Page 69

"Why are all these people here?" I ask, turning around when she shuts the door. "I thought it was just going to be the two of us?"

"I never said just the two of us, Brooke." She laughs at me, picking up the dress and passing it to me. "I just asked if you would come home for Thanksgiving."

"No, you said you wanted to talk," I say as I change into the dress, because at least we are talking right now. I pull my hair out of the back of the dress.

"We will talk, but first we need to entertain our guests." She laughs again like I'm making a joke, but I just stare at her, confused, while putting my heels back on without tights because I didn't bring any with me, and I don't have clothes here because she moved all my belongings out.

"Can we talk now?" I ask, noticing she's already walking toward the door. "Then we can go see everyone?"

"Brooke," she rolls her eyes, pulling the door open. "This is hardly the time, is it? We've got guests downstairs; we can't just ignore them. Lesley's husband, Dale, wants to talk to you; he said he golfs with the dean."

"I heard," I mumble, following her to the doorway and watching as she laughs and waves her way down, not noticing that I'm not following her.

Leaning on my old room's doorway, I can't bring myself to go downstairs and play perfect daughter till she's ready to speak to me.

"Hey,"

"This day really can't get worse." I hang my head and massage my forehead with both my hands, closing my eyes.

"Well, thanks." Josh chuckles as he approaches from the direction of the upstairs bathroom. "I hope you don't mind, but no one comes up and uses this one."

My heart aches a little at the familiarity of him being up here with me again. "Doesn't matter to me." I sigh, walking over to the stair bannister and leaning my elbows on it. "I don't live here anymore."

"Yeah, I, uh, noticed all your furniture's gone." He nods towards my room and leans next to me, rubbing the back of his head; he usually does that when he's nervous.

"Well, that's what happens when your mom hijacks the removal van and packs all my belongings up." I snort and take in his shocked expression.

"I did not know she did that, Brooke." He shakes his head. "When I was messaging Cami, I was being honest when I said I didn't know what the holdup was. Mine had arrived two weeks before yours."

"You arranged the moving company, though?" I question him.

"My mom did." We both stare at each other and then down at our moms, huddled at the bottom of the stairs, whispering to each other.

"Well, that solves that mystery." I bite the inside of my cheek, feeling frustrated at being stuck here again.

"She keeps asking when we are getting back together," he says, turning so his back is to the railing and we are facing.

"Josh." I sigh, standing up straighter. "We aren't going to get back together. You know that."

"I do. Know that now." He smiles sadly, and I feel relieved. "I just wish I had done things a lot differently with you, Brooke."

"Yeah, me too." I fiddle with my hands, feeling slightly awkward around him when we used to be so comfortable. "This isn't me anymore."

"I know. It doesn't suit you." He clasps his hands together. "You're not supposed to be an accessory on someone's arm for the rest of your life."

"You used to think I should." I raise my eyebrow at him accusingly.

"That was before I saw what you did with The Drop." He laughs. "Hell, I wish we could do this together as a team, but you're better on your own than with me."

"I agree with you on that." Giving him a half smile, the first I've given to him in months.

"I tried to end it." He coughs uncomfortably and rubs the back of his head again. "I tried for a couple of years, but she said she would tell my mom and dad, and I was ashamed."

"You should have been ashamed." I'm not letting him get off of this easily. "Why did you do it?"

"You're going to hate me more than you already do," he sighs, rubbing his neck again.

"I don't hate you, Josh," he turns to me hopefully, and I crush him immediately. "I don't care enough to think about you anymore."