My Boyfriend's Best Friend

Chapter Six

Rylie

I groaned the second I hung up on Aidan. Or I should say; he hung up on me. I understood why he was mad, I really did, but I couldn’t just drop everything I was doing for him. Sure, it was our anniversary, but he was the one who had left, not me. He couldn’t expect me to just be sitting around waiting for him; I had other things I could be doing. Like playing Scrabble with the Johnston’s; who I hadn’t seen in three years. They were like my second family.

After accepting Aidan’s call, I hadn’t been able to hear anything in the crowded lounge room where Peter, Macy, Lucy, Connor and I had been engaged in an intense game of Scrabble. I had taken the call in the downstairs guest room and as I opened the door, I saw Connor leaning against the opposite wall.

“Sorry,” he said, not sounding that apologetic at all.

I rolled my eyes. “It’s all good.” There was a silence as we stood there, staring at one another.

“It’s your turn,” Connor reminded me. I had been surprised when Connor barged into the spare room. He had been in the lounge room when Aidan had called so it wasn’t like he didn’t know I was talking to him. Part of me believed he did it on purpose, deliberately trying to sabotage my relationship with Aidan but another part of me was appalled at the idea that nice, sweet Connor would ever try something like that.

I nodded and turned down the hallway but Connor grabbed my arm and pulled me into a hug. I jumped at the sudden contact and hesitantly hugged him back.

“Um, Connor?”

“I just want you to know that whatever happens between you and Aidan, I’m here for you.”

Despite the flash of annoyance that re-emerged when he mentioned Aidan’s name, I couldn’t help but laugh. “We’re not breaking up, Connor. We just had an argument. We’ll be back to normal before you know it.” I tried to pull put out of Connor’s embrace but he wouldn’t let me. “Time to let go, big guy,” I said, patting his back.

“You smell nice. Like strawberries,” I heard his muffled voice as he took in a deep breath.

“Aidan bought that perfume for me,” I said with a smile on my face as I remembered the day he bought it. I had dragged him to the shopping centre with me and was mucking around smelling different types of perfumes. The strawberry one was mine and Aidan’s favourite and he gave it to me the next day as an early birthday present. I wore it all the time. Damn it! I was supposed to be mad at Aidan. He had tried to control who I was allowed to hang out with! Anger, Rylie, anger.

I heard Connor groan and he pulled away from me. “It just lost all its appeal,” he moaned.

His comment irked me even more. I might be mad at my boyfriend but that didn’t mean Connor was allowed to insult him. I held my chin high and started to walk back to the lounge room. “Personally, I love it.” My phone buzzed in my hand and I looked at it quickly. I felt disappointment flood over me when it wasn’t Aidan who had texted me.

No, Rylie! A voice whispered in my head. Do not be disappointed it was your mum and not Aidan texting you. Aidan’s being a dick right now.

But he’s your dick, another voice reminded me. Damn it! Shaking my head, I read the text.

I’m heading home now, baby. Put some clothes on ;)

“Oh God,” I moaned. My mum was way too old to be making sexual references.

“What?” asked Connor.

My cheeks went red and I looked away. “Never mind. I gotta go; Mum’s coming home.”

“Oh, okay. I’ll walk you home.” I could hear the disappointment in Connor’s voice.