Page 30 of Good For Me

Jas

Ipark in my reserved spot behind the bar, uncertainty swirling in my stomach. I really don’t want to see River. Last night felt brutal.

It shouldn’t have been a big deal. The entire thing should have been par for the course for a guy like him. How many times have I seen him leave this bar with some random girl to do exactly what we did Friday night?

Not exactly,a voice in my head whispers.He doesn’t take random girls to meet his grandmother.

I figured I was doing both of us a favor last night. I’m sure River has given a similar speech to any number of girls. I just saved him the awkwardness of doing it himself.

So why had he looked so…defeated? I can’t stop thinking about the pained expression on his face while we stood facing each other in that dim back hallway. The thought of seeing him again right now makes my palms get clammy.

“Is there a reason we’re still sitting here?” Brie asks.

I sigh, taking the keys out of the ignition. “No. Just feeling tired all of a sudden.”

“Hmm.” She doesn’t elaborate, and I wonder what she’s thinking. She’s been uncharacteristically quiet the entire ride over and I saw her studying me out of the corner of my eye more than once.

I pull open my door and slide out, steeling myself before leading her into the back hallway, trying not to remember how sick I had felt standing in this same spot last night. I’d intentionally come home late, hoping to avoid him. Hoping to avoid the conversation that turned out every bit as awkward as I had feared.

But there’s no avoiding him today. As soon as we step out of the back hallway, my eyes go right to him. Maybe it’s that shock of blond hair, always so eye-catching in the dim light of the bar. Or maybe it’s just because it’s River.

Stop being such a sap,I order myself. It was one night. One meaningless night.

His eyes catch mine almost as soon as I spot him, and for one brief second, they light up the way they always do when I enter this bar. But then a mask seems to come down over his face, his eyes going harder than I’ve ever seen, and he merely nods at me once before turning back to the taps in front of him.

I don’t say a word to anyone as I lead Brie to the locked door on the other side of the bar. She waits until we’re upstairs and in the entry to the apartment before she turns on me.

“You slept with River Ransome!”

I gape at her. “What? What are you…what?”

She grins triumphantly, pointing at my face. “I knew you got laid this weekend! Your face looked exactly like that when Derek brought up being your rebound.”

I roll my eyes, trying to act unaffected. “You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Oh yes I do.” She follows me to the kitchen. “You’re blushing, Jas. Just like you were blushing back at the house. And I saw the way he looked at you when we walked in.”

I finally spin to face her. “How did he look at me?” I ask before I can think better of it.

Her grin is triumphant. “You didn’t just sleep with him,” she says slowly. “Youlikehim.”

“You’re ridiculous. I barely know him.”

Her eyes widen in excitement. “Oh my God, is he the reason you dumped Kurt?”

“No! Of course not. I wouldn’t dump my boyfriend of two years to sleep with some bartender. I have zero in common with River.”

She rolls her eyes. “Like you had so much in common with Kurt?”

“I did, actually,” I say, holding up a hand when she opens her mouth to argue with me. “Okay, we didn’t have all of the same interests. But we had the same goals. We were heading in the same direction.”

She shakes her head. “Just because you’re both career-minded doesn’t mean you should end up with a guy, Jesus.”

I rub my forehead. “Are we drinking margaritas or what?”

She grabs the tequila from the top of my fridge and cradles it to her chest. “I will make you a margarita on one condition. You have to tell me everything that happened this weekend.”

I sigh. “Fine. Just pour some alcohol down my throat first, okay?”