The Roommate Agreement

Yes. That was it. I needed a reset.

I needed a date.

Pronto.

• • •

Sean: I think u lost ur mind, bro.

Me: I think I’m doing the right thing. I need a distraction & Shelby isn’t it.

Sean: I told u that u were in love with her.

Me: Not in love with her. Just feeling shit I shouldn’t.

Sean: So ur gonna go on a date, fuck this girl, and go back to the apartment u share with ur best friend and pretend like u didn’t just screw someone to get over her?

Me: No, I’m gonna have dinner with her & go home.

Sean: Ur plan for getting over ur best friend is buying someone else dinner and not even getting so much as a handjob for ur troubles?

Sean: Don’t u kno the best way to get over someone is to get under someone else?

Me: When have you ever had a one-night stand where you’ve been on the bottom?

Sean: Point.

Sean: But still, u should have sex with her.

Me: Shouldn’t you be more concerned about fixing shit with Brie?

Sean: She’s staying with her mom. Georgia texted me this morning and she lost it. But it’s that time of the month so I let her go.

Me: You have the finesse of an elephant & you’re giving me relationship advice? Fuck off, man. Fight for your girl before you judge me.

Sean: Hey, u texted me first. I was being a good friend. U wanna text Brie instead?

Me: At this point, I’m gonna take your girl for dinner instead.

Sean: Great. Her fave choc is Hersheys Cookies and Cream and don’t mention sharks. They make her angry.

I put my phone face down on the coffee table and pinched my nose. He was hard work, but for all his nonchalant bullshit, I knew he was hurting that his relationship with Brie was on the rocks.

All because of the new girl I’d hired.

Fucking hell, I was making a hash of just about everything right now, wasn’t I?

Now, I was sitting here in my living room, counting down the minutes until I had to have dinner with the cute girl I’d met in the gym earlier today. All I really wanted to do was cancel and call Brie and drag her out for my reservation instead.

I hadn’t seen Shelby all day. I was scheduled for the later shift today, starting at eleven, and she’d left for the library before I’d even woken up. She’d come back before I had and locked herself in her room. I knew better than to disturb her when she was working, so I’d cooked her dinner and left it covered in the oven for her with a note.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t eat.

I might not pick up my socks, but I could cook a chicken like a boss. Despite my efforts at cooking bacon that almost always turned out badly, I was good at just about everything else. Shelby didn’t always like to admit it, but my omelets were better than hers, and I could cook meat better than her.

I knew she was avoiding me, and a part of me was okay with that. I wasn’t entirely sure I wanted to see her right now either. Last night was still too fresh. Every time I thought about it, I was reminded about how close I’d come to kissing her when she’d been wiping my face.

Kissing her was not a good idea.

Nothing good ever came from kissing your best friend.

I didn’t have a lot of evidence to back that up, mind you, but the thought of explaining myself after I’d done it was more than enough to convince me that it was terrible, terrible fucking idea.

So I did the only thing I could do. I got up, casting a glance toward Shelby’s closed bedroom door, and left the apartment. My truck was parked outside the building next to her car, and I climbed into it, heading for the steakhouse I’d picked for the date.

Don’t get me wrong. I wasn’t against having a date. If anything, I needed one. I needed to be reminded that Shelby wasn’t the only woman in the world.

I knew that. On a conscious level, I knew she wasn’t the only woman who existed, but sometimes it felt that way. I guess that was what happened when you lived with the woman you had feelings for.

She was always there.

I groaned as I pulled into the parking lot. I was ten minutes early because my mom would kill me if she ever found out I’d kept a date waiting. I wasn’t the best roommate, but I was a perfect gentleman.

Mostly.

I locked my truck and tugged at the collar of my shirt as I headed for the doors. It was inevitable in a small town, but I hoped like hell I didn’t see anyone I knew.

Unfortunately for me, luck was not on my side, because the moment I stepped into the restaurant, I laid eyes on the two people you don’t want to see when you’re going on a date.