Thoughtful (Thoughtless, #1.5)(124)

Smiling, Denny clapped me on the shoulder. “Sure, mate, whatever…it’s your place.”

I looked over at Kiera. She seemed really down. I needed to know if she was all right. If my…dating…was all right. Sadly, I still needed her approval. “Are you okay…with that?”

Her cheeks filled with color and she averted her eyes. She understood my real question then. Good. I held my breath, wondering if she’d say no, if she’d make a scene right in front of Denny. “Sure…whatever.” So there it was…my meager approval. I guess it was as much as I could hope for.

And who knows, maybe a party could bring us all back together. Maybe this was exactly what we needed.



The party started as soon as I got home from rehearsal. In fact, a pair of girls were waiting on my steps when I got back. One had creamy skin and strawberry-blond hair, the other had skin and hair as dark as night. I didn’t know either of them, but they were obviously here for the party, so they must have gotten an invite from someone I knew.

“Ladies. You’re a bit early, so you’ll have to help me set up.” I’d stopped by the store on my way home and picked up supplies for my shindig. With a friendly smile, I offered each of the girls a six-pack of chick beer—wine coolers. They giggled, just like my date last night, and I figured I had a shot with both of them.

My place was packed by the time Denny got home. He looked around my house in amazement; none of these people had ever come by while he’d been here. But all the people I knew here were “party friends,” not friend-friends. I only ever talked to them when something was going down. With wide eyes, Denny walked into the living room after setting down his stuff upstairs. “Do you know all these people?” he asked me.

I glanced at the blonde gyrating in front of me. I still didn’t know her name. “Nope, but I’ll gladly kick them out the second you want me to. I don’t want to be a bother.” I’d done enough to be a “bother” to Denny. “Want a beer?” I asked, shifting my thoughts.

Denny smiled and shrugged. “Sure. Thanks, mate.”

Just then, my dark-haired lady friend leaned over my lap. After giving me a light kiss, she playfully asked, “Need anything, love?”

“Actually, yes. A beer for me and my friend would be great. Thank you.”

She laughed, then leaned in for a longer kiss; she tasted like whiskey. When she left me, I looked over at Denny. He was shaking his head in disbelief. “Do you at least know her?”

With a wide smile, I shook my head. “Nope.”

Denny rolled his eyes, then laughed. “Some things never change.”

I laughed with him, but a twinge of pain rippled around my insides. Everything has changed.

Denny and I talked, laughed, and joked around just like we used to. I asked him about his job, and he complained about his boss for a solid fifteen minutes. When he was done with his cathartic release, I said, “You know, I may not be able to get you a new job, but I bet I could get your boss removed. Maybe we could shame him into resigning? Griffin knows a few prostitutes…”

His eyes widened. “Griffin knows a few…” Shutting his mouth, he shook his head. “Yeah, that actually doesn’t surprise me.” Our beers arrived as we shared a laugh. Clinking bottles with me, he jokingly said, “Yes, let’s do this. Call Griffin, have him call his hookers, and we’ll blackmail Max. Just don’t tell Kiera…She wouldn’t approve of the prostitutes.”

Chuckling, I sipped my beer. “I think she’d approve of them more than she would Griffin.” Denny laughed so hard he snorted, and I swallowed the razorblade of pain and guilt that always sliced into me when I mentioned Kiera’s name around him. When he was calmly sipping his beer again, I stupidly asked, “How are you two, by the way?” And why was I opening a door into a painful conversation that would suck regardless of his answer? Because it was the only way back to normalcy, that was why.

Denny lowered his beer from his mouth. He gave me an odd, appraising look, even as he smiled. “We’re all right, I guess. Better than we’ve been in a while, anyway.”

I nodded, feeling reaffirmed that I was doing the right thing. The void I’d created by leaving Kiera alone was being filled by Denny, and that was the way it was supposed to be. And even though my insides were cold from the loss of her, it warmed me some that at least my relationship with Denny hadn’t changed much. He was still the same person he’d always been. Warm, friendly, considerate. A great friend. I was determined to be the friend he deserved to have.

I was feeling pretty good about life as the evening went on. My dark-haired date made herself comfortable on my lap and leaned in for a kiss. Even though she was completely wasted, I obliged her. Her level of sobriety didn’t bother me; she could be as drunk or as sober as she wanted to be. All I cared was that she was a distraction, and if I closed my eyes, I could imagine she was Kiera.

Maybe made uncomfortable by the girl’s exuberance, Denny got up from the couch. Someone instantly took his place, but I was too wrapped up in feminine attention to care who it was. Our kiss was getting pretty intense, and as I ran my hands up her thighs, Kiera’s body filled my mind. God, she had a great body. Trim and athletic, but still curvy in all the right places. Amazing.

The person who’d taken Denny’s spot on the couch bumped my shoulder in a clear indication that they wanted my attention. Pulling apart from the dark-haired girl, I looked over to see my strawberry-blond friend smiling at me. “Are you going to ignore me all night?” she asked; her voice had a sensuous teasing quality about it.