“Yes, I’m aware. Thanks for pointing it out.” I quickly deferred to sarcasm around Chrissy.
“So why are you calling me instead of talking to Garland?” Silent pause. “Unless Garland is part of the problem…”
“Bingo.” I knew I’d liked her for a reason.
“Okay, lay it on me.” There was a loud knock on her door. “Go away! This is girl talk, you big buffoon!” she yelled at Nate. “Sorry, continue.”
I started at the beginning and gave her the watered down version of the whole story. “As you can see, it’s kind of a mess. What do you think I should do?”
She didn’t hesitate. “Tell Garland you like her.”
“Don’t you think he’ll be mad?”
“Yeah, he’ll be mad. He’ll get over it, though. Garland doesn’t fall often. When he does, it’s fast and hard. Based on what you’ve said, I don’t think he likes her as much as you do.”
“Okay. Let’s say I come clean. Even if he doesn’t stay mad forever, it’ll create weirdness between him and Abby. There’s already enough of it between me and her. I don’t want to make things worse.”
“That’s your own dumb fault. Stop being an idiot.” Yep, she was a straight shooter. The worst part is that she was right. “The way I see it, you have two choices. You can man up, tell them how you feel, and deal with the consequences. Or you can man up, move on, and find a way to get over it. Because it won’t take long for either of them to notice your weirdness—if they haven’t already—and confront you about it. That would be a hundred times more awkward than how you feel around Abby right now.”
“True,” I replied pensively. It was a lot to process.
“You see the recurring theme here?”
“You’re saying I need to be a man.”
“That’s the long and short of it.”
“Ugh.” I grunted softly.
“Sometimes the best results come from the hardest efforts.”
“Thanks, oh wise one.”
“Eh, I try.” She laughed and sighed loudly. “I think you’re forgetting an important factor in all of this.”
“Yeah?”
“What does Abby want? Does she like you, or does she like Garland? Or does she think you’re both a couple of blockheads?”
I chuckled. “By now, probably the latter.”
“Don’t you think she should get a say in the matter? It’s her love life, too. You don’t want to bombard her and tell her to choose, but that’s basically what you need to do. There’s no point in her dating Garland if you’re the one she wants. Of course, in order for her to make an informed choice, she needs to know that you like her. It all circles back to you being a man.”
“Harsher…I mean truer words have never been spoken. I guess you’re right.”
“I’m always right.” Chrissy started to chuckle but stopped abruptly. “Crap. He found the screwdriver.” Her voice pulled away from the phone. “Hey, babe. We were just finishing up. You want to say good-bye?”
“Good-bye, Evan.” Nate called loudly. “I wish you luck in getting a girlfriend, so you’ll stop talking to mine!”
“Don’t listen to him. You can’t see the naughty grin on his face. Secretly I think he wishes you were here so he could have some competition. He got me too easily. Maybe I’ll break up with him, so he’ll have to try harder to win me back.”
I laughed. “If you do, call me and I’ll give him a run for his money.”
“Deal. Seriously, though, good luck with everything. And don’t be a stranger. We can still be friends. Nate talks a big game, but he’s really a softie. Text me when you’ve figured everything out and let me know how it goes.”
“I will. Thanks, Chrissy.”
“See you later, alligator.”
“Bye.” I hung up the phone.
Strangely, that conversation made me feel a little better. And worse. I knew what needed to be done. I didn’t like it, but I had to do it. I also didn’t want to put Abby in the position of choosing unless I had to, so I decided to talk to Garland first. Hopefully, I’d come out of things with both relationships intact.
I strolled into my dorm room around ten o’clock on Sunday night. I might have had a plan, but I wasn’t exactly thrilled about executing it. Staying at my parents’ house all day had started as an attempt to delay the inevitable. But Mom made homemade macaroni and cheese for lunch, then pot roast and fresh yeast rolls for dinner. How could I leave early?
“Look what the cat dragged in,” Garland quipped. “I was beginning to wonder if you were coming back.”
“I almost didn’t.” I chuckled as I pushed out my belly and patted it. “This food baby here is pot roast.”
“Oh, man. Why didn’t you call me? I’d have come down and helped you eat it.”
I slung my bag onto my bed and dropped down next to it. “That’s exactly why I didn’t call you. There are two things a man doesn’t share. Pot roast is one of them.”
Garland pursed his lips and nodded appreciatively while thumping his chest with a fist. “Word. What’s the other?”
I was going to say women but thought twice since that’d make me a hypocrite. My eyes fell on Garland’s towel, slung over his desk chair to dry. “Bath towels,” I replied instead.
“Random.” He looked at me like I was nuts, but after considering for a moment, he said, “However, true.”
My back was sore from hunching over my computer all day, so I pulled my arms across my chest to stretch it. Surprisingly, I got a lot of studying done. I was even ahead on a few assignments. “How’d the rest of your weekend go?” I asked, my curiosity slowly killing me.
Garland lit up. “Good. The first thirty minutes after you left yesterday were rough. I don’t think Abby realized it was a date until then. But once she got past being awkward and loosened up, we had a lot of fun.”
“Oh, yeah? What did you do?” I didn’t really want to know the answer. But I couldn’t leave it alone.
“We got burgers and shakes at Bubba’s. Then we went to the dollar store and had a competition to see who could find the tackiest valentine’s gift. I won.” He puffed up his chest proudly, then retrieved a mug from his desk and tossed it to me. It was red with pink hearts and white lettering that said, You’re so lucky I’m your valentine.
I snickered. “That totally sounds like something you’d buy your valentine.”
“Abby agreed. In fact, she thought it was so perfect she bought it for me.” Hold up! Did that mean she considered herself his valentine? “After that, we went glow bowling. She’s a pretty good bowler, by the way. If she ever tries to make a bet with you on who’ll win, tell her to pound sand. I owe her a batch of homemade cookies. No clue how I’m supposed to make that happen.”
I didn’t want to hear about the end of the date. My non-date with her ended in a half-kiss. I shuddered to think what a real date ended with. I tried to redirect the conversation. “Sounds like you had a good time. What’d you do today?”
Garland wasn’t picking up on my cue, and I wasn’t expecting what came next. “With you and Sam both gone, Abby and I ate together at breakfast and dinner. She let me take her out for lunch, too.”
My head was spinning. I pushed the heels of my palms against my eyes and rubbed them. That was two dates and two meals in a 24-hour period. I might as well go out and buy them a wedding gift right now. I’d get her a valentine’s mug to match his.
Was it possible I’d misunderstood the signals? Maybe they hadn’t been there at all. It felt like Abby and I had something going on—a connection deeper than physical attraction. Perhaps that’s how all friendships felt between members of the opposite sex. But if that was the case, how did anyone ever get from friends to more than friends? You can’t just start kissing. I know because I’d tried Friday and didn’t feel right about it. It took Chrissy and Nate like six years to get there. I couldn’t wait six years for Abby. I didn’t want to wait six days.
Part of me wished I could go back and do t
hings over. When you go straight to dating, you always know where you stand. The expectation is that you like each other and start a relationship, or you don’t like each other and you move on. Except Abby isn’t my normal type, so I doubt I’d have looked twice back then. Being friends first was messy.
“Sounds like she’s into you,” I croaked, wondering if he thought the same thing.
“I’m not really sure how she feels yet.” He shrugged. “But I’m not in a rush.”
I desperately wanted to know if he’d kissed her last night. If he had, and she went out with him again today, it meant I was delusional and it was time to throw in the towel. I didn’t have the guts to ask. So much for manning up.
“I’m going to hop in the shower. Do you need in the bathroom?” I asked. I had to escape, and pronto.
“Nah, I’m good.” He went back to whatever video game he was playing. I took my phone into the bathroom with me and turned on the water. While I waited for it to get hot, I broke down and texted Sam.
EVAN: Did Abby say anything about her date?
SAM: Just that she had a good time. I was disappointed by her lack of details.
EVAN: So no idea if it was like, good night kiss good?
SAM: If he kissed her and she didn’t tell me, she’s dog meat.
A tiny weight lifted off my chest. He hadn’t kissed her. But that doesn’t mean she didn’t want him to. I was beginning to think Chrissy was right. I needed to ask Abby how she felt, even if it made her uncomfortable.
I got in the shower and let the hot water run over me. I heard my phone chirp once but had zero motivation to look. It was most likely Sam delivering bad news. After twenty minutes, Garland banged on the door. “Hey, save some water for the fish. Abby called a few minutes ago looking for you.” Why would she call him looking for me?
“I’ll be out in a minute,” I yelled. I turned off the water and checked my phone. The chirp had been a message from Abby.
ABBY: I hope you got all your stuff sorted out. The paper goods for the dance came. Do you have time to help me carry them to the government building tomorrow?
EVAN: Sam said something about that yesterday. I figured you’d ask Garland to help.
ABBY: I can, if you’d rather.
EVAN: No, I can help. It’s kind of my job anyway, right? Does tomorrow at two-thirty work? I’ll meet you at your place after class.
ABBY: Sounds good.
EVAN: Okay.
I waited for another message. She usually said good-bye or good night or see you later, but she didn’t this time. I got ready for bed and crawled under the covers before checking once more, which was pathetic, because if she’d texted, I’d have heard it. This was stupid. She was probably waiting for me to do it first. I typed good night and hit send. Nothing came in return.
I tossed and turned for hours. Consequently, I slept through my entire world history class the next morning. It was kind of a snore fest anyway, so showing up on limited sleep was a bad idea. I should have skipped and stayed in bed. After class, I got a double shot of espresso and that woke me up, but I still went through the rest of the day like a zombie.
At two-twenty, I waited anxiously outside Camden Hall. Abby would be here any second. Breathe, Evan. You got this. A minute later, Abby and Sam trudged up the sidewalk. When they saw me, Sam came straight over for a hug. Abby hung back.
“Hey.” I returned the hug and nodded my head at Abby.
“Hi,” Sam replied. Abby sent me a weak smile. Not off to a good start.
“So, all the stuff is upstairs?” I asked.
“Yeah,” Abby replied. “It’s not that much, but I couldn’t have carried it alone.” She walked into the building without looking back.
Sam leaned over and whispered, “Geez, I don’t know what crawled up her butt. She seemed fine ten minutes ago.” Pretty sure it was me.
“How heavy are those boxes?” I asked when I stepped inside. There were three of them, one square-shaped and two rectangular.
“None of them are super heavy. The square box is the punch bowl, and the bigger ones are plates, napkins, cups, and silverware.”
“Okay, how about you take one of the rectangular boxes, and I’ll take the other one along with the punch bowl.”
“I can take a box, if you want,” Sam offered.
I’d already wondered why Abby didn’t get Sam to help her yesterday. The two of them could have gotten the job done. I dared to hope it was because Abby specifically wanted my help. If that was the case, I didn’t want Sam tagging along. I pulled my coat sleeve tight around my arm and flexed. “Nah, we can handle it. I’ve got huge muscles, remember?”
The corner of Abby’s mouth tipped up slightly. “I thought your arms were just puffy.”
I grinned. “And I thought Sam confirmed my gun license.”
She rolled her eyes, but she also smiled—for real. “That was really bad.”
“I’d have to concur,” Sam said as she picked up the boxes and stacked them in my arms. The load wasn’t heavy, but it was tall. I could barely see over the top. She looked skeptical when she opened the door for me. “Are you sure you don’t want help?”
Abby looked like she might say yes, so I beat her to the answer. “We’re fine. I promise.”
“Okay.” Sam shrugged. “Call me when you get halfway and change your mind.”
We got outside the building before I found the nerve to go on a fishing expedition. My mind was made up. If she gave any indication that she liked me, I’d confess my feelings. If not, I’d let it go for good.
“So…Garland said you guys had fun last night.”
“Garland’s always fun to hang out with.”
She used the words hang out. It was good, but not enough. “Hang out? I think Garland considered it a date.”
She hesitated before sighing. “He did. I felt dumb because I didn’t recognize it right away. It was for the best, though. I’d have freaked if he’d officially asked me out.” More hesitation. “Did you know it was a date? Is that why you took off so fast?” Her face was glued to the box she was carrying.
I nodded anyway. “Yeah, I knew. But not until after I offered to sit with you.”
She chuckled. “I suppose you acting so strange makes more sense now.”
“Hey, I’m not trying to get my eyebrows shaved off while I sleep. It’s bad news to step on your roommate’s territory.”
“His territory?” She finally looked at me, and her eyebrows inched up. “We went on one date.”
“He took you to lunch yesterday,” I interjected.
“I don’t know if that counts.” She huffed, sounding annoyed with me. But she didn’t deny it was a date, either. “I definitely wouldn’t say that makes me his territory.”
“What does it make you?” It was out there now; I couldn’t take it back.
She bit her lip and searched my face for a long moment. I couldn’t get a read on her emotions. Finally, she said, “Friends who went on a date?”
Friends. Maybe there was still a chance for me. My heart soared but quickly plummeted into my gut as I realized that even with this confirmation, I had to bow out gracefully. Admitting how I felt would put too much pressure on Abby, and going behind Garland’s back was a scummy thing to do. This was my punishment for sticking my nose where it didn’t belong. The road to Hell was paved with good intentions.
The next couple of days got easier. I didn’t have this big, looming what if weighing down on me. I was confident that Abby only thought of Garland as a friend. Things between she and I went back to normal, though I’d made a conscious effort to stop flirting for Garland’s sake.
The four of us continued to eat dinner together. I was disappointed that Garland claimed the seat I usually took next to Abby. On the bright side, I got to see her adorable face more. And as a bonus, she and Garland hadn’t gone on any more dates. I was finally starting to think I could live with the arrangement until Garland came home on Thursday.
“What’s th
e deal with the dance?” he asked.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, should we assume Abby and Sam want to come with us, or should we officially ask them?”
I growled inwardly, and my lip curled. It was hard enough to handle the idea of them dating. I wouldn’t survive watching them dance all night. “I don’t think it’s necessary to make things official. It’s not like we can take the girls to dinner or anything. Abby and I have to be there early.”
Garland frowned. “True, but we could go out after.” I turned my back to him so he wouldn’t see how discouraged I was. “I think I still want to ask her,” he concluded.
I snapped. “Well, then ask her.”
“What’s wrong with you?” He barked.
“Sorry.” I sighed. “I’m on edge because I haven’t been sleeping well. If you want to make it a date, I’ll take Sam.”
He picked up on my tension. “You don’t have to go with Sam. I just figured you’d want to. Was there someone else you wanted to ask?”
“Nope,” I muttered. “I’ll talk to Sam.”
“Awesome.” He looked thoughtful. “Maybe I’ll go find Abby right now.”
“You can’t,” I started to protest but caught myself. “She’s still in class until two, and then I’m supposed to meet her at the gymnasium so we can assemble all the paper lanterns.”
“Okay, I’ll find her at the gym.” He dropped his bag on the floor and went into the bathroom. I heard the shower turn on.
I fell facedown onto my mattress and pulled my pillow over the back of my head, longing for a dark hole to crawl in. Eventually I rolled to my back, leaving my face hidden beneath the pillow. I don’t know how long I lay like that, but it was long enough to fall asleep. I startled awake when the pillow was ripped from my face and the harsh afternoon light assaulted my eyes.
“I’m out. Wish me luck,” Garland said.
The Problem With Cupid (Holiday Romance Book 2) Page 9
