"Oh." Ethan sounded surprised. Then it was quiet for a moment, before he spoke again, "Are you all right, Dim?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" I could hear the airiness in her voice, and for some fucked up reason, it pissed me off.

"I just thought that you and he-"

"Are nothing. We're nothing."

I cleared my throat to announce my presence before taking the few steps into the kitchen.

"Hey roomy!" she boomed.

I flinched from the magnified loudness in my ears.

She drowned the rest of her coffee and washed it out in the sink.

"Dude," Ethan sniffed the air, then glared at me with a disgusted look on his face. "You smell like ass. I don't care if you smoke weed or whatever—that's your thing—but don't bring that shit into the house, okay?"

I jerked my head in a nod; it was all I could do.

Amanda laughed; it was that perfect bitter laugh she uses. Then she turned away from the sink, crossed her arms and faces Ethan. "Didn't you know?" she started, her voice laced with sweetness. "You can't tell Logan what to do. You can't control him. No one can." Then she kicked off the counter and walked towards me, turning on her side so she could pass me in the doorway, only she stopped half way, her breasts rubbing on arm. "I hope she was fucking worth it," she whispered in my ear.

***

The day sucked ass.

I was hung-over as fuck and the day sucked ass.

Also, I'm an asshole.

Oh yeah, the day sucked ass.

I was sprawled on the sofa while Ethan was on the recliner. ESPN was on but neither of us was watching.

He was on his phone.

I was wishing I were dead.

Then I heard the clicking of heels get louder and louder. "I need the keys." I heard her before I saw her. She walked in front of the sofa to get to him. Her bare leg brushed my hand. My eyes finally focused enough to see that she was wearing the shortest of short dresses. It barely covered her ass. Her perfect ass. Her fucking legs. Where the hell was she going?

Ethan adjusted so he could pull the key out of his pocket. He held them out but didn't give it to her. "Where are you going dressed like that?"

"Study date," she answered.

"Dressed like that?" he quirked an eyebrow at her.

Exactly, Ethan. Good man.

"Tyson said I should start dating again." She shrugged. "Tony's going to be there."

I made a groaning sound, unaware that I was doing it until it was done. If she was trying to piss me off and make me jealous, it was working.

They both turned to face me. I focused my attention on the TV.

She grabbed the keys off him and walked past me again. This time, I pulled my hand away. If I touched her, I wouldn't be able to stop myself from doing something more. Which would be awkward for two reasons, one—she wasn't mine, and two—her brother was in the room.

So I stayed silent.

Amanda

I didn't dress this way to make Logan jealous, but the fact that it did was a bonus.

I was about to put Ethan's car in gear when my phone chimed with a text.

Logan - Why are you dressed like that for a study date? He's going to get the wrong idea.

Assface has a lot of nerve.

Me - Why? Because fuck you, that's why. Also, whatever idea he gets - he's probably right.

I peeled out of the driveway and made it a block before my phone chimed again. I pulled over and parked, already furious at whatever his reply might be. Only this time, it wasn't from Logan.

Ty - I'm sorry.

What was he talking about?

He answered before it even had a chance to ring. "Look," he said, before I could get a word in. "I'm sorry. I thought at the time I was doing the right thing. But you have every right to be pissed, I shouldn't have told him. It wasn't my story to tell. It was yours, and you kept it a secret for a reason. I feel so bad. Please don't be mad."

"Told who what, Ty?"

Logan

The front door slammed shut and a second later she was in the room. Ethan and I looked up as she entered. Our positions hadn't changed since she left. But she had—her eyes were bloodshot and the little amount of make-up she wears was smeared.

"What happened?" Ethan sat up.

She ignored him and glared at me. "He told you?" she seethed, her eyes narrowed at me.

My head was still pounding, so it took me a while to catch up to what she was asking.

"He fucking told you?" she repeated, louder this time.

I sat up and rubbed my face with my hands.

"Dim," Ethan soothed. He stood up and walked over to her. "What's going on?"

She kept ignoring him. "Answer me!" she yelled.

I stood up and faced her, and nodded—just once.

"He had no fucking right!"

"Dimmy." Ethan put his hand on her arm, trying again to calm her down.

"No!" She jerked away, and then faced him. "No," she said again, her body overtaken by a sob. "He had no right, E. He shouldn't have fucking said a word—not to anyone!" Then she turned to me, "So that's why? You didn't want to be with me because you didn't want anyone to find out? Are you embarrassed?"

"What?" I shook my head. Where the fuck did she get that idea. "That's not-"

She cut in, "You fucked some other girl because you were ashamed of me?"

"What the fuck?" Ethan said, glaring at me.