Savior Complex: A Small Town Love Triangle Romance

“I couldn’t help it. I haven’t been in that house since Nanna died, and I was just curious. Besides the junk, nothing was different. Nina hasn’t even tried to make the house her own, or at least make things more modern. My Nanna kept that house like a historic museum, and it’s all still there.”

“In the same condition, too?”

“I didn’t look that closely. I only had a few minutes. But I think it was. Nothing looked ruined, at least. Just messy.”

I don’t know Nina well enough to make any snap judgments, but what Jordy is describing makes me concerned. Things obviously changed a lot when her grandmother died, more than just the loss of the family’s matriarch, and now that Nina doesn’t have a roommate, she admitted she was lonely. I’d sensed something in her voice then, and now the alarm bells are sounding.

It’s a lot like that dark place I was in ten years ago, when I ran away to college as an attempt to escape reality. But that darkness hung over me like a cloud, following me no matter where I went. Even now, I feel the cold whisps of fog sinking into my pores, trying to drag me back down.

Is that what Nina feels?

“Are you still thinking about trying to move in with her?” I ask. Jordy huffs a laugh and shakes her head.

“She almost made me pee on the sidewalk. You really think she’ll let me live there? It’s doubtful. Even if she did, I can’t live in a place like that. It’s a huge house, but with all the shit that’s in there, it doesn’t seem to have room for another human.”

“You are going to school for stuff like this, though,” I point out.

“For interior design, not clutter control.”

“Yeah, but you’re good at it. Remember when you helped Jake consolidate his grandmother’s things before she moved into that senior home, and then helped organize her new apartment? That was a lifetime of things you sorted through, and you did it in no time flat.”

Jake works at the ranch, and he’d been worried about his grandma for a while. His parents lived out of state, so it was just him, and the job seemed overwhelming. Jordy had volunteered her weekends to helping out, and she was incredible the way she honored Mrs. Hendley and the sentimental hold she’d had on her belongings. Somehow, Jordy was able to get it done in just a few weeks, two days at a time, and make a home out of that stark, empty room in the facility. I was so proud of her, not just her talent, but her compassion—and it made me a bit more excited about our future together.

“I’m telling you, Mrs. Hendley had less stuff than Nina has in that place. If the main floor looks like that, I can only imagine what the rest of the house is like.”

“You know, she’s not that bad.” It’s a weak argument, because Nina is incredible. But I can’t say that to Jordy.

Jordy nudges my knee with hers, then gives me a grin. “She got to you, huh?”

“What are you talking about?” I quickly scroll through the last five minutes of our conversation. Was I obvious? Does Jordy know?

“She charmed you, it’s what she does. It’s how she got to my Nanna, and how she bilked our family out of millions. Now she’s doing it to you because you don’t know any better.”

I’ve heard Jordy slam Nina dozens of times. In the past, I’ve just let her vent, but now that I know the person she’s referring to, I can feel my whole body tense up.

“You sure figured all that out without even hearing what was said,” I say, shooting her a side glance.

“I mean, tell me I’m wrong.”

“You’re wrong.”

Jordy looks shocked that I’d disagree with her, but I continue.

“Nina did not try to charm me. In fact, she was quite angry that we were forcing her to accept the ride home.”

“You forced her,” Jordy says. “And forced me too. I would have let her figure out her own way home.”

“Fine, but you didn’t hear her talk. I think there are two sides to the story about your Nanna, and you’ve only heard one of them. And who narrated that story for you? Your mom?”

Jordy doesn’t answer, which is confirmation enough.

“It’s a shame that you’ve let family drama ruin the relationship you shared with someone you were extremely close with.

“We weren’t that close,” Jordy mutters.

“That’s not how it sounded whenever you told me about your childhood. You may think you hate her, but I think you might actually miss her.”

She snorts, but she doesn’t argue.