Page 21 of Unforgettable

Amanda looked at us like it was unnecessary, but I didn’t know if those guys were planning on coming back in or hanging in the parking lot until she left.

Downstairs, Amanda stepped into the bathroom, and Josh and I were left alone in the hallway to wait for her.

I leaned against the wall near the bathroom door and pushed my hands into my pockets so I wouldn’t fidget. Josh leaned against the wall opposite me and worried his lower lip between his teeth, staring at the door intently.

“I think I have an idea,” he said.

I immediately knew what he meant—an idea about our situation with Amanda—and I perked up, eager to come up with something. “Great, let’s hear it.”

“After we walk her out, we can talk about it. But at the same time, maybe it’s better if we try to keep our hands to ourselves and back off a little while she’s handling all of this Adam bullshit.”

Sure, it made sense. She already had a lot going on, and the last thing we wanted to do was add more stress on top of it. “Her parents fucking suck. I wish I could say that I’m surprised, but I’m not.”

He grunted in response and straightened as Amanda stepped out of the bathroom. Instead of continuing down the hallway, she stopped and looked between both of us like she knew we had been talking about her. Like our words were lingering in the air around us, hung up with the sound of someone butchering Shania Twain.

“You both look guilty. Why?” she asked.

“We do not look guilty,” Josh said unconvincingly.

“You’re just seeing things, babe,” I said, tossing my arm casually over her shoulders.

“I know I’m not, but I don’t have the energy to pry right now. You can tell me what the hell is going on another time. But until then, try to act like you aren’t up to something,” she said matter-of-factly, not leaving any room for argument.

Josh and I shared an impressed yet concerned look over her head as we walked around a large group at the bar to the front door. Whether we were trying to spare her additional stress or not, she was too observant and was likely to figure it out sooner rather than later. She knew us too well, and to be honest, I don’t think either of us would be capable of hiding much for long.

EIGHT

Amanda

“Where the hellare you going to put all of this shit?” Reed asked on our tenth trip upstairs with more of Adam’s stuff.

Reed and Josh had both volunteered to help move Adam’s stuff into my apartment after witnessing and comforting me through my almost mental breakdown at Murphy’s only the day before. And they were even generous enough to offer to go to my parents’ house and load it all up in the U-Haul I’d rented.

I rented a midsize truck, figuring it may be too big for his belongings, but I didn’t want to make more than one trip if it could be helped. So, when the guys pulled up to the closest door and into the parking spots I’d saved for them, I was surprised to see that the entire back of the truck was full. Like stacked-to-the-brim type of full. Like they had to brush off those Tetris skills to get everything to fit.

Although I’d told Adam he didn’t need to bring all of his furniture, he’d done so anyway, claiming he had a sentimental attachment to it. Which meant we not only had to move Adam’s stuff in but we had to move my stuff out. No one was very excited about doubling the workload, but luckily, Hazel and Luke had an entire house that needed furnishing and promised to return the furniture when I needed it back.

“I’ll figure it out, just watch the corner on the wall,” Adam said through gritted teeth as he and Reed tried to carry his huge, heavy dresser up the narrow staircase.

Reed, who was carrying most of the weight of the dresser at the bottom of the stairs, rolled his eyes and gave me a frustrated look over his shoulder. Adam was at the top of the stairs, slowly inching backward closer to the landing as Josh ran ahead to make space for the large piece of furniture.

I was carrying a box full of knickknacks and trying not to pee my pants from laughing too hard.

Reed and Adam had been at each other’s throats all day. And I was surprised they hadn’t broken out into a full-fledged fight, but the longer it took to move the damn dresser, the more likely a fight seemed.

“You’ve got to turn it a little more so I can step up,” Reed said.

“Well, I’m pinned against the wall. I have nowhere else to go,” Adam replied.

“Just lift it a little higher.”

“You seriously think I can lift this shit above my head? Especially in this position?”

“I could do it.”

“No, you couldn’t.”

“Are you fucking kidding me? Fine, I’m going to step back, then you need to lift it higher and turn more to your right.”

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