Page 50 of Entangled

I drop my take-out bag onto the porch steps and take a seat beside him, knowing there’s no escaping and strangely lacking the desire to try now.

We sit in a weirdly comfortable silence for a good while, watching the daylight slowly fade to dusk before he turns to me. “You avoiding me, Blondie?”

I heave a weary sigh before turning to look him in the eye. “Kind of.”

“Why?” He tilts his head questioningly.

“Because…” I shrug. “Because I’m kind of a mess, in case you haven’t noticed.”

“This have to do with you taking things one day at a time?”

“Yeah.”

“Was it a guy?”

I drop my gaze for a moment, running my fingers along the hem of my shorts before bringing my eyes back to his. “Yeah.”

He nods in understanding before his lips twitch. “I kinda figured.”

A soft laugh escapes me, and I reach up, giving his shoulder a push. “Ass.”

“We’ve all been there.” He grins, eyes filling with humor. “Everyone except me, that is. Girls generally find me pretty irresistible.”

“Oh, I’m sure.” I roll my eyes at him, lips twitching as I turn my head back toward the dusk-filled sky.

The sound of cicadas fills the air for a moment before he speaks. “He’s an idiot, for what it’s worth. Whoever he is.”

“Thanks.” I clear my throat against the feelings his words bring before turning back to him. “I’ve been reading her journals.”

For better or worse, he’s in this with me now, since that day in the house. And I feel like I owe it to him to offer the information if he wants to hear it.

His brows pull down. “How’s that been going?”

“It’s been going…” I give him a small smile. “I’m not sure how I feel about her yet. I started at the beginning and she was a complex person, to say the least.”

“The best people typically are.”

I eye him doubtfully, cocking a brow. “I think that’s debatable.”

“Probably.” He grins at me unashamedly. “I was just trying to make you feel better.”

Another soft laugh leaves me and I shake my head at him. “You really are something else.”

He holds up a finger to me. “Now keep that thought in mind while I ask this next question.”

“Oh god.”

“I liked those words a whole lot better the last time you were saying them.”

“Spit it out, Dawson.”

He tilts his head and pulls his bottom lip between his teeth before exhaling a deep breath. “Come to family dinner with me?”

“Wh-what?” I sputter. That was definitely not even close to what I was expecting. Although I never quite knew what to expect from him.

“Just hear me out.” He leans forward, bracing his arms on his knees. “So Tiff told my dad that you were in town and my dad obviously knows who you are because of our moms. Then she told him we had been hanging out and he told me to invite you to dinner. And I couldn’t very well tell him you were avoiding me because we had fuc—” He catches himself, eyeing me nervously. “Uh, taken comfort in one another after a hard day. So here I am.”

I give him an unamused look. “You sound like a twelve-year-old girl.”

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