Total pages in book: 74
Estimated words: 72060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72060 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 360(@200wpm)___ 288(@250wpm)___ 240(@300wpm)
The first thing Dex asks is about that very topic. “So, did you see the hottie in class?”
“Oh, I sure did.” I playfully knock his shoulder. “I also met his boyfriend, who’s a total snack.”
“His boyfriend?” His face falls. “Seriously?”
“Deadass.” I throw him a sharp look.
“Eh, you can’t win them all.” He winces. “Is this the part where I run like hell because you’re big mad?”
I bite back a smile. Somehow, he always charms his way back into my good graces. “Would you blame me for putting you on blast?”
I lurch forward, pretending to wring his neck, and he expertly dodges me. Well, now it’s game on, with a play on cat and mouse. Unfortunately, I can’t keep up. Neither of us is athletic, but he’s more fit than me by far.
“Stop, you’re making me sweat,” I huff. “Just let me take my frustrations out on you.”
“Okay, fine.” Dex stops right in front of me, and his smirk makes me charge forward again. He grips my hand as I lift it, and we start wrestling right there on the grass. I have no idea why I’m even partaking in this game other than this has been us our whole lives. Plus, it’s all his fault to begin with. He knows I suck at flirting.
I end up on my ass with Dex hovering over me. He’s holding his stomach and laughing hysterically, and I try to pretend I’m still mad, but I’m so not. Maybe this is exactly what we need to break the awkward tension between us lately. Plus, it’s not a hardship to have a cute guy practically lying on top of me. Not that I think about Dex in that way, but I have admired him from afar and can definitely see why others are attracted.
“Get a room!” Milo calls out as he passes by, and we sober.
I quickly get to my feet and then offer him my hand for a boost-up. When he tries to take it, I draw back. “Paybacks!”
He gets to his knees on his own. “Okay, you got me. Happy now?”
“I’m…satisfied. Not totally happy,” I tease.
Dex frowns as he stands. “I’m sorry I thought Darren might be into you.”
I fold my arms. “Let’s be honest, you only hoped he was into me to prove a point.”
“What kind of point?” He dusts the grass off his knees.
“That putting myself out there is no big thing. But it is for me.”
He throws an arm around me. “Is it so bad that I just want to see you happy?”
“I know you do, you big dope.” This time, I don’t resist his hold on me. It feels warm and comforting like it always does. “But it’s not going to come as easily for me as it does for you. Just how it is.”
He breathes out and nods. “Meet me at the dining hall later?”
“Sure.” I point a finger at him. “But no talking to hot dudes!”
“What if one tries to talk to us?” he counters.
“Ugh. I’m gonna need you to take several seats. Like in the back row of a crowded stadium,” I lob over my shoulder, and that’s when I plow straight into someone.
Someone with beach-blond hair and devastatingly blue eyes, who’s as tall as me and looks familiar. My face flames. “So…sorry.”
“No worries.” The gorgeous man picks his bag off the ground. “You’re the guy from the coffee cart.”
“I, uh…uh-huh.” My part-time job during the school year is at Bean Necessities. The actual storefront is located off-campus, but Franklin U has coffee carts stationed on the grounds. Thankfully, there’s more than one because it can get busy, and believe you me, some students act like it’s a godsend on rough mornings.
“Good coffee.”
“Yup.” I shift from one hip to the other because I have no idea what else to say and it’s awkward as hell. Me and my stupid brain that’s not connecting to my mouth.
“Catch you later.”
I stand there like an idiot and watch him go. That’s when I hear Dex’s snicker behind me.
I round on him. “It’s all your fault!”
“What is?” His eyebrows draw together. “That you literally ran into a hot guy?”
Folding my arms, I give him a steely look. “Yep.”
Dex hitches a shoulder. “Okay, I’ll take the blame. But hey, he recognized you.”
The butterflies stretch their wings in my stomach. Still, I reply, “That doesn’t mean anything.”
“It might. You never know. It’s a good way to talk to someone. Maybe practice with him.”
“I don’t even know if he’s into guys.”
“Does it matter?” He arches a brow. “You’d still be talking to an attractive guy and getting comfortable with it. Before you know it, you’ll be slaying left and right.”
I roll my eyes, but maybe he has a point.
5
DEX
The posters are all made for the upcoming mixer, and as we’re cleaning up the markers, Craig says, “Ready to set these up in different locations?”