Total pages in book: 147
Estimated words: 140742 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 704(@200wpm)___ 563(@250wpm)___ 469(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 140742 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 704(@200wpm)___ 563(@250wpm)___ 469(@300wpm)
“So.” I clear my throat and look at my sneakers for a moment. “I have a strange question for you.”
He raises an eyebrow and waits.
“Did you ever go to Onyx with Mal?”
The surprise on his face is obvious, but he recovers quickly. “Why are you asking?”
“I found an old journal of hers and some of the things she wrote about were pretty intense. I’m wondering if it was an exaggeration,” I lie.
“I…” He looks away, bringing a hand up to squeeze the back of his neck. “I only went once. She rented out a floor and invited a group of us.”
“Did you meet anyone she knew from there?”
His lips purse as he thinks about it. “Only one guy. John, I think?”
I swallow and nod.
“I didn’t go there to hook up,” he says. “I was just curious about the place.”
I stay quiet for a moment. “She told me you guys hooked up.”
His brows hike up. “Really? That is … wow.” He shakes his head and huffs out a laugh.
“What?” I frown.
“Nothing.” He shakes his head and exhales. “Can we talk about this later? I don’t want to be late to class.”
“Yeah, of course.” I try to smile and fail.
We hug quickly and start walking in opposite directions. I hate the feeling in the pit of my stomach. I know Tiago had nothing to do with this, I do. Why is he acting so weird, though? Ugh. I’m almost to my car when I hear the pounding steps of a runner behind me. When I turn, I see Tiago. My heart climbs to my throat. I’ve never been afraid of being left alone with him, but I’m feeling a little uneasy now. He is breathing heavily by the time he reaches me.
“I don’t remember much about that night at Onyx, but the next morning, I woke up in her bed,” he says, exhaling. “I didn’t want you to find out, so I told her to keep it quiet.”
“Why didn’t you want me to find out?”
“I guess I didn’t want you to…” He glances up at the sky and exhales before looking at me again. “I thought … I don’t know. I didn’t want to ruin things between us in case I had a shot with you.”
“So you thought you’d hide the fact that you hooked up with my friend?” I ask, frowning.
“I know,” he says. “Not my proudest moment. I really don’t remember being with her, though.”
“Why didn’t you just tell me how you felt?”
He rolls his eyes. “It was pretty fucking obvious how I felt. Everyone knew.”
“You could’ve just told me.”
“Would it have made a difference?” he asks, raising an eyebrow. When I don’t respond, he shrugs. “You only ever saw me as your friend, and that’s fine. I know we’re better off like this.” He looks toward campus again. “I just wanted to tell you that in case you read anything else about me in those pages.”
He turns and runs back to where he came from, without letting me get a word in. In case I read anything else? What the hell does that even mean?
43
JOSSLYN
Ispent most of my day debating whether or not I should tell Finn about my conversation with Tiago. In the end, I decide it’s not important enough to talk about before our first official date. I’m wearing a taupe dress that goes down to my ankles. It’s form-fitting, with a slit, and cut-outs in the shoulder and waist. I model it for my followers and start doing my makeup in front of the camera as I read incoming comments.
“Hey, Shannon! Good to see you here again.” I grin and pause to apply lip liner and lipstick. “To answer your question—I have a date tonight.”
I laugh when consecutive comments start popping up asking if it’s Finn, but never answer before logging off. At the sound of the door opening and shutting, I gasp and shoot out of my chair. The butterflies in my stomach multiply, as I grab my purse and head out of my room.
When I see him, my mouth goes dry. He’s wearing a charcoal suit, white dress shirt with the top buttons undone, and white sneakers. His light brown hair is tousled and his freshly shaved face emphasizes his sharp jaw. There isn’t a thing about him that I don’t find sexy, and the fact that he’s actually mine is almost impossible to believe. My heart skips a beat when I look at his face and find his gaze burning into me. He takes a breath and releases it, as he walks over and wraps an arm around me.
“You…” He sighs, shaking his head as he brings his lips to mine for a quick kiss. “You’re so fucking beautiful.”
“And you’re so fucking handsome.” My cheeks feel hot as I lick my lips. “I was just thinking that I can’t believe you’re mine.”