Page 4 of A Little Complicated

“I texted Archer.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Because you’re not allowed to miss prom because your Mystery Man is a dick.”

“Who is he, anyway?” my mom asks. “I want to know what name I should be cursing.”

“It doesn’t matter.” I fist my hands in my lap and shake my head, my emotions threatening to ruin my makeup. “Hedoesn’t matter.”

“Lia,” my mom murmurs.

“Clearly, it’s over, and…” I sniff. “I don’t want to talk about him. I need to figure out tonight, and—”

“We’ve already figured out tonight,” Dylan says. “Like I said, Archer’s gonna take you.”

“It isn’t Archer’s responsibility—”

“He already said he’ll be here in thirty,” Dylan interrupts, tapping the edge of her cell against her chin. “So there’s nothing you can do about it.”

There’s a lump in my throat, but I swallow it back, willing away the stupid burn in my eyes–again–and lick my lips. “He said he’d take me?”

“Duh. Archer loves you,” Dylan reminds me.

It’ll be fine. Everything. Will. Be. Fine.

“See?” my mom offers. “I knew he’d be happy to take you. What do you say? Are you ready to dance the night away?”

I sniffle and stand, pulling on my proverbial big girl panties and letting out a slow breath. “Okay. I’ll go.”

* * *

It’squiet and awkward as Archer drives us to the dance. When we pull up to the curb, Dylan’s date opens her door and offers his hand to help her out of the car. She reaches for it, her baby blues glued to the ground. As she unfolds herself from the backseat, she steps on the hem of her dress and rolls her ankle. Her knees hit the pavement with a crash, and she curses under her breath while I watch the chaos in the passenger side mirror.

Oh, shit.

My knee-jerk reaction is to rush out of the car and help her up, but I have a feeling it would only embarrass her more, so I stay seated. Heat floods Dylan’s cheeks as she pushes herself up, her date standing helplessly beside her with his hands raised in the air. Once her feet are back on the ground, she smooths out the front of her dress and slams the door behind her, marching toward the entrance without waiting for her date to catch up.

I cover my laugh behind my hand and stare at my lap.

Apparently, I’m not the only one having a rough night.

Poor girl.

Pulling the car away from the front of the building, Archer notes, “There she is.”

My eyes meet his as my brows pinch. “What do you mean?”

“Despite your Oscar-worthy acting skills, you’ve seemed down since the moment I picked you up.” He turns the steering wheel and checks his blind spot like a seasoned pro, but I don’t miss the slight tension in his muscles as he fights for nonchalance, adding, “You okay?”

Ah, so that’s why he’s acting funny.

He’s worried about me.

I guess it makes sense. I’ve hardly looked at him tonight. I haven’t been able to. Not without seeing his twin brother instead. I never thought they looked alike. Have never struggled to recognize their differences. I still don’t. But my mind is such a muddled clusterfuck of all things Maverick it’s hard for me to focus on anything else. Hell, I’m pretty sure a stranger could walk up to me, and even they would remind me of the boy who broke my heart tonight.

He isn’t here right now,I remind myself.Archer is.

With a nod, I reach over and grab Archer’s hand resting on his knee while the other guides the car with the steering wheel. “Yeah, I’m okay.” I gulp, unsure what else to say.

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