Mad Boys (Blue Ivy Prep, #2)(49)

Thankfully, the doctor gave me the all clear. They’d been overly cautious in my opinion, but they didn’t want to risk anything. I was just glad to be freed from restrictions. The ramp up to running daily couldn’t come soon enough. The Douchebags Three were making me crazy.

Running let me put my thoughts in order. The cold air nipped at my face as I followed the trail. I hadn’t bothered with music today, I didn’t think it would get through the chatter in my head. Or maybe it was my awareness of being watched.

Because they were all watching me.

All. Of. Them.

Lachlan seemed determined to stalk me into submission. The fact he’d tracked me down at a club in Los Angeles, and then to my suite, just to kiss me confused the hell out of me. What did he want? The possessiveness wasn’t lost on me. ‘Course, his fight with RJ was like a reflection from the previous year.

I didn’t think it had anything to do with me. RJ just provoked Lachlan. Course, so did Dix. RJ being there was another issue altogether. He’d invited me out on a date, but it was for some kind of escape room thing, and that was definitely not my favorite activity. Course, the riddle invite was kind of cute.

Then there was Captain Douchebag, as Dix dubbed him. He kissed the hell out of me. This after he asked me to not date RJ. He even said please. I legit had no idea what to do with any of it or them. The next time I saw him after the kiss, he acted like nothing happened.

To be frank, neither of them had apologized for the bullshit from last year. Maybe they’d forgotten, but I hadn’t. Speaking of bullshit from last year…

Where Ramsey and Lachlan made me crazy, Jonas just flat out confused me. Mostly because unlike the other two, I’d begun to like Jonas. He’d been great as a roommate. It made me nervous when he was so nice.

Unlike the previous year, he actually spoke to me rather than just stare like he wanted to know what was inside my brain. We had developed a kind of routine, and he never wandered into the bathroom when I was in there.

Weird that I found that a perk. Course, I made a point to not walk in on him either. Respecting each other’s space came easy. He picked up my favorites, I made sure to order his. At least once a week, we ordered in food and Jonas always went to get it.

I introduced him to some of my favorite reality shows. He showed me how to play a couple of his favorite video games. To be fair, I don’t think either of us liked the other’s picks, but we tried.

What more could you ask?

I still hated that Aubrey was across the hall and stuck with Payton. Aubrey assured me it wasn’t a big deal. They pretty much steadfastly ignored each other. That didn’t mean Aubrey didn’t keep her bedroom locked, but she also spent more time hanging with Forrest and our friends when she didn’t drop in on me and Jonas.

That was something, I supposed.

Thanksgiving came and went. Aubrey, Yvette, and I had debated plans. I headed to California to see Pen, Jackie, and Bronson for the week. They went to see their families to free us all up for Christmas.

We’d already talked about Canada for Christmas. We could go to Banff and ski, or maybe head over to Switzerland. For that matter, we could head south to Maryland. Lots of options, but I wanted an excuse to go away.

There was a pair of notes on my door when I came up the stairs from my midday run—one to me and one to Jonas. The lettering was pretty fancy, but Jonas wasn’t back yet. I flew back early so I could have a couple of days for assignments and to look over the latest musical sheets Jonas had given me.

The run had been as much about shaking off frustrations directly related to Pen’s treatment as it was my mother’s headlong dive down the rabbit hole. She was back at the Sunshine Retreat and taking no calls as she spent time contemplating her future.

I got lunch with Johnny when I was in Los Angeles. He had no idea what to do about her. She wouldn’t answer his calls, either. Trish told me Mom hadn’t called before she disappeared back to the retreat.

“Do you think you could…”

“Go back up there and talk her out?” I propped my chin on my hand and raised my eyebrows.

“I was hoping,” he said, sadness filling his eyes. “It would be different if I knew what I’d done.”

“Johnny, you have to know it wasn’t you.” It wasn’t any of us. “Mom’s just…” Did they have a word for Mom? “High maintenance. She’s found something that gives her an easy fix of comfort with no responsibility. I don’t think she’s running away from you so much as her life.”

That was as gentle as I could put it.

“So, do I just wait?”

“Well, I’m not exactly the queen of relationship advice. But you don’t have to do anything. Relationships should be two-way streets. You can’t give everything and get nothing back. It’s not fair to you…”

“I don’t care about me,” he admitted with a prolonged sigh, then motioned to the sushi on my plate. “You should eat more. You’re too skinny.”

“Don’t start.” Jackie and Davina had both been the same way. I wasn’t eating enough. I was too skinny. I needed to count the calories and make sure I wasn’t undercutting myself. I used my chopsticks to pick up a piece of dragon roll. The spicy rich flavor was perfect.

By the time we finished lunch, I’d filled Johnny in on my autumn semester and the fact I wasn’t sure about college. The funny thing about Johnny was he was more than just a beautiful face. He was genuinely nice and thoughtful.