Page 57

Bobby turns toward Trey, who nods. The two of them discuss briefly where they would meet, exchange some information on their phones, and it looks like we’re ready to go.

Before we leave, I find Roxie, who’s now sitting in another booth with a group of bespectacled young guys, most of whom wear t-shirts with attitude.

“What’s going on?” she asks, concern evident in her voice. She knows something is up with me.

“Nothing. I’m gonna head home. Thanks for bringing me and Bobby here. It’s really nice to see all these people from Qpik. Makes me wish I’d have gotten the job.”

“You still might,” she says, then grabs my forearm. “Seriously, are you okay? Do you want me to come home with you?”

One of the dudes whistles, and Roxie rolls her eyes at him. “Oh, grow up.”

A bunch of them snicker and I suddenly feel exhausted. Like I can’t stand to be around people for another second.

“It’s okay. I think I need to relax. I’ll talk to you soon,” I say.

“All right. Talk to you soon.”

I drive Bobby and me home. He keeps glancing in my direction, but doesn’t speak. His worrying just makes me more irritated.

There’s pressure building inside me, and suddenly I can’t take his scrutiny anymore. I shoot him an annoyed look as I snap, “What? What is it?”

“What happened, Lizzie?” His voice is mild, his eyes kind.

I return my gaze to the road. “Nothing happened.”

“Why aren’t you with your guy?”

“That’s none of your business.”

“Bullshit. Tell me what happened.”

“He’s not my guy, okay?” I am actually yelling. It surprises us both. “Joe and I just sleep together. It’s nothing.”

“I don’t think it’s nothing. He looks like he’s very much into you.”

“Well, that’s his problem. I told him from the start I can’t get into anything with him. That I’ve just gotten out of a relationship. And he said that was okay. But now it’s not and I am the asshole for always pushing him away.”

With the corner of my eye, I can see Bobby studying me for a long moment before he speaks. “Do you? Always push him away?”

I groan.

“Lizzie—”

“Yes! All right? I do! I do push him away. He’s always trying to get me to go out on dates and to spend the night and I don’t want that, Bobby! I don’t want any of it! I don’t want that bullshit romance stuff. It all turns to shit sooner or later anyway.

“Besides, rebound relationships never work. Look it up, it’s all over the web. So this thing was doomed before it started anyway.”

“Well, with that attitude it definitely was,” Bobby mutters.

“Don’t. Just ... don’t. I’m really not in the mood.”

Bobby puts his hands up. “Hey, a little optimism wouldn’t hurt you, that’s all I’m sayin’.”

“All I want to do is start fresh, you know? In a place where people don’t know me, where I’m not under Mom and Dad’s thumb, where I’m not constantly surrounded by reminders that I spent all of my 20s with Jake.”

He smiles and nods. “All that is great, Lizzie.”

“And I don’t need a guy. I don’t want a guy. I am alone for the first time in my life and I want to stay that way.” Bobby keeps nodding and I keep ranting. “Look at Roxie!” I motion toward an unspecified place somewhere in the world, outside this car. “She has a good job and she lives alone and she’s way cooler than anyone I’ve ever known...”