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Italianwasthethemeoftheday,whichmeantthecafeteriasmelledofgarlicandcheese.Thelinemovedslowerthannormalduetoitspopularity,soScarlettoptedforasandwichoffthealacartesectionbeforewetookourusualseats.
A cacophony of laughter shot through the room, rising above the chatter, and my gaze reflexively shifted toward the lounge area to see all of the royal court except Topher.
I opened my lunch bag and pulled out my yogurt when a tray plopped down on the table beside me with a loud clatter.
I jumped in my seat, then turned to see Topher, both hands on the side of his tray as he leaned over it.
“Scarlett, right?” he said, with a nod in her direction.
“Um, yeah.”
“Cool.”
He stared at her like he expected something from her, which was the wrong thing. Scarlett leaned back and crossed her arms over her chest, nodding toward the lounge. “Did you get lost on your way to your station or something?”
“What?” Topher blinked. “No. I just . . .”
I cleared my throat and shot Scarlett a glare before I tipped my head back up to him. “What’s up?”
The crease between his brows eased as our eyes met. “I just stopped to see if you changed your mind. About the game Saturday?”
“Oh, uh, no. Sorry. I think I have to watch my sister, so I can’t make it.”
Scarlett’s gaze drilled into the side of my face. I hadn’t mentioned his invitation to his game, mostly because I didn’t want to listen to her go on for an hour about how I was starting to fall for him. And especially not because the last thing I wanted was to hear how it would likely end in disaster.
So, I ignored her knife-like gaze and took a sip of my water to busy myself.
“That’s too bad. There’s going to be someone there I was hoping you could meet. I think you’d really like her.”
My thoughts flashed to Julie, and I choked, coughing on my water. I still hadn’t really figured out an end-game where Julie was concerned and had only accepted his invite yesterday out of a moment of weakness.
I couldn’tactuallygo, could I?
I spluttered some more, wheezing in an effort to catch my breath while Topher frowned beside me and smacked me in the back a few times until I finally cleared my windpipe long enough to speak. “Sorry. Wrong tube,” I wheezed. “But, yeah. Maybe I can make it next time.”
“Dang, that’s too bad.”
“Is it? Who is this mystery person you wanted P to meet?” Scarlett asked, pursing her lips.
Someone yelled Topher’s name from the other end of the room, and he glanced up at them, straightening a little. “Uh, this chick I’ve been talking to, Julie. She’s pretty dope. I just thought you guys would hit it off. That it’d be cool if you were friends.”
“Friends,” Scarlett repeated with a smirk.
“Yeah, but no biggie. Maybe some other time?” he asked me as Luca called him again.
“Yeah, sure.”
He lifted his tray and headed toward the lounge. “See you Monday?” he called behind him.
“Yup, Monday,” I murmured to his back as he walked away.
The moment he disappeared out of ear-shot, I turned to Scarlett, whose eyes threatened to slice through me like a laser beam. “What?” I asked, the picture of innocence. Because if there was any chance I could avoid the conversation we were about to have, I was taking it.
“There’s going to be someone there I was hoping you could meet. I think you’d really like her,” Scarlett mocked, then added, “Yeah, because she’s you. First, Julie didn’t actually agree to go to his game, did she? And second, how are you not chomping on the bit to make a fool of him over this? It’s everything you ever wanted. It sounds like he’s actually falling for Julie, WHO IS REALLY YOU!”
“Shhh,” I hissed, glancing around us to ensure no one heard. “I realize who Julie is,” I snapped. “And why is it so crazy if I said yes to going to the game?”
