Page 19 of Best of Me

I suck in a sharp breath. Ashley is the only other person to ever call me by anything other than my name—my mother’s insults notwithstanding—and hearing someone else do it stops me in my tracks. But Mal—it’s a little too close to Val for my liking.

When I don’t say anything back, he asks, “Is it okay to call you that?” This dude must be awesome at his job if he can read everyone as easily as he can me.

“It’s…um…” I search for the right words. “Mally, call me Mally. It’s what…my friends call me.” I almost snort at my use of the wordfriends, though I guess it’s not really a lie, not anymore.

Grinning, Nate nods. “Okay then.” A warmth,a very platonic warmth, sparks in my chest; it feels weird, but nice all the same.

He’s about to say something more when Jenny walks up, plopping herself down onto his lap. At first I worry she may be upset that Nate and I are talking alone, but instead of being angry, she smiles brightly. “Mallory! I’m so glad you’re here!”

“Thanks for inviting me.”

“Of course. Hopefully this guy’s not boring you too terribly.” She leans farther into Nate, nestling her head into the crook of his neck. He looks down at her, pure affection for her lighting his eyes. My God, what I wouldn’t give to have someone look at me like that, for someone to love me so absolutely. But I already know love isn’t in the cards for the likes of me. I’ve never been enough for anyone—not for my ex, not even for my parents.

Nate huffs. “As if I could ever bore anyone. C’mon, GG, you know better. Mally and I were having a heart-to-heart—”

“Oh, so y’all are on a nickname basis now, huh?” My worry that Jenny’s upset with me returns tenfold but dissolves just as quickly when she shoots me an exaggerated wink.

“Hell yeah, we are. She said her friends call her Mally. Catch up, girl.” The playfulness between Nate and Jenny warms me. Sadly, they’re one of the only examples of a healthy relationship I’ve ever seen, which makes them the very definition ofcouples’ goals. Too bad it’s an unattainable goal.

“Okay then, cutie, catch me up on what you and Mally here were gossiping about.”

“We were talking about Duke.”

“Ohhh.” Jenny grins. “Yeah, he wants you. Bad.”

My face heats at her words. I part my lips to refute them, only instead of speaking, I somehow suck air down the wrong pipe, causing me to choke up a storm. As I hack up a lung, tears trail my cheeks and I wish a freaking hole would swallow me up to end this embarrassment.

To add insult to injury, Jenny leaps from Nate’s lap and rushes to me, patting my back with enough force to shake loose my teeth. I shake my head rapidly in reply to her earlier statement and in an effort to get her to stop.

We must be making quite the spectacle, because Natalie and Alden both rush over. Natalie passes me a bottle of water, and with shaky hands, I uncap it and take a sip. The cool liquid soothes my coughing but not my humiliation. Literally every guest is staring at me like I’m the entertainment instead of a guest.Seriously, a sinkhole would be really great right about now…

chapter eleven

Duke

I can’t believe I’m fucking late for Nate and Jenny’s engagement party. But big surprise, Nancy had another meltdown. I figured now that Mallory was home, I could pass that particular baton to her, but nope. The burden still falls to me.

Don’t get me wrong—I know Mallory and Nancy don’t have the best relationship, but,damn, you’d think the girl could at least make an effort; I mean, it is her mother after all.

At least this time wasn’t as bad as the last. She didn’t wreck the house or try and hurt herself; today was her usual drink and reminisce. Which means not only am I late for the party, but I’m also in a shit mood after looking at every picture ever taken of Valorie. She was so damn beautiful and full of life, and now she’s so damn gone. Too bad she took my heart to the grave with her.

When I finally make it to Alden’s house, I’m half an hour late and in desperate need of good company, some great food, a cold drink, and a dip in the pool to unwind. Except, when I step out into the backyard, the first thing I see is Mallory reclined back on a lounge chair, like a fucking queen, surrounded by all ofmypeople.

The sound of their laughter reaches me clear across the yard; it grates on my ears, making me clench my teeth. While Mallory’s been here laughing it up, without a care in the world, I’ve been taking care of her mother.Ain’t that some shit?

I grit my teeth, steel my resolve, and make my way over toward where they’re gathered. As I approach, I hear my name slip past Mallory’s luscious lips, asking where I am. The hell is she asking about me for? And why the fuck am I noticing how tempting her lips look?

Nate glances down at his watch. “I haven’t heard from him. Let me shoot him a text.”

“No need,” I say, announcing my presence.

Like it was choreographed, they all turn to look at me simultaneously. “Where’ve you been?” Nate asks.

I cut my eyes over to Mallory. “Nancy.” Neither Alden or his wife react to my single word reply, but Nate and Jenny both nod knowingly.

Mallory, on the other hand, scrunches her nose and shoots a questioning glance my way. “Why—” she starts to ask, but I turn and stalk away toward the cooler. My patience with her is a frayed thread on the verge of snapping altogether at this point.

Not shockingly, Nate follows, hot on my heels. “Everything okay?”

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