Freeze (The Jewel Project #4)

2.2|| When the Walls Come Down

Angie took another fry and chewed on it, her eyes fixed on Christine and the way the bridge of her nose creased in disgust. "Come on, stop looking at me as if I'm eating a newborn."

"I just don't know how you can eat that," Christine's amber gaze sailed to Angie's half-eaten burger. "It's so gross and fattening."

"You're the one who suggested we come to a burger restaurant," Angie pointed out, waving another fry in her friend's direction.

"For a drink." Christine sighed and waved her hand as if to dismiss the subject. "Anyway, your body, your choice."

"Come on, it's not like I eat fast food every day. And I'll have a hard time getting fat with all the working out I do." She had put on weight, but it was mostly muscle, so she wasn't bothered.

Getting fat was a foreign concept to her anyway, seeing as she'd always eaten very little. Even now, most of the money she was making and wasn't spending on school or rent, she sent home to her family. Her dream was that in a few years she'd have enough to buy them a house outside Tucson so that her siblings could go to better schools.

"That is true. You've all buffed up considerably." Christine admired her own skinny arms as she said this. "But it certainly suits certain people."

Angie grinned. She totally agreed. "You mean Sam?"

"I mean he was always fit, but now..." Christine returned the grin. "He looks amazing."

Angie couldn't agree more. Well, not about Sam, but about Tom who had buffed up even more over the course of the months he spent eating properly. It was new and amazing how much they were changing.

Christine suddenly frowned and looked away. Angie frowned too, not sure why her mood had dropped out of the blue.

"What's up?"

"It's just..." Christine bit her lower lip, her gaze lost out the window. "Sam is... I'm a little afraid of losing him."

"Huh?" Angie dropped the fry she was holding. It fell on the white tabletop, leaving a greasy stain behind. "Where did that come from?"

"I saw him with Lisa," Christine said miserably. "They seemed very close."

"Christine, they've been friends for years. Of course they're close."

"Lisa is in love with him."

Angie bit her tongue, keeping in her impulse to deny it. Over the past few months, she'd noticed it too. She wasn't sure love was the right word, but Lisa's feelings were clearly more than platonic. And it broke Angie's heart because she liked Lisa. She was smart, friendly, funny and really did seem to know and care about Sam. Not that Christine didn't, but the two were so different.

Never in a million years would Angie have guessed Christine was the least bit insecure about... well, anything. She was a walking goddess.

"And he's too nice to shoot her down," she continued in a mournful tone. "And I just... I'm not sure how into me he actually is."

"Christine, are you kidding? He was all over you just a few hours ago."

"Not really. He's nowhere nearly as interested as Tom is in you."

Heat crept up Angie's cheeks. "Sam and Tom are different." Tom was raw and physical. Sam was a lot more cerebral and sweet. But it was so obvious that he was head over heels for Christine.

"Yeah, I know, but sometimes I wish they were more alike. I'd like Sam to be more passional, more raw." She looked away, her fists clenched.

A raw and passional Sam. Angie couldn't see it. It was like asking Jerry to suddenly be all physical. It sort of got her wondering who exactly Christine was so in love with.