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The redhead boy beside him chuckled a bit, glancing around the space as if he’d never been here before.
Connor wasn’t the only one ignoring me. Madison pointedly looked away as she sat down to lace up her bowling shoes. Jade sat down too, but she was the only one who hadn’t grabbed shoes. Instead, she was engrossed in her phone, like she wanted to be anywhere other than here.
I brought my straw between my lips and bit down until my teeth ached. It made a clogging sound as I ran out of soda, and I got back to my feet. “It’s your turn,” I reminded Alex, trying to keep my voice from leaking irritation. “I’ll be right back.”
He didn’t even ask me where I was going. Instead, Alex nodded, striking up a conversation with Reed about who knew what.
Allen’s Alley had an attached bar and grill, and I stepped up to the sticky countertop, waiting for the tatted up bartender to glance over. “I’ll be right with ya, hon.”
“No rush.”Seriously. In fact, I wished I could’ve stayed parked here until it was my turn again. My friends’ attention spans had been cut in half by the Top Tier distraction, and it’d take a while for my name to blink on the screen again.
I focused on the TV above the bar, some football game I couldn’t care less about.
Suddenly, someone pressed their body up against my side, sliding up along the bar and leaning both of their elbows on top of it. Before I turned, I recognized the clean, sandalwood scent.
“Hey, can I have two cokes, please? Under lane nine.” Connor knocked his knuckles on the bar, and I watched as the bartender bobbed her head. From the barest corner of his eye, he glanced over. “You know, your face is really familiar. Maybe it’s the glasses?”
“What are you doing here?” I demanded. “You seriously brought all your friends when you knew I’d be here?”
“The alley’s big enough for both of us.”
Hard disagree. “Who’s the guy?”
Connor glanced over his shoulder, lifting his chin. “Landon Settler. Quarterback. You know Reed, right? The girl with him is Cindy.”
Cindy. I tried to remember if Rachel had mentioned her brother getting a girlfriend, but I came up blank.
“Anyway, I wanted to see if you’d put my advice into action,” he went on, rubbing the sticky surface of the bar. “Judging by your boyfriend’s face, I’d guess that’s ano.”
“Maybe you should worry about your own relationship. Your girlfriend doesn’t look like she’s having a good time.”
Connor raised a shoulder in a lazy shrug. “Jade rarely has a good time. Besides, we’re talking aboutyouand Aiden.”
My head swiveled and I glared at him, with the strongestwhat is wrong with youglare I could muster. “You’re so arrogant, you know that? You purposefully got his name wrong.”
“Did I?” The only way to describe him then waschildlike, like the way a kid beams when they know they did something purposefully bad. He traced invisible shapes along the bar, fingers creeping closer and closer to the edge of my arm. “Can you prove it?”
“I guess it wouldn’t surprise me if you couldn’t remember. You populars act like everyone is beneath you.”
If he took offense, he didn’t show it. “Psychology would say you resent us because you want to be us.”
“If I ever need a Psych tutor, I’ll remember to come to you.”
Connor leaned against the counter a bit more, peering down into my eyes with an intensity that almost felt intimate. Like it was a look he should’ve been giving Jade instead of me. “Do you need a demonstration for physical touch? I can give you one.”
There was no explaining the rush ofsomethingsparking in my stomach at his words, nor the way my mouth suddenly felt dryer than the dirt parking lot outside. It reminded me of the sensitive way he’d coasted his fingertip across my knuckles an hour ago. I had no idea where the feeling came from, only that I didn’t like it.
“Here you go, hon.” The bartender placed two glasses down in front of Connor, the condensation already building from the humidity inside the alley. I tried not to let it get to me that she servedhimfirst when I’d been waiting. He even got preferential treatment from strangers. Go figure. She turned to me, to my empty glass. “You need a refill?”
Connor swiped up his glasses, and before he turned away, he lowered his voice, leaning in to murmur, “Make sure you’re taking notes.”
I shook off the sensation of his words against my neck.
Rachel was finishing up her turn when I got back to the table. Landon had sat down beside Ava, and she’d taken the opportunity to ask him questions about his love life. To her, this would’ve been fate. If I hadn’t felt so unsettled by all things Connor Bray, I probably would’ve laughed at how this night worked out for her.
Madison was at the ball return when I stepped up, and she stiffened as I got closer. “Hey,” she greeted because it would’ve been impolite tonotsay anything.
“How are you?” I asked, but swiped up a ball and walked toward the starting line without waiting for her response. I was convinced she wouldn’t reply, anyway. Not with her friends watching.
