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“Really. Really.” She rubbed her temples, and her fingers slid through her hair, pushing it off her face. Goddammit, she looked like someone had kicked her puppy. I shouldn’t care. I barely knew this girl, but I fucking did.
“Hey, we can figure this out.”
A soft laugh escaped her, loosening the tension in my chest. “Oh, canwe?”
I bumped my arm into hers. “Yeah, the fuck we can.”
A pale pink brightened her skin as the spark returned to her eyes. “And how do you expect us to do that? I didn’t just fail this quiz. Istudiedand failed.”
“First, a B- isn’t a fail. Second, somehow I’m not surprised that you’re as thorough at studying as you were at turning me down.”
Her eyes crinkled with her smile, and she gnawed on her bottom lip.
That was fucking better.
Her smile turned sheepish. “It’s not like I wanted to turn you down. It was the rule—”
“Rules, I know.” This girl had no idea how badly I wanted to break all of her carefully crafted rules. I turned my laptop so she could see my grade. “What if I told you I could guarantee you an A on your next quiz? All you have to do is study with me.”
“You can’t promise that. No one can.”
She was right, but that didn’t stop me from leaning forward on my forearms, cutting the distance between us. “Try me.”
“Just to make sure I understand. You’re saying all I have to do is study with you for one night and I’ll get an A?”
I pushed my tongue into my cheek. There was that one-night rule again, although I doubted it extended to studying. “That’s right.”
She laughed, shaking her head. “There’s no way.”
I waited until her eyes were on mine. “Bet.”
“What?” She practically squeaked the question but didn’t look away. The green had swallowed the brown of her irises, and her breaths came out in shallow pants as she waited for my response.
I gave her my cockiest smile. The one I’d honed after a lifetime on the ice antagonizing my opponents. “Ibetyou’ll earn an A on your next quiz if you study with me one time.”
Her head tilted to the side as she studied me. “And what’s in it for you?”
It was a fucking gamble but worth it. “You’ll break your rule and give me your number.”
“What?” she shot back so fast I had to grab onto the back of her chair to keep her from tipping over.
I didn’t answer. I knew better than to open my mouth and accidentally talk her out of it.
“I can’t break the rules. Like, I can’t.” The pupils in her eyes expanded, and she ran her tongue along her bottom lip. “Especially not with you.”
“Because you think I’m hot.”
“Fishing for compliments isn’t cute.”
“You sure about that?”
Her cheeks flushed, and she rolled her eyes. “What do you want instead of my number?”
“You’re telling me you never give out your number? Or just not to hockey players?”
“Of course guys have my number. Obviously, Anthony has it.”
I reminded myself Anthony was her roommate, who had a hot boyfriend, before continuing. “Okay, we’re just studying. Think of me as Anthony.”
