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Vannah felt her face warm. Byron wasn’t staring at her anymore since he was busy trying to merge into that nightmare traffic. But she knew he could hear every word she was saying. Since she’d never been good at flirting or talking to guys abouthooking up,she’d hate for Byron to be witness to anything lame she might say. She could kick herself now for not having gone with her first thought and just texted Joseph.
Closing her eyes for a moment, she kept it as simple as possible. “I don’t know. Text me and we’ll compare schedules.”
“That pizza place I was telling you about would be a good place to hang out.
Vannah nodded listening to Joseph go on about the pizza place with the live bands he’d been raving about earlier. She wanted nothing more than to get him off the phone before she said something to embarrass herself.
“Sounds like fun. Text me and we’ll plan it.”
A few minutes later, she was finally off the phone. No sooner had she put her phone down when Byron turned to her. “Why’d you lie?”
“Hmm?” she glanced out the window feeling her already warm face heat further.
“You said you got an Uber. Didn’t you just meet this guy tonight?”
“Yeah, so?” Vannah turned to him confused.
“So, what does it matter if you left with another guy?”
LeftwithByron? Even though technically she had, the very idea that this is how Byron saw it, had her insides awakening in nervous excitement.
“Not justanotherguy, Byron.” Now her face was on fire because she just let it slip that she knew his name. Before he could comment because he looked ready to, she went on quickly willing her blushing away. “I left with the guy he’s still under the impression was trying to take advantage of my friend back there. He’d think me an idiot, so I just went with his assumption that I got an Uber because it was easier than explaining the whole truth.”
Inching along in the traffic, Byron was able to stare at her for a moment unnerving her to no end, before lifting his finger. “We’ll get back to how you know my name later, because this is interesting. Ironic that your response to why you lie is so honest. Because it’s easier than telling the truth?”
“Why Ilie?” Vannah asked welcoming her annoyed reaction. It was better than squirming in the unease she’d begun to feel. “You don’t know anything about me.”
Byron chuckled, though he looked anything but amused. “It’s just a new one for me. Is all.”
“What’s a new one?”
“I’ve heard liars justify lying in other ways. Usually by—”
“So, youarecalling me a liar?”
“Did you, or did you not, just lie to this guy you’re already making plans on getting together with again?”
Vannah could hardly believe this. For weeks she’d been fantasizing about what her first conversation with this guy might be—ifever. First, she’d been highly disappointed that he was a douche trying to get into Xochitl’s pants. Then she’d been relieved it appeared to have all been a misunderstanding, but now it may’ve turned out he was a douche of an entirely different kind.
“First of all, the only reason I lied.” She stopped to inhale and nodded. “Okay I should’ve said it wasfasterto just go along with the Uber thing than to clarify the truth. Not that it waseasierto lie because I was afraid he might be mad. It’s not like he’s my boyfriend or anything.”
“Fair enough.” He turned onto that first street finally. “So, will you be telling your boyfriend the whole truth about tonight?”
Feeling the flush again, only this time clear down her neck, Vannah swallowed hard. “I don’t have a boyfriend.”
“You don’t?” Staring straight ahead because she could feel him looking at her again, she nodded. “Oh, I see,” he went on. “Yeah, that makes sense.”
Now she turned to him, because she didn’t like the condescending way he said that last part. Despite his douchey intrusiveness about her personal life, something about his interest in it was strangely thrilling.
“Whatmakes sense?”
“You’re a freshman?”
“Yeah?” she asked even more curious about where he was going with this.
“You live in the dorms so you’re not from around, here right?”
“I’m from San Diego.”
