She had seen them at parties over the years, even shared a couple of classes with them, but she'd never spoken to them. Although, they were among the few frat guys who had never bothered her, or stared at her like she was a piece of meat. They had always been polite, but distant. To her, that alone made them likable. "I don't really know them," she admitted. "Where did you go to school before?"
"Buffalo."
"What made you move to Massachusetts?"
He twirled the water in his elegant fingers. A shudder tore through her as she recalled those fingers on her body. She tore her gaze away from them and forced herself to look at him. Again, there was a knowing gleam in his eyes as he smiled at her. "I grew up near here, and I thought it was time to come home again. I know a couple of guys in this house, and Phi Beta, from high school."
"Then why did you go all the way to Buffalo?"
"Wanted a change of scenery, something new, but I'm not a big fan of the cold, and after last winter I decided to come back."
She raised an eyebrow. "This isn't exactly Florida."
He laughed and placed the water bottle on the floor. "No it's not, but it's also not as cold, or snowy as it is up there." He smiled as he slid back on the bed and leaned against the wall. "What about you, Sera?"
"What about me?" she asked warily.
"Why are you at this school?"
She sat on the corner of the desk. She tried not to show him how uncomfortable the question made her, so she forced herself not to bite her lip as she met his inquisitive stare. "It was far enough away so I could live at school, but close enough to my family so I could go home on vacations. Plus, this is a good school."
"Good reasons. Did you know anyone here?"
"No, but that was the point. I was looking for a new beginning, a chance to start my own life and make new friends. I like the way things have turned out."
It was only a little lie, and there was no reason to feel bad about it, she told herself. "That's good. Why don't you date?"
She blinked at the abrupt change of topic. Her hands automatically clenched upon the desk. "Excuse me?"
"Why don't you date? All the guys around here say you've never dated anyone on campus."
"You asked about me?" She couldn't keep the alarm out of her voice.
He watched her with an amused gleam in his eyes. For a second she was reminded of a panther studying its prey. Unfortunately, she seemed to be the prey. Apprehension prickled its way up her spine.
"Just a little," he admitted.
Sera had to fight against the violent shaking threatening to overtake her. "What did they say about me?"
He smiled at her and shook his head. "It was nothing bad. They just told me you didn't date anyone, that you never had, and not to waste my time. So, why haven't you gone out with someone else?"
Some of the tension eased from her, and she found herself able to breathe regularly again. Then his words caught her attention. Her brow furrowed as she stared at him questioningly. Why hadn't she gone out with someone else? Were they going out? Her heart did a hopeful flip-flop, but she buried it.
"Nobody ever asked me," she replied, "while they were sober anyway."
"That's because they didn't have the courage unless they were drunk."
"What about you then?"
He grinned cockily. "I don't need alcohol."
"Conceited," she commented dryly.
"Far from it. Not having the courage to do something just means you lose out on it. If you get rejected, so what, at least you tried. Besides, it isn't the end of the world."
She admired him for a courage she could never have. "So, how did you know it wasn't the alcohol in me last night?"
"I didn't. That's why I came by so early, I figured you might still be drunk." He grinned charmingly, and she felt the rest of her anxiety beginning to melt away.
"I didn't have that much to drink last night."
"No, but you never know how you're going to feel about someone the next morning."
"Oh, and how did you feel about me?"
"Very good," he said with a small smile. "Sit down." He patted the bed beside him.
She eyed him guardedly. She knew if she got close to that bed, and him, her thoughts and emotions would get all tangled up again. But she desperately wanted to get close to him, to touch him, and to have him touch her. Besides, she didn't think he would hurt her. He could have done that last night if it was what he'd intended. She released the desk and made her way to sit down beside him.
"Come on," he said and pulled her toward the head of the bed. "Lie down; you look tired."
She went rigid beneath his touch. Her eyes flew to his as memories suddenly assailed her. She found she couldn't breathe or even move. He slowly moved his hands away from her, and she was finally able to breathe again. His gaze was intense as he searched her face. Sera lowered her lashes before he could read too much in her eyes.
"It's okay," he said.
She fought back the tears threatening to fall. She had worked diligently to rid herself of her dread of men, and although she had gotten better, she still couldn't control some of her instinctive, involuntary reactions. She hated herself for it, hated herself for the weakness, and hated he’d witnessed it.
He slid his jacket off and lay down on the bed to give her some space. He didn't touch her, didn't force her to lie down. No matter how much he wanted to hold her, he restrained himself from grabbing her. Her back was rigid as she sat on the bed; small shivers racked her delicate spine. A
