It was pointless to try and predict what the future held. And it was probably for the best that we couldn’t see into it.
Was he going to break up with me? Would the guy who bought me a star and told me he loved me every chance he got actually do that? I didn’t know. All I knew was that he’d been acting strange.
“Maybe it’s exactly what he said. They went on a camping trip so they could bond. Don’t make a big deal out of it. You’ll drive yourself nuts.”
Too late. I’d been driving myself nuts for three days. Actually, it had been longer than that. Something had been off with him and Brody for the entire week before our graduation. “I just hate feeling left out,” I admitted.
“Triangles are tricky. Unless you turn it into a threesome, one man is always out.”
I rolled my eyes. “It’s not that kind of triangle.”
Her dark brows arched. “Sure it’s not. You live with two hot guys who also happen to be your best friends. Not to mention they’re practically brothers.” She fanned herself with her hand. “God, that’s hot.”
“It’s not like that,” I insisted.
“Yeah, okay.” Christy plucked a strawberry from the bowl and bit into it. “So you don’t notice the way Brody looks at you?”
“Brody doesn’t…” I shook my head, disputing her words. “We’re just friends. How did we even get on this topic?”
“We were trying to work out what went down on this camping trip.”
I stared into the blue depths of the swimming pool as if it held the answers. “What if he’s going to break up with me?”
She slid her sunglasses down her nose to get a better look at me. “Is that why you’re still sitting here instead of on your way home to get dick?”
I grabbed a wedge of pineapple from her bowl, my knee bouncing as I ate it. She was right. I was stalling. If I didn’t go home then I wouldn’t have to hear the bad news. I could delay the inevitable. I reclined on the lounger and closed my eyes to block out the sun and my insecurities.
Fifteen... twenty minutes went by, the fruit was gone, and I was still baking under the Texas sun when Christy jostled my arm. “Go home. Get the scoop. And report back. I have to get ready for my date.”
That spurred me into action. I got dressed in my loose cotton tank top and cut-offs. Stepping into my flip-flops, I fished my car keys out of my bag and slung it over my shoulder. Time to go home and face the music.
“Call me after the sex,” Christy said, bundling the wet towels in her arms.
“Call me after your date tonight. And have fun.”
“If we have fun, you won’t be getting a call.”
“Same goes for me.”
“Bitch,” she called after me as I skirted the swimming pool, my flip-flops smacking against the tiles.
“Hussy,” I threw over my shoulder.
“Love you.”
“Love you too.”
On the drive home, I gave myself a pep talk. Maybe it wouldn’t be bad news. Why did I assume it would be? Everything had been great for months. Our prom night was one of the best nights of my life. I wore a silver sequined halter dress with a pearl gray tulle skirt that floated around my legs when I danced. Jude wore a charcoal gray tux with a bow tie that matched the skirt of my dress. He was voted prom king, Ashleigh the queen. But we left before the announcement and only found out later via text. Jude didn’t care about popularity contests. What he’d cared about was spending the night in a hotel with me.
Our relationship was solid. Jude and I were in love. Everything was good. Maybe too good. I shoved that thought out of my head. Pessimism wouldn’t get me anywhere.
The barn doors were wide open, Eminem blasting from the speakers, portable fans on the highest setting as I lurked outside the door, undetected.
“Eight... nine... ten,” Jesse chanted. “Keep going, Jude. You can do it.”
Of course he could do it. I didn’t know what today’s goal was but Jude could do pull-ups all freaking day long. His back was to me and I watched his muscles ripple as he did chin-ups on the bar attached to the wall. Shirtless and sweaty, his hair was a tousled mess. Oh God, he looked delicious. I wanted to lick the sweat off his skin.
That’s when it finally hit me. I knew what he needed to tell me. How stupid could I be not to realize it sooner? Oh, right. Denial.
How would I ever live without him? Why had I fallen in love with a guy who was always going to leave me?
Taking a deep breath, I tried to gear up for the news that would probably knock me on my ass. My gaze drifted to Brody who was punching the bag like he had a vendetta against it. Christy was wrong. Brody thought of me as a friend, almost like a sister, and nothing more. I loved Brody, but we weren’t in love. Big difference.
Sensing my presence, Brody dragged his gaze away from the punching bag and tipped his chin in greeting. No sign of his signature grin. Sensing something was wrong, I walked inside and stopped next to him.
“Are you okay?” I asked quietly.
“Right as rain.” But I could see it on his face that he was lying.
“If you ever need to talk about anything, I’m always here for you. You
