A/N: Hi--I just had a couple of notes before this next post. First, thank you all so much for your responses so far. Especially the last chapter, I wasn't sure how people would react but it was fun to read through your posts. I promise, there's WAY more drama to come, this is just the beginning :-)
Also, I just wanted to make a quick point that Rob and Jude do not live together. It might seem like they do in some of the upcoming chapters, like this next one, but they just spend a lot of time together over each others' apartments.
That's it. This chapter wraps up the last scene before we move on...ENJOY!
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"You didn't have to flirt with him like that," Rob said, hanging his jacket in her closet.
"Flirt? What are you talking about Rob? The man was frustrated and I felt bad," Jude contested, taking her shoes off.
"Whatever…you just seemed…a little close when he left," Rob mumbled, walking into the bathroom.
"Please! We're friends! I'm allowed to comfort my friend!" she shouted as she heard him turn on the faucet. She walked towards the bathroom and stuck her head in as he was splashing his face with water.
"Besides, if you hadn't been so confrontational with Jessica, everything would've been fine," she stated flatly.
"What?" he questioned, wiping his face with a towel. "Jude, that woman seriously had it coming. Did you not see how condescending she was to me?"
"I did. I'm not saying she was right, but you totally pushed it with her. You could've just acted maturely and not argued with her."
"Well I'm sorry that I chose to stick up for myself, Jude," he spat. "You were so worried that she wouldn't like you, you didn't even care that she was patronizing me."
"I did care, Rob," she said firmly, as he walked by her and into her bedroom. "But excuse me for wanting to keep the peace!"
"Keep the peace? Since when do you keep the peace?" he questioned back.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Jude, I've never once been involved in or witnessed an argument where you held back. The Jude I know is the first one to say what she thinks..." he started, his eyes blazing into hers.
"So you just expected me to be equally as confrontational as you were? Yell at my friend's fiancée because she picked on my boyfriend?" she questioned him. "Well, I'm sorry that I let you down. I'm sorry that I tried to not make the situation worse. I just wanted to have a nice quiet dinner!" she yelled, quieting down as her voice echoed throughout the apartment.
He groaned and sat down on the edge of her bed. She stood in the doorway with her hands on her hips and watched him.
"What is it about this guy that makes you act like this?" Rob directly asked, looking at her frazzled and tense appearance.
"Act like what?" she questioned defensively.
"Like this—Jude, you were nervous for days about this dinner and now you're all wound up because it didn't go well. Why do you care so much? Why was it so important to keep the peace?"
She sighed and collapsed on the chair in the corner. "I don't know…I just wanted you all to get along."
"Why?" he asked, turning towards her. "I don't get it. What am I missing here? Was there more going on between the two of you when you used to work together?"
She looked up at him in panic. "No…why would you think that?"
He scratched his head and thought aloud. "I don't know…it's just the way you acted around him…or how you put so much pressure on this dinner…it's like it meant so much to you…"
"Rob, it did mean a lot to me," she explained sincerely, looking into his eyes. "You're my boyfriend and he's one of my oldest friends."
"Just a friend?" Rob repeated just to make sure.
"Yes. He's always been just a friend, Rob, but he's one of my closest. Clearly, we all got off to a rocky start at Starbucks, but I just wanted to reverse the damage that was done."
"What damage?" he asked in confusion.
She looked at him closely. "Rob, every time I mention that I'm going somewhere with him, you get this look on your face like…like…like that!" she yelled, pointing at his pouty expression. He quickly changed his expression, noticing what she was referring to. "It clearly upsets you that I hang out with him, and I know she's far from thrilled with the time I'm spending with him. This dinner was supposed to help us hang out more as a group than one-on-one."
"Listen," he said calmly, getting off the bed to walk over towards her, sitting on the arm of her chair, "I know you were trying to do something good. And I appreciate the concern you had for me, but I think you need to accept that it's not going to happen."
She sighed and looked at him, tears threatening to fall. "I know, you're right. I just wanted you to like him. I don't care about her or how much she hates me…it's you that I want to be happy."
"I am happy," he said certainly, sliding down into the chair and wrapping his arm around her. "So I'm not thrilled that you're spending less time with me. Sue me. I just want to be able to see you as much as I can."
"I know, I want that too. And I don't want you to ever feel like I'd rather be somewhere else than with you. But the truth is, I do like hanging out with him. It's like this reminder of where I came from, of my family. I guess it's kind of comforting in a way," she attempted to explain. "But at the end of the day, I want to be with you. You know that, right?"
"Yeah, I know that," he said, pulling her in closer.
"The sad part is that I don't even think you really got to talk to Tommy," she said regrettably, resting her head against his shoulder.
"I didn't," he admitted. "But honestly, Jude, I can't think too highly of anyone who would want to get engaged to that woman."
"I swear he's nothing like her. Would I seriously be friends with someone like that?" she questioned, her head perked up to look at him incredulously.
He smirked. "I guess not. Although you and Jessica do share one major thing in common. Something you both love."
"What?" she asked, her voice ringing a bit of panic at the thought of who or what he was about to say.
He laughed at her concern, then said, "Coffee." She immediately relaxed and laughed with him, both enjoying the humor that broke up their argument.
"I'm sorry for getting all crazy on you," she said, looking into his eyes.
"I'm sorry I lost my cool. She just had this way about her—she was really irritating."
"I know…if it had just been me and her, I seriously would've punched her," she stated.
"Yeah? Now that, I would've liked to see," he said with a smile. "So we're cool?"
She grinned and nodded. "We're cool."
"Good. So no more double dates with Miss Stick-Up-Her-Butt?" he asked, just to make sure.
She laughed lightly and replied. "Right. As long as you don't mind having a few more dates with The Coffee Girl."
"Not at all," he responded with a smile, leaning in closer. "I love coffee, though not quite as much as the clumsy girl who spilled it."
She smiled back at him warmly, as he leaned in a little closer to capture her lips. She pressed her lips against his, wrapping her arms around his neck, and felt him lift her off the chair and onto the bed beside them.