Page 43 of It's Complicated

In fact, I can’t tear my eyes away from him. I watch as he moves through the crowd of people, his eyes never leaving me. My heart beats faster as he approaches, and I can feel my body responding to him in a way that it didn’t use to. These reactions are all very new. But I can’t help it. He’s just so damn attractive.

“Hey,” he says as he reaches us, flashing me a small smile.

I nod, not trusting myself to speak.

“Hey, man,” Aiden’s brother says, then, probably noticing the heated way Jace and I are staring at each other, he excuses himself.

“I was beginning to think you weren’t coming,” I say to him finally, trying to sound nonchalant, while feeling both relieved and irritated at the same time.

He shrugs. “Sorry, lost track of time at the gym.”

I roll my eyes. “Couldn’t you have texted me to let me know?”

“I didn’t think you’d miss me that much.”

That’s a passive-aggressive response if I’ve ever heard one.

I study him, trying to read his expression. He looks like he’s trying very hard not to let something show, but I can’t quite put my finger on what it is.

“Is everything okay?” I ask tentatively. “Are we okay?”

Something flares behind his eyes, blue fire, and as he opens his mouth to speak, I brace myself for whatever is about to come.

But of course that’s when Kirsten barrels into us. “Hey, what are you guys doing here on your own?” She shakes her blonde locks. “Not what this night is about.”

Then she grabs Jace by the arm and drags him away. “Come with me, I want you to meet all my friends.”

I gape helplessly as she hauls him away toward her salivating bridesmaids. As I watch the other women drool over him, something dark twists in my stomach.

He isn’t doing anything wrong, but as I watch Jace shake the hands of Kirsten’s pageant-queen friends all I want to do is storm over there and claim him as mine.

When it’s the turn of Kirsten’s sister to be introduced, jealousy becomes a wild beast in my chest. Which is ridiculous. I have no reason to be jealous. Jace and I are just friends, we’re justpretendingto date.

“You don’t need to stare murder at the other bridesmaids.” Aiden appears by my side with a cocktail in his hands. “Jace only has eyes for you.”

The words send me on a tailspin. Because they’re not true. Because in that moment, I realize Iwantthem to be true.

I stare up at Aiden in shock, even more so when the usual twinge of desire is not there—gone. I look back to where Jace is being presented like a show pony, catch Kendall casually brushing his upper arm, and I getallthe twinges.

I raise a finger at Aiden. “I need a minute.” And flee to the bathroom to lock myself in a stall.

What is happening to me?

I take a few deep breaths, trying to calm down. But no matter how much I try, I can’t shake off the feeling of jealousy eating me up from inside. It’s not like Jace and I have anything going on, but just the thought of him with someone else sends shivers down my spine.

As I sit on the toilet seat, trying to calm my racing heart, I can’t help but feel confused. Why am I feeling this way about Jace all of a sudden? We’ve been friends for years and I’ve never had these kinds of feelings for him before. Is it because we kissed? That must be it. The kiss must have sparked something in me that I didn’t even know was there.

But as I sit there, staring at the dingy bathroom stall walls, I know that’s not the whole truth. Yes, the kiss was amazing and it definitely ignited something in me, but there’s something else there too. Something that I can’t grasp or comprehend yet, but that I’d better sort fast if I don’t want to lose my best friend.

Jace is my rock. My safe place. The person I could always be myself with. The one I could tell all my secrets. And lately, I’ve felt like we’ve lost that. And I want it back—with a vengeance. I want more of him, more of us.

The realization is just as scary as the alternative—losing him. I’m just coming to grips with what the next steps I need to take are, when the restroom door swings open and Kendall’s and Kirsten’s voices drift inside.

“Gosh, Jace is so hot,” Kendall says, and I cringe. “Are you sure he and Lori are serious.”

“Very sure,” Kirsten chastises.

“Bleagh, they’re really not a good fit. He’s miles out of her league.”

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