Page 85 of Secret Baby for My Brother's Best Friends

Yeah, that whole thing had me waking up in cold sweat, and now I'm irritated because why should I care? Why should something like that scare me? I mean, I guess, I could be disappointed and a little hurt by it, but scared?

Yeah, that's too much. Why should I be scared by her not wanting to be with me?

"You okay?" Adam says as he approaches me, while the rest of the workers disperse to complete the last touches.

"Yeah." I give him a tight smile, not quite managing the casual tone I was going for. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because you look like someone pissed in your coffee. Let me guess, it has to do with Sam and his date."

"No," I deny, and he raises an eyebrow.

"You call him this morning?"

I shake my head. I had to really sit down and talk myself out of it because if I did call him, I would demand to know everything and irritate him with questions.

But hell, he could have at least come in early today so we could grill him.

"There's no reason for me to call him."

"It might help with your jealousy."

"I'm not jealous."

“Yes, you are, because you’ve never been in a situation like this,” he says, raising his eyebrow. “Every girl you’ve ever wanted has wanted you back. There’s never been a point in time where anyone ever chose Sam over you, but you can tell that there’s a genuine connection growing there, just from how she looks at him. You notice she doesn't look at either of us like that. It’s like they’ve known each other for a lifetime."

“What’s that supposed to mean?

“I mean, they’re alike in some ways and might understand each other better. She feels more comfortable around him because he’s like her, both a little socially awkward."

“She’s not socially awkward,” I say.

He raises his eyebrow. "She ran from us the first time we met up again. Stumbled over her words. It was cute, and there wasa good reason for it, but there was certainly some social anxiety tied up in there."

"She didn’t seem like it when we first met her.”

“When we first met her, she was playing a role. That wasn’t the real her."

“And how do you know who she is now isn’t playing a role? How do you know it’s the real her?"

He sighs. “They’re both probably the real her. But Sam right now is her comfort zone. He’s someone who understands her personality as it is now, someone stable for her. You and me, we’re wild cards. I bet she’s never been with a man who sleeps with a woman at the drop of the hat, a man who wasn't soft and romantic.”

“That’s ridiculous,” I scoff. “If it’s romance she wants, I can be a romantic guy. Certainly more romantic than Sam." Hell, I was romantic enough that I even considered giving her up so they could be together because I could see how much he liked her. Fat lot of good that did for me in the long run.

He smirks, and I roll my eyes. “What? You think Sam’s a lot more romantic than me?"

“I think you're acting like a tool right now and being a jealous ass.”

“I’m not jealous,” I lie even though I am.

He sighs. “This is exactly the reason I didn't want to do this. I knew you guys wouldn’t manage to keep your emotions in check, and I really don’t want anything to happen to our friendship.”

"Nothing will,” I assure him.

“Oh yeah. So what was the weird tension between you and Sam the last time we were at his house?’

“That had nothing to do with her. It has to do with Sam being an annoying bonehead who never shares whatever’s going on with him.”

“You know they say that eavesdroppers walk in to people saying bad things about them,” a voice from the doorway comes in. “But I still didn't expect this welcome.”