“She’s a friend,” I said. Brandon’s face drained of color. Everyone’s eyes were on me; Tyler was the only one that approved.
“We’ll contain her, all right?” Tyler said, nodding toward Josie’s direction.
I shook my head. Grabbing a beer, I went upstairs. This could not have gone any worse if I had tried. That was it. I was trying too hard. She didn’t need to know how I felt. I wracked my brain, thinking of a way to get her close to me.
Ten
I’d never dreaded Mondays. I would endure anything if it meant I could leave home. In fact, I looked forward to them: warm food, loving teachers, I was never cold or hot. College was not proving to be different. I spent Sunday holed up in my dorm, claiming I was studying. I was hiding from everyone. Today was a fresh start. Class, work, rinse, and repeat. That was my weekly schedule now.
Gabby slid into the seat next to me, grinning. Her pixie-like fingers got to work unzipping her backpack and retrieving her supplies.
“How was your weekend?” she asked, unaware of the embarrassment I’d had to endure.
“I got a car! And a phone,” I said, trying to point out the good.
“Wow,” she said. Her brows shot up. “Where’d you say you work again?”
I laughed it off, not wanting to go into it. I wrote down my number and slid the paper to her. She took it, smiling gratefully.
“How was yours?” I asked, wanting to move the focus off me.
“Uneventful. I did this week’s homework, though, so that’s a plus,” she said, shrugging her tiny shoulders. She was my type of person.
“That is a plus,” I agreed. Students were still piling into the room as our professor came in. Gabby looked at me, eyes wide.
“What?” I asked, panicked.
“Don’t look now, but Liam Shafer is coming up behind you.”
“What the hell? Are you serious?” I asked in a hushed whisper.
She nodded, and that was all the confirmation I needed. I stared straight ahead, features smooth. I started writing everything the professor stated, and then realized I had written ‘I’m passing out next week’s rubric’. At that point, I stopped.
“Good, you’re a note-taker. I’m going to need a copy of those.” His voice was sweet tea on a hot Texas day. I hated that. I used to find it charming until he took me to his bedroom.
“You’re not getting my notes,” I said, staring forward.
Gabby handed me the stack of papers, clenching her teeth as if to say sorry. I huffed, grabbed mine, and handed him the stack without looking.
“That’s fine. I would rather it come from the source anyway.”
I turned to him and wished I hadn’t. He was beautiful, but I didn’t think guys liked to be called that. His hair was tossed in a messy wave, and it pissed me off that I was thinking about who could have made it look like that. His hooded eyes watched me from under thick eyelashes that he didn’t deserve.
I frowned. I didn’t know how I hadn’t seen it before. He was far too perfect to be nice. I was the shiny new toy that was yanked away. If I gave it up, he would run for the hills. That didn’t sound like a bad idea. Repulsed, I shook my head, willing those awful thoughts to leave my head.
“What are you talking about? Why are you even in here?” I asked, my nose scrunched.
“I failed last semester. So here I am. Good thing I’m friends with the smartest girl in the class,” he said.
“You failed English 1301? How?” I asked, not believing him. He didn’t strike me as the type to fail a class. But I’d been wrong about people before.
“No idea,” he stated, shrugging his shoulders. Class was going on around us, and yet we weren’t paying attention. This was not a good sign for my grade.
“You weren’t here last week,” I said, trying to piece it together.
“Maybe that’s why I failed,” he deadpanned. He shrugged his shoulders, unfazed. I opened my mouth, but quickly closed it. I didn’t believe him at all.
“I’m Gabrielle, but everyone calls me Gabby. We went to high school together,” Gabby said, reaching across the table.
“I remember seeing you around. I’m Liam Shafer,” he said, taking her hand. She nudged me, grinning.
“How do you know Autumn?” she asked, dazzled by his charm that I seemed to be immune to.
“I slept next to her the first night she was here,” he said, throwing a grin in my direction. Gabby’s eyes went wide.
“He did not!” I said, louder than I’d intended. To my horror, the professor stopped writing on the board and turned to face us.
“If you have something to discuss, please do it before or after class. This is the only warning I’ll give,” the professor said.
My face was on fire. I slumped down in my seat. On my right side, Gabby was grinning as she took notes. On my left, Liam was smug as he leaned back in his chair. The next hour was painful. I was aware of how loud I was breathing and didn’t do anything that would set off the professor again. I was officially mortified. Class was dismissed, and I gathered my things quickly.
“About Saturday,” Liam started. He was still seated, and if I didn’t know better, I would say he was unsettled.
“Not here,” I said under my breath.
Gabby looked between the two of us, winking at me. “I’ll text you later,” she said before disappearing into the crowd.
“My place?” he asked.
“Very fucking funny,” I seethed.
He howled with laughter. “You do have a personality. You’re quiet, you know? Hard to read.”
“And you’re easy to read,” I fired back at him.
“Oh yeah? What’s your read on me,” he queried, amused? Most of the class had left the room, and we were almost alone. I rolled my eyes and decided it was better to get it over with.
“You’re some jock asshole who made me think you were nice so
