. And you’re already in the building, so…”
I glare at the back of her curly traitorous head.
“Ally’s already coming,” she goes on.
Fucking fuck.
“Yeah?” Jude’s wide smile somehow manages to go even broader. “You got enough food?”
“Absolutely. Either I’ll split a steak with Ally, or I’ll have chicken. These steaks I took out are huge. Ooh. Or… we can do shish kabobs, then there’s sure to be enough for everyone. I’ve got everything I need for that.”
“Even better,” Jude agrees. “I’ll bring some wine, bread, and some roasted garlic.”
“Ooh, Goodie. You had his roasted garlic Al?” Carly looks over her shoulder at me. “It’s the bomb.”
I don’t even try to mask my disgust. “Actually, you guys go ahead. I’m gonna just -”
“Nuh uh, nope,” Carly denies. “We already had this plan. The only revision: skewers and Jude.”
Right now I’d like to skewer her and Jude!
We came up with our plan at lunch time – planning to sit and go through all the wedding pictures and watch the wedding video tonight over grilled food and slushy booze punch. Little did I know, my bestie wasn’t down for my plan to avoid Jude despite everything I’ve said to her. She and I will be having words.
“I can’t stay late,” I advise.
“Not like you have a far trek home, Ally,” she teases, and I immediately get into the back seat of the SUV so she can sit up front with Jude.
I sulk all the way back to the apartment while they gab about her honeymoon.
I don’t bother to ask how it turned out to be Jude that picked us up instead of just another cab. Because the reasons don’t matter – are all bullshit as far as I’m concerned. This guy is trying to get under my skin and has turned my bestie against me. Carly is clearly on board to help.
And yeah, I don’t like the taste of my own medicine. I now know how Carly felt when I tried to meddle to get her and Aiden together. There’s a difference though. Her and Aiden were meant to be and I knew it. Knew it. Jude and me? Never going to happen. Because it can’t. Because my life sucks.
However, underneath my sulking, annoyance, and anger I’m concerned. If he’s willing to go this far… moving into my apartment and pulling little stunts like these to get my attention, is he going to start digging into my past? Has he already started doing that? What will he come up with?
Tori seems to have a real knack for helping people fly under radar, but is she better than Jude’s sleuthing skills?
We get off the elevator first and I make sure there’s no mistaking that I’m pissed by the way I stomp to the door with my keys in hand.
I fumble and drop them. And his heat is right at my back as I rise, meaning my face goes beet red as his hand snakes around my hip before he sticks his key into the door.
Before he turns that key, he pauses and his other hand goes to my hip. I freeze.
His breath is on the back of my neck. It’s hot, cinamonny, and making me feel a little faint.
I stick my key in the other lock and twist that one as he twists the doorknob. The second the door is opened I push my way ahead so I can get the fuck away from him.
As I slam the bathroom door, I hear what sounds like a low chuckle.
I need to make sure he stops being curious about me. How am I going to do that?
Turn up the bitchiness a notch? The sloppy roommate stuff? Just give him more sex – maybe turning clingy and stalkery on him so that he loses interest? (That’s my vagina talking, not my logical self, so I hush her).
What’s it going to take?
I spot a stack of brand-new towels on the vanity and a 24-pack of toilet paper on the floor under the towel rack. One roll is missing from the pack. Oh, it’s on the toilet paper roll holder. What guy puts the toilet paper on the actual holder? This guy isn’t for real; he can’t be.
Grr.
The towels? Black and pink striped, matching my bedroom.