Page 84 of Back To You

“I was saying how I’m not surprised you and Annie are still together.” I watch as Grant follows my prior gaze, looking directly at Annie and Devin. The two must have given up the small talk and are both looking at their phones, and I don’t like how most of Grant’s attention isn’t on his own girlfriend.

“Yeah,” I say, giving him a noncommittal answer. The guys on the hockey team always tried to give me shit about my commitment to Annie, especially when I didn’t join in on their excitement for the girls they were hoping to meet in college, despite most of them having girlfriends. I never entertained it, so they eventually gave up.

Back then, I didn’t care about anyone’s opinion about my relationship with Annie except for Annie’s. The same is true now.

Grant shakes his head. “I never got your thing for her in high school, but I see it now. Never thought I’d be jealous of you hittingthat.”

Emmett and Eddie both freeze, and I feel their eyes on me. Grant’s eyes are still on Annie, and it’s Grant’s lucky day that he has to deal with me rather than her.

If Annie heard him say that, he would’ve met a similar fate to Ava’s douche of an ex-boyfriend, probably worse.

I’ve never been outwardly possessive over Annie—it’s not really the kind of guy I am. I feel protective over her, wanting to protect her, but I learned over the years that she doesn’t need that from me.

But right now, I don’t care. I feel a rush of adrenaline funnel through me. “Watch your fucking mouth,” I bite, and Grant finally stops looking at Annie and faces me.

“Relax, dude. I meant it as a compliment.”

“Look at her again, and she’ll be the last thing you see.”

Grant tries to laugh it off, looking at Emmett and Eddie as if they’ll be any help to him right now, but when he sees the way the two are staring at him, the laugh quickly dries out.

“Whatever,” he scoffs, grabbing his beer and Devin’s wine and walking back over to the table.

“Get those fucks out of here,” Eddie growls, not at all concerned about his volume.

“You have five minutes,” Emmett adds.

“Don’t worry,” I reply, watching as Grant stands behind Devin’s chair, Annie looking up at him and Devin. “Annie will have them out in three.

Chapter 33

Annie

Small talk should be used as a torture tactic because there is literally nothing worse. Devin and I lasted 30 seconds without Grant and Luke as buffers before I was about to flip this fucking table.

Just like I knew she would, she eyed me up and down before she sat down and said how she couldn’t believe Luke and I were still together. I told her how it was new, that we recently got back together, leaving out all the important details.

I think I caught her off-guard—not by my answer, but by the fact that I answered without staring at the floor or talking too softly. She covered it up quickly though before nodding her head, giving me a fake-ass smile, and going on her phone.

I did the same, not in any rush to make more small talk. I wanted to wait for Luke to come back with our drinks before I brought up why we wanted to get together, and when I finally feel his presence behind my chair as he sets down my gin and tonic on the table, it’s game on.

“So, Devin,” I start, “there is a reason we wanted to meet up with you guys tonight.” My voice sounds foreignin my own ears, the high-pitch tone and niceties feel weird on my tongue.

“And what reason is that?” Devin drawls, taking a sip of her red wine.

“You see, when my friends and I ran into you at the grocery store not too long ago, you made a comment about how you showed me that video for my own good.” Her eyes slightly widen when I mention seeing her at the store, and widen even more when I bring up the video.

I knew she would assume I didn’t have the balls to confront her about either of these things, especially in front of Luke and Grant, and I planned on using that to my advantage tonight.

I can say a lot about Devin—considering she was my friend for eight years. I know her well enough to know exactly what to expect from her, and that those nasty qualities of hers I always saw but ignored until she threw them in my face haven’t changed.

Devin doesn’t say anything for a moment, her wine glass frozen a few inches from her lips as if my words paused her movements. I use her falter to continue. “The crazy thing about that video is,” I grab Luke’s hand and hold it in mine on the table, watching as Devin’s eyes fall to our hands before she looks back up at me, “when I told Luke about it, he didn’t remember it. He didn’t even remember that you and Penelope were at Alek’s house that night.”

I watch as the realization hits her. She’s not stupid. She has to know what she did was wrong. She was just too confident, too cocky, that no one would call her on her bullshit.

Grant’s eyes are going back and forth between me and Devin, occasionally looking at Luke with a confused—worried?—expression. “What the hell are you guys talking about? What video?”

I look up at Grant and feign innocence all over my face. “Oh, Grant. Devin never told you?” I turn to Devin. “Do you want to tell him, or should I?” I give her a smile I hope she sees in her nightmares, one that she’s probably seen in the mirror.

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