Page 16

The gym was busy, the locker room buzzing with people talking about the rest of their weekend plans and complaining about their workouts and spouses and kids. All the usual gym stuff.

I found the locker where I’d put my stuff and pulled my bag out of it. As I was checking to make sure I had everything before hitting the showers, I heard a voice on the other side of the lockers.

“Connor, the answer is no. If you keep this shit up, I’m blocking your number. I don’t give a fuck if you’re my brother. Bye.”

There were plenty of women who could be talking to guys named Connor like that in here. But none of them had James’s exact voice. I froze where I was and heard her muttering to herself before slamming her locker and walking toward the main door, which led her right past me.

“James,” I said, my mouth forming her name before I had even decided to speak. She turned, her face pale and pinched with unhappiness.

Shit. I’d called her name and now I didn’t know what to say. She waited anyway.

“He’s an asshole to you too?” I managed to say.

She opened her mouth to say something and then closed it, nodding.

“I’m sorry,” I said. Why the hell was I apologizing? Her brother wasn’t a moldy bag of radioactive dildos because of me. We’d both suffered for knowing him.

I’d only had to deal with him for four years. She’d had to deal with him her whole life. And at least I got to kick him out of my house.

She shrugged. “He is who he is. I should have blocked him a long time ago. Gone no-contact. But family is complicated.”

No matter how bad the bullying at school had gotten, I’d been able to go home to two parents who loved me unconditionally. My childhood outside of school had been almost ideal and I had nothing but good memories from those times.

James probably couldn’t say the same. Not only had she gotten stuck with the brother she had, her parents were the actual worst. I cringed at the memory of her dad storming into the school and trying to throw his weight around. Then there was her mom, the most passive aggressive woman to ever walk the earth. She’d join a volunteer group and within hours had caused complete mayhem and turned half the moms against the other half leading to tears, accusations, and the spilling of too many secrets.

In short, James had drawn the short straw in the family department.

My stomach rumbled, reminding me that I needed to feed it ASAP.

“I was just about to go to brunch. Do you want to join me?” What the hell was I saying?

James raised her eyebrows so high they almost kissed her hairline.

“Really?” she asked. “Is that a genuine offer?”

Her tone was snappish, but I didn’t take it personally. Talking with Connor would have put me in the same frame of mind.

It was now or never.

My original plan of pretending she was a stranger and never acknowledging her existence wasn’t working, so I guessed this was the new plan. Or at least it was the plan for today. I wouldn’t have done it if she hadn’t sounded and looked so wrecked. Fuck.

“Yeah, it’s a sincere offer. As long as you don’t spend the whole time giving me an apology speech again.”

That comment made her lips twitch at the corners. Almost a smile.

“I won’t. I promise.” We stood there staring at each other as if neither of us knew what to do or say next. This was uncharted territory.

“I need to shower and change first,” I announced, and then blushed because did she really need to know that? No.

“Oh, of course. I’ll just wait out front. Take your time.” She’d thrown a purple fleece on over her light pink matching bra and leggings. The whole look was effortlessly cool. Like she was off to model for an activewear brand. Even her shoes had purple-and-pink accents on them.

I wish I was that coordinated today. My tank was an old one that had a few holes and a design so faded you couldn’t even figure out what it was, and my pants had also seen better days.

You’d think for someone who worked with clothing, I’d put in more effort, but I’d just shoved whatever my fingers touched first into my bag this morning on my way out the door.

At least the clothes I had to change into were a cute pastel mint cropped sweatshirt and pants. James left me to my shower and I gathered up my things in a bewildered daze.

Less than a half hour later I found myself sitting across from James at another table while we tried to make small talk but failed spectacularly. Usually, to carry on a conversation, you had to have some curiosity about the other person, and I didn’t really want to know any more about James than I already did, so we were at a conversational impasse.