I’m in the middle of brushing my teeth before the big date with Rylie when Wade walks through the door, slamming it behind him. For a moment, guilt rushes through me as I think about how sneaky it is for me to take his sister on a date without at least telling him about it. Quickly, I dismiss my guilt.
Fuck needing his permission.
Both Rylie and I have established we could give two shits what her brother thinks of the idea of us dating, but it might be the right thing to do—as his friend—to tell him I’m planning on taking his sister to dinner tonight and sticking my tongue down her throat.
Maybe I’ll leave off that last part.
“What the fuck are you all dressed up for?” Wade scoffs as he catches sight of me rinsing my toothbrush.
“I’ve got a date tonight.”
“Since fucking when?” Wade demands, and for some reason he looks pissed.
I wonder if Rylie told him we were going out tonight.
I just give him a look of disbelief while I finish buttoning my shirt.
“Wish you would have told me, asshole,” he continues, pulling a bottle of whiskey from behind his back. “I was hoping to celebrate tonight.”
“What are we celebrating?” I ask suspiciously.
“I got that job,” Wade boasts, a huge grin on his face. “Found out this morning.”
“Did you tell Rylie and Jaron?” I’m finding it difficult to keep the scowl from my face.
“No, not yet.” Wade glowers at me, then jabs his finger in my face. “And you better not fucking tell them, either.”
“You’ll tell them tomorrow?”
“Why does it matter to you?” he demands, walking to the kitchen and slamming the bottle on the counter. “This is a big deal for me and you’re acting… you’re jealous,” he blurts out with a chuckle.
“No,” I tell him, rolling my eyes. “I’m not jealous. I’m happy you’ll finally be able to do something you love.”
“Oh, I’ll hate this job as much as working at the shop. But at least this one will pay me four times as much,” he gloats, taking down two glasses from the cupboard.
I shake my head. It’s always about money with him. I suppose that’s only logical with him being an accountant and all. But this time, he’s going to leave his family in a bad position in pursuit of green. “Where is this terrible job, then?” I ask, slipping on my shoes and feigning interest in the conversation. I know if I invest any more emotion into this, I’ll just end up arriving irritated for my date with Rylie.
“Downtown Minneapolis,” Wade explains.
That’s at least a forty-five minute drive without traffic. In rush hour, we’re talking double that. I can see where this is headed, and I don’t like it one bit. Not that I’m surprised with the inevitable outcome, but I can’t help but wonder if he’s going to leave me in a lurch like he’s doing to his siblings, or if he has plans to talk to me about bailing on me like I’m almost positive he will—before he actually does it.
“That’s going to be a haul. You going to take the train in?” I ask, working on keeping my voice level while I pull on my coat.
“I haven’t figured that out yet,” he replies hesitantly.
Fucking liar.
I’ve known the guy for most of our lives—and the compulsive squinting thing he’s doing with his eyes right now is a dead giveaway for when he’s not quite telling the truth.
He knows I see it, too. But the damn coward isn’t about to come out and tell me the truth now. I shove my keys, wallet, and phone into my pockets, taking deep breaths so I don’t lose my shit on him.
“You’re not even going to have a congratulatory drink with me?” he whines.
He fucking whines.
“I’m going to be late,” I tell him by way of explanation.
“Who’s the girl? Do I know her?” he demands angrily.
“Yeah,” I reply as I pull the front door closed behind me.
“Who?” Wade shouts at me from behind the closed door.
I don’t deign to respond.
I refuse to let him sour my mood any more than he already has. Tonight is about Rylie and me. I’m not going to spoil it by bringing up Wade and his asshole behavior. I’ll give him tomorrow to tell his brother and sister about the new job.
If he doesn’t, I’ll be telling Rylie myself.