Yours Truly (Part of Your World, #2)(59)

Jeremiah shifted his feet. “I was just telling Amy that the two of you work together?” he said, trying to change the subject.

“Yes,” I said, regaining some of my composure. “Briana’s an ER physician at Royaume.”

“Do you like it?” Amy asked her with a forced smile, obviously trying to make conversation to salvage the bad start.

“Working with him? I love it,” Briana said. She looked up at me with stars in her eyes. “You know what he said to me the other day? You guys will love this story. We had this patient with a degloving injury to the scalp. Half his face was peeled off, really gory. Anyway, we patched this guy up and Jacob grabs me and pulls me into a supply closet and looks me in the eye and says, ‘Briana, I would love you even if you didn’t have a face.’”

I almost choked on my laugh. Her story was so unexpected it completely threw me out of my anxiety spiral.

Amy looked back and forth between us like she was trying to tell whether Briana was joking.

I coughed into my fist, still smiling. “It’s true. I said it.”

Amy pressed her lips into a line. “That’s so sweet,” she said flatly.

Briana clutched my arm. “He’s always saying stuff like that to me. He’s so romantic.” She grinned up at me for a second, then looked back at Amy. “We’re moving in together.”

My head whipped to stare at her.

Amy looked back and forth between us. “You’re…moving in together.” She said it slowly, like maybe she didn’t understand.

“Yeah. He practically begged me,” Briana said. “And then I was like, you’re right, the walls at my place are waaaay too thin, we’re keeping the neighbors up all night and this poor guy’s always too dehydrated to drive home after…Anyway, it’s been so nice to meet you,” Briana said. “But I need a drink. Jacob? Want a drink?”

“Sure?”

Then she dragged me toward the bar and left them standing there.

Well. That was over.

“I hate her,” Briana hiss-whispered as soon as we were out of hearing distance.

“Don’t hate her,” I said, still chuckling. “I’m sure this isn’t easy for her either.”

She muttered something in Spanish. Then she pulled me into a quiet spot next to the pool house. She closed her eyes and let out a long breath through pursed lips like she was trying to settle herself down. When she looked at me again, she shook her head. “I’m sorry,” she said, softer now. “I get very protective over people I care about. And I did not like that.”

“It’s okay,” I said, trying to hide how much I liked that she just said she cared about me.

She crossed her arms. “I mean, what is her problem? Was that necessary? I cOuLdN’t BeLieVe yOu HaVe a GiRlFriEnD,” she said in a mock voice that was supposed to be Amy. “Why exactly is that so hard to believe? You’re a ten. What is so fucking confusing??”

I arched an eyebrow. “You think I’m a ten?”

“You’re an eleven.”

I peered down at her, grinning. “So you’d still love me even if I didn’t have a face?”

This drew a laugh, despite her annoyance.

“Where do you come up with this stuff?” I asked, smiling.

“I am very good at ad-libbing. Seriously, though. I really hope you don’t let anything she says get to you.”

“She’s not a mean person. I don’t think that came out the way she intended.”

“Yeah, well, she’d better learn to be a little more intentional when it comes to you, because I’m not going to put up with it. I was two seconds away from taking my hoops out.”

I looked at her, amused. “You know, you actually scare me a little bit…”

“You have no idea how scary I can be.”

I crossed my arms. “You do realize that you’re really going to have to live with me now, right?”

“Oh, ha-ha.”

“I’m serious. My family comes over unannounced all the time. They’ll know you lied.”

She waved me off. “Put a pink toothbrush in your bathroom.”

“That’s not gonna do it.”

The funny thing was, I wanted her to stay with me. I didn’t like it when she went home at night. I didn’t even like it when we both got off and we had to get into separate cars to meet later for dinner. I’d love it if she was staying at my house, even if I was only getting her on a technicality.

Even if I was only getting her for now.

An hour and a half later the caterer had carved the pig. A chocolate fountain with pineapple and strawberries had been rolled out and the flame throwers had just finished their act. Mom did know how to throw a party.

I was relaxed. We’d spent the time talking to Jill, Jewel, Walter, and Gwen at a long picnic table near the tiki torches.

I think Briana must have impressed Jewel earlier because my sister sidled up to her like she’d found a new member of her dog pack. Jewel responded to strong female leadership.

Briana was sitting so close to me her leg pressed into mine. I had a hand on her knee, and she kept leaning into my arm. I almost forgot I was at my ex’s engagement party. Or that I was at a party at all.

Briana did that to me.