“Why?” Mandy asked, prying. I liked her. She wasted no time with small talk. She was cutthroat and straight to the point. If everyone else was like that my life would be golden, especially this beautiful boy with stupid, perfect eyes.
“We didn’t have cable growing up, so I guess I’m just not used to it. I’ve seen a lot of movies, though.”
“We need to change that,” she said. “You aren’t leaving here without a list tonight.”
That was how my first shift went. Opening boxes, putting books in stacks, and not having a clue what was going on. Mandy insisted that my shift was boring because most students came in earlier in the day. My job was to be a breathing, able body, and check people out if someone happened to come in, and make sure the place stayed clean. It was a hell of a lot easier than waitressing. Especially when you had to wait on assholes from a small town that hated you.
When I got to my dorm, I was exhausted. I changed into my comfy clothes and downloaded Netflix as Mandy advised me. My download was interrupted with a text.
Liam: You missed our first study session.
Me: What?
Liam: I waited at the coffee shop
Me: That starts Wednesday
Liam: So, you’re on board with it now??
I rolled my eyes. He was persistent.
Me: Sure. A couple hours a week in exchange for peace doesn’t sound so bad.
Liam: You’ll be begging for more
Me: You’re breaking the agreement right now.
Liam: Goodnight, Autumn
Me: Yeah. You too.
I kept my promises. That was the only reason I was doing this. If I helped him, he would leave me alone, and I’d continue to fly under the radar. Normal and invisible were my goals in life.
He was walking toward me. Soft, light hair, deep eyes, perfect body, not too big, but he worked out. He wasn’t supposed to be real. He was what we saw in movies, the man we fantasized about. Not dealt with in reality.
Liam fucking Shafer.
I was staring. I opened my notebook, flipping to the page where I’d started taking heavy notes. For good measure I grabbed my coffee and took a gulp, which was the worst damn idea I’d ever had in my entire existence. Before I could do anymore damage to my mouth, I spit it out. All over my new plaid shirt.
So much pain. A napkin was brought to my chest, wiping the residue away. I looked up, making eye contact with the most perfect eyes in the world before jerking the napkin away from him. I took up where he left off.
“I didn’t imagine we would skip first base all together,” he said as he sat in the chair across from me.
“Have I told you today that I hate you?” I glared at him.
“Studying will be fun,” he said, grinning a shit-eating grin.
“Maybe for you.”
“You’ve opened up, Autumn. I like it,” he said. For a moment I thought he was sincere. I tossed the napkin down and shoved the coffee far away from me. I liked to keep my bad decisions at a distance, like the one sitting across from me now.
“Yeah, so have you.”
“I’m being serious. You were shy, almost sweet, the first time we met. Now I can’t win for losing,” he said.
“Then why try?” I asked. He leaned over the table, holding my gaze. I was positive, if this were a movie, my panties would drop. But I wasn’t, and mine are twisted.
“Because, Autumn, when you decide you like me, and you will, all of this hate will be worth it,” he said, grinning.
“So anyways, bringing it back to why we’re actually here,” I said, looking down at my notes.
“I like your accent. It isn’t over the top, but it’s perfect.”
My face heated and I was thankful I was looking down at my notes so he couldn’t see the effect he had on me. No, it wasn’t him. I was shy and embarrassed in front of everyone. I refused to give him the pleasure of making me feel anything, even if it was inside my head.
“If we’re doing this, you need to stop saying stuff like that.”
“Like what?” he asked.
“Did you seriously fail this class?” I asked point blank, getting away from the topic.
“I had a bad freshman year.” He shrugged his shoulders. “I’m paying for it, trust me.”
“Don’t you have to keep a certain grade point average to play ball?” I asked, and I immediately regretted it. His face hardened.
“I don’t play baseball anymore. Can we keep this about studying, please?”
My jaw dropped. “Yeah, sure. Absolutely,” I managed to stammer.
I kept my head down as I read, wondering where to start. I’d never been good at this communication thing. And I hadn’t exactly told anyone about our arrangement. Gabby would plan our children’s names, and I had a feeling Josie would be mean to me about it. There was no reason for them to know. He was clearly not into me, and I wasn’t into him. We were just two people studying. Not even enjoying each other’s company at this point.
“Have you read the required readings for the week?” I asked, watching him. His face softened a bit. He looked almost guilty.
“Yeah, I read it,” he grumbled. This should be fun. After this session, he might decide he never wanted to see me again and I would be let off the hook.
“Great! That’s a good start. Um, have you bought the two books the professor wants us to read?”
His thick brows bumped together, scowling. He put a pen to his paper. “No, what are they again?”
“The Great Gatsby and Pride and Prejudice. Our professor is a hopeless romantic.”
“Great,” he murmured.
I shrugged my shoulders at him. “At least we don’t have to do embarrassing presentations. Two papers about each book, discussion while we read them, and four tests over grammar, and all of that easy shit.”
“I suck at writing papers, and I hate reading,” he deadpanned.
“You’re out of luck,” I said, smirking.
“No, I’m not. I have
