Page 66 of Challenge Me

I navigated to the web. There was an image of me leaning close to Roman, mid-laugh. I did look good in that one. Then there was one of me talking to Avery. Both of us looked awkward as fuck. And finally, I was sitting next to Mal while she dutifully ignored me. At least pictures couldn’t capture what had gone down.

“Did you know they’d be there?” he asked.

“Nope. The day’s been full of surprises. I invited them to stay the night here, which pissed off Amir.”

“Oh no.”

“Yeah, then he shoved me up against a wall and tried to make out with me.”

Oli gasped. After a second, it shifted into a laugh. “That’s . . . a development. If you boned, you owe me a fifty.”

“We didn’t.” I paused, thinking back to the locker room. “Not really.”

“Not really? Ah, never mind that for now. What happened after he kissed you?”

“He said this could be real.” He made an ‘aw’ sound. “I told him no.”

“Remi, you damn idiot. Why would you do that?”

I scoffed. “You’re the one who said I need to stop dating.”

“No, I said you need to stop dating assholes who put their hands on you.”

“Amir put his hands on me.”

“Not like that.”

“Same difference.”

“Is he an asshole?”

“Sometimes.”

“Come on, Rem.”

With a sigh, I hung my head. “No, he’s not. That doesn’t mean I want to date him. I’m not interested in all of that right now.”

“Well, I don’t believe you, but there’s no point trying to convince you yet.”

It was impossible not to smile. Even when we were miles apart, talking to each other through a magic rectangle, Oli was more attuned to me than anyone had a right to be.

“How’s the bar?” I asked.

“Lots of alcohol. Interesting crowds that are borderline unfit for society. Endless dishes. Conclusion: it’s a bar.”

“Good to know it hasn’t morphed into a faerie mound.”

“There’s still time. That is, unless you run away with your tall, dark, and sexy mister.”

“Speaking of misters . . .” I glanced at the bathroom door when the shower shut off. “Has anyone unsavory made an appearance?”

“Nope. Maybe he’s all talk.” From the way he said it, I wasn’t sure he believed his own words.

“Or he’s too cranked to take a plane. He hates them. How long would it take to hitchhike?”

“Dunno. I got to Seattle in, like, two weeks.”

“I did it in a week, but I was more adorable.”