Page 2 of It's Complicated

“Hundred percent.” His smile fell. “We should probably get this cleaned up.”

The stilted conversation and this weird feeling of awkwardness were so unlike us it was setting my nerves on edge.

Jamie and I had met three years ago when a mutual friend introduced us. I’d been looking for a roommate, and Jamie had been searching for a place to live after graduating from college.

We hit it off immediately and became inseparable within a few weeks of living together. We joked that we were each other’s platonic soulmates because we got along so well, and our friends had been calling us an old married couple for years.

He was my best friend, the person I trusted above anyone else, and I hated that one stupid decision had potentially torpedoed the best friendship I’d ever had.

We never had trouble talking about things. Jamie was one of the few people Icouldtalk to about important shit, but right now we could barely look at each other.

“Yeah.” I rubbed the back of my neck, nervous energy crackling under my skin. “Do you need to use the…” I flicked my gaze to the door to our shared bathroom.

He nodded and shifted from foot to foot like he physically couldn’t keep still.

“I’ll get started out here while you do.”

He nodded again, taking a sliding step to the side. “Yeah. Okay. I won’t be long.”

“Take your time.” I waved dismissively. “It’s fine.”

“Okay. I’ll just…” He hooked his thumb in the general direction of the bathroom.

“Enjoy.”

Enjoy? Jesus, Isaac, could you be any more awkward?

“I will.” His lips tilted up in a tiny smile, but it was gone a second later.

Not wanting to extend this torturous interaction, I spun on my heel and rushed into the kitchen.

Theclickof the bathroom door closing and thesnickof the lock engaging were music to my ears, and I relaxed for the first time since I woke up.

Now wasn’t the time to get lost in my head, and it definitely wasn’t the time to replay what happened last night over and over again and relive it in 4k.

Blocking out the crush of thoughts cascading around in my head, I grabbed a garbage bag and shook it open.

I just needed to distract myself long enough to clean up and figure out how much Jamie remembered. Then I could lock myself in my room and have a full-blown freak out if necessary.

On autopilot, I moved around the kitchen, tossing the trash into the bag and putting the empties in the sink so I could take care of them later. Our cupboards and fridge had been completely emptied of anything that didn’t require cooking or any sort of real prep. That wasn’t surprising, but it was annoyingconsidering half the people who’d been here last night were virtual strangers and had been invited by people other than Jamie and me.

I made a few mental notes of things we needed to pick up but had zero faith that I’d remember any of them. My memory wasn’t the greatest on a good day, and it was absolutely terrible when I was stressed out or distracted.

And right then, I was definitely both of those things.

When the kitchen was tidied up, I headed into the living room. We could scrub it clean later. Right now was about getting rid of the obvious mess and all evidence of the party we never intended to throw.

I nearly tripped over my feet.

Jamie stood in front of the couch, which was on the other side of our living room from where it usually sat, the red heel in his hand and an unreadable expression on his face.

“Jamie?” I asked, my voice hitching embarrassingly.

He snapped his eyes up. Surprise, then horror, flashed in them before they went back to unusually neutral.

That was weird as fuck. Jamie wasn’t one of those people who could easily hide his emotions, especially not from me. His eyes were one of his best features. Not only because they were the most incredible shade that shifted from denim to baby blue depending on his mood but also because they were so damn expressive you could tell exactly what he was thinking or feeling as long you knew how to read them.

Jamie was one of those people who instantly drew others to him. His wide smiles, friendly demeanor, and empathetic nature put people at ease, and his classic good looks and big, powerful body only added to his charm.

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