“Hi,” I said, as she cracked the door and poked her head out of the small opening.

“Hey,” she said, pulling a small, furry creature back and then opening the door wider.

I watched her take the fur-ball-looking thing to another girl sitting on a couch and then disappear into a dark hallway. The girl on the couch took the dog and cradled it in her arms. The door was still open, so I stepped in and closed it again behind me.

“Let me just get my purse,” I heard a voice call out from some room in the back of the small house. “I’ll be right there.”

The girl on the couch glanced up at me.

“Hi,” I said, rocking back on my heels.

The girl smiled and returned her attention to the television and the dog, now pawing at her lap.

I squeezed my fists together in my pockets. I felt nervous. I hadn’t taken a girl out for the first time since Jules when we were sixteen. I counted the years quickly in my head. It was only three, but it felt like an eternity. She wore black on our first, real date — jeans and a tight, black top. God, I still remembered everything about it.

I glanced at a clock on a wall in the kitchen. Its loud ticking drew my attention. Eight o’clock. I touched my fingers to my palms. They felt sweaty or something, and I realized that I wasn’t nervous because of Jessica. I was nervous because I really had a bad, sick feeling about this whole, stupid idea. I should have never let Jeff talk me into it. Julia was going to hate it, and she was going to hate me for it.

“Okay, I’m ready,” Jessica said, emerging from the back room. “You look nice.”

I paused for a second in mid-thought and then awkwardly smiled.

“Thanks. So do you,” I said.

She was wearing a short, red dress — snug in all the right places. She really did look nice. And if I weren’t already obsessed with a fiery, little blonde, I realized then that I might actually really like Jessica.

“Ready?” she asked, grabbing a coat from a tall coat rack behind the door.

“Yeah,” I said and smiled.

Then, I lowered my face closer to hers.

“Does your roommate want to come?” I asked.

I watched Jessica’s eyes travel back to the girl on the couch. The girl met Jessica’s gaze and shot her an impatient look.

“I’ve tried,” Jessica said. “She says it’s too cold to go outside in a dress.”

I paused and shrugged my shoulders.

“She’s probably right,” I said, cracking a wide grin.

Jessica giggled and then slid her arms into her coat and reached for the doorknob.

“Bye, Sam,” Jessica called out over her shoulder.

The girl on the couch looked up for a second, flicked her wrist and then went back to the sitcom on the television and to scratching the dog between its ears.

I followed Jessica out the door and down the sidewalk, leading away from the little, brick house. When we reached the truck, I leaned around her to open her door. She smiled and then slid in. I was pretty sure I flashed her an awkward grin before gently closing the door behind her. I quickly shook it off and sucked in a cool breath of air, then made my way to the driver’s side.

Once behind the wheel, I felt for the key in the ignition and then purred Lou to a start before I suddenly noticed Jules’s photo on the dashboard. I stole a quick glance at Jessica. She was searching for something inside of her purse. So, without a second thought, I hastily snatched up the photo, slid it into the inside pocket of my jacket and glanced back over at Jessica. She was still searching inside her purse.

I took in a deep, nervous breath and then felt it quickly escape past my lips. Then, I forced the gear shift into first but kept my foot on the brake.

“You sure you want to go to this party?” I asked her.

Maybe there was still a way out of this mess. Maybe there was still a way for Julia not to see my dumb mistake.

Jessica blankly stared back at me.

“Isn’t everyone going to be there?” she asked.

The look on her face told me that there was no getting out of this one. Jeff was right. She really did want to go to this party. And I guessed I couldn’t blame her. It really was the best New Year’s Eve party around here, and it was always only locals who were invited. And tonight, she would be a local.

“Okay,” I said and then gently smiled.

I took my foot off the brake and hit the gas.

“To the party we go,” I said, taking in another deep, uneasy breath.

It was only half past eight, but the rooms in the big, Victorian house were nearly full. If Kathy knew one thing, it was how to throw a party. Jules always used to say that Kathy was a sixteen-year-old going on thirty-six every time Kathy would invite us to one of her elaborate shindigs back in high school. The thought and the perfect, sarcastic way Jules always used to say it made me smile on the inside.

“Will, I’m so pleased you could make it,” Kathy said, throwing her arms around me.

“Wouldn’t miss it, Kath,” I said.

Kathy pulled away and then quickly forced her attention to Jessica.

“And who’s this?” Kathy asked in a pleasant voice.

“Oh, sorry,” I said. “This is Jessica. Jessica, this is Kathy. And this is Kathy’s parents’ house,” I then said to Jessica.

“Hi,” Kathy said, snatching up Jessica’s hand with both of hers. “I’m so glad you could make it.”

“The house is beautiful,” Jessica said, with a timid smile.

“Oh, thanks,” Kathy said. “It’s been in the family for years. Are you from around here?”

“Chester,” Jessica said.

Kathy immediately cocked her head and put on a playful smirk.

“Well, normally, we don’t entertain Chester Eagles, but we’ll make an exception tonight,” Kathy said, as her smile grew warm again.

Jessica laughed.

“Thanks,” Jessica said.

“Well, how do you two know each other then?” Kathy asked.

“I…we…,” I stuttered but didn’t finish.

I couldn’t remember how I was supposed to know her. Was I supposed to know her from the golf course or through Jeff or somewhere else?

“I’m getting my associate’s degree at West Central,” Jessica said, saving me from my stumbling tongue. “Jeff is in one of my classes. And I saw him talking to Will one day…”

Jessica stopped and lowered her eyes, as if she had said too much.

“I see,” Kathy said, giving Jessica another warm smile. “Well, let me take your coats.”

Kathy put a hand on my shoulder and leaned dramatically to my side.

“Julia’s coming tonight,” I heard Kathy whisper near my ear.

I met her eyes. They were warning me, I knew. My lips immediately parted, and I felt my chest quickly rise and then fall. Then, I felt Jessica’s hand on my arm, and my eyes dropped to the spot on my bicep that Jessica was touching.

“You want to go inside?” Jessica asked me after she had given her coat to Kathy.

I caught Jessica’s hopeful gaze. It was making a direct path from the foyer where we were standing to the warmly lit room in front of us. Then, I stumbled onto Kathy’s stare again. It was still burning a stern warning straight through my forehead.

“Uh, yeah,” I said, taking a step forward. “Uh, thanks, Kathy.”

“Make yourself at home,” Kathy said in a way that sounded to me more like: Make your own bed. You’re the one who has to lie in it.

Jessica and I made our way to the back of the house. She followed my every move, but then again, she knew Jeff and a couple of Jeff’s friends from school, of which, only one had arrived. Everyone else was a new face.

“Do you want something to drink?” I asked her.

“Sure,” she said, nodding her head. “I’ll just take whatever you’re drinking.”

“Easy enough,” I said. “I’ll be right back.”

I ventured back toward the kitchen but took the long way to get there. If Julia were there, I could find her and explain everything before she could have a chance to get the wrong idea. I searched in between and around the swaying heads. There was no sign of her, but there was, on the other hand, an awkward, lanky kid across the room. I made my way over to him.