5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Evie

My heart is racing, and I feel tears prick at the back of my eyes. I put my hands on the counter and squeeze my eyes shut. I slowly breathe in a deep breath and then let it out, trying to settle my nerves and pull myself together, but Jamie's words float in my head.

Someone I've missed every day since I've been away.

He missed me? My stomach churns, and my heart squeezes like it's caught in a vice. He's missed me?!

Yeah, he missed you so much that he didn't even bother to call or text. Yup. That's definitely how someone shows that they're missing you.

Doubt swirls in my mind. If he really did miss me, why didn't he at least send me a text? I shake my head. There is no way that he missed me. But the way he looked at me when he said it has my stomach swooping.

Jamie has never had an easy time talking about his feelings. It's so strange that he's friends with Sean, who is overly expressive. But then again, look at Jess and me, grumpy and sunshine. That's what our classmates would call us. I smile at the memory.

Jamie and I never talked about what was happening between us, but we both knew there was something going on. We had always been friends, but it wasn't until we were helping Sean and Jessica that something changed.

My thoughts are interrupted by the oven timer. I roll my shoulders, releasing the tension as I grab the oven mitts. I inhale deeply as I open the oven and smile. The cheese puffs look amazing. I put the tray on top of the stove and grab another platter. Once I move everything over, I head back out to the table.

When I walk into the room, it's just as Jess is saying Jamie's and my names. My mouth hangs open, and my eyes widen. I look up to find Jamie with a small smile directed at me, and my heart drums against my rib cage.

"Teams," he says. "We're on the same team." I snap my mouth shut, nod my head, and continue to the table, where I put the platter down. Before turning to face everyone, I fix a smile on my face and pray that it reaches my eyes.

"Oh, okay," I say in a tone that I hope comes across as nonchalant. "What are we playing?"

"Charades," Jess says excitedly, her eyes dancing. "You know how much you love Charades!" I narrow my eyes at her and clench my jaw. She knows I hate Charades. Charades is up there with Pictionary as my least favorite game. Sean is the actor, Liam is the artist, and I am the baker.

I usually lose when playing against them. I may not be as competitive as Jess, but she knows that I still hate feeling like the underdog.

"Yay," I push out in a small voice, throwing my hands up in the air. "My favorite." I glare at her, and everyone in the room laughs, including Jamie.

I turn my gaze to him, and he shrugs. The smile on his face has me narrowing my eyes and glaring harder, and he laughs again.

The nerve of that man. He moves across the country for work, doesn't call or text, and tells me that he's missed me every day since he's been gone. Then he has the gall to laugh at me?!

I turn my glare back to Jessica. "You're going down." I all but sneer at her. The laughter that erupts from the room just feeds the fire.

"Uh-oh," Sean mocks. "Evie's mad."

If this were a cartoon, steam would be blowing from my ears. I head over to the table and get myself some punch, hoping that Jessica added a little adult beverage to it. I need something to loosen the tension in my entire body. I fill a cup and finish it all in one swallow. I can taste just a bit of alcohol. I sigh in relief and refill my glass.

"Let's go." I turn toward the room where everyone is staring at me with their brows pulled together. I try to smile, but even to me, it feels forced.

I better pull myself together or there are going to be questions thrown my way that I don't want to answer.

I take a deep breath and head over toward everyone, and when I look again, they all have the same glitter to their eyes. All except Jamie. When I meet Jamie's gaze I see uncertainty.

My lips pull up at the corner a smidge. That's right, Jamie, you should be afraid!

I walk straight up to him and put my finger on his chest. Immediately, a zing flits through my body, and I pull my finger away like I've been burned. "If you let me down, I swear I will never talk to you again." I stare into his eyes while pointing.

I see him put his hand where my finger was, and his eyes suddenly turn serious. There's an earnestness to them.

"I won't let you down," he says for the room to hear. Then, leaning in, he whispers, "Again."

My wide eyes lock with his, and the warmth I see there has me swallowing hard. I turn away from him only to see everyone intently watching the exchange. The only one not wearing a smile is Penny.

Penny is looking around from person to person with a blank expression. Liam puts his arm around her shoulders, pulls her close, and whispers something in her ear.

"OH." She turns to him with wide eyes before looking over to Jamie and me with a smile. I feel heat crawl up my face and push my body into the seat behind me. I take another sip of my drink and pretend like everything is normal.

I take a deep breath. When I look up again it's to see everyone in the same position, staring at me. "Are we going to play or what?" I ask, annoyed at this entire night so far.

The entire room bursts into laughter, and I suddenly hate them all. Jess and Sean head to grab paper, pens, and bowls while everyone else heads to the snack table to grab something to eat before settling in their seats.

Jamie, however, comes over and sits next to me. The glare I send his way has him raise his hands up in surrender, a smirk on his face. "You know you're adorable when you're angry, right?" I turn to stare at him with wide eyes and my mouth hanging open.

Did he just really say that to me?

"What?" I whisper.

"You're adora—"

"Okay, everyone, settle in!" Jessica yells as she puts a bowl in front of each team. Sean is close behind with the paper and pens. "The theme we are using tonight is obviously Christmas."

Everyone claps, and I watch as each team talks amongst themselves. They start to pick words to write on the paper and put in their bowls, and the other team members will have to act out for their teammates to guess.

Jamie nudges me. "Do you have anything you want me to write down?"

Immediately, my mind flies to How The Grinch Stole Christmas. I can't stop the smirk that crawls to my face as I turn to him and whisper in his ear. His eyes widen, and he lets out a small chuckle, but he writes it down and puts it in the bowl.

Stink. Stank. Stunk. Yeah, that's exactly how I feel about this evening.

Yes I know I'm being immature, but I can't help myself. I feel like my body has been taken over by the spirit of the grump that is my best friend. I need to pull myself together and quick. I'm just not sure how to do that.

I take another sip of my drink, a deep breath and look around at the two families gathered together. I feel my chest loosen a bit at the smiles on everyone's faces as they conspire to make the game as hard as possible for the other teams. I feel my heart expand just a bit more as the love that fills this room is palpable.

I feel my eyes being drawn to Jamie. His profile is facing me as he writes down some ideas and throws them in the bowl.

I let my eyes roam his handsome features and feel the tightness in my chest loosen. My lips lift at the corner. I've missed sitting next to him. He's sitting close enough that I can feel the heat from his body, and if I moved just a little to the left, I'd be touching him.

I lightly inhale the scent that is solely him and am surrounded by pine and cedar. My heart rate increases and I feel warmth fill me at how well he knows me. I don't get cranky very often, but when I do, it's better to just ride it out than fight it.

My family knows this. The Stewarts know this. Jamie knows this.

The warmth is immediately replaced by a chill, and my expression hardens as I turn away.

If the way he left showed me anything it's that he doesn't know me at all.