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I took my seat, and the chaos of the coffee shop came rushing back. A surreptitious glance around showed me none of the other patrons were giving us much attention. Even the girls at the next table over had gone back to their conversation.
Eva fanned herself. “Well, that vid’s not going to D anytime soon.”
I crossed my arms. “You mean never. Don’t cause problems where there aren’t any.”
She patted my bicep. “Don’t worry. I’ll save it for my speech at your wedding.”
Chloe pointedly checked her watch. “You’re going to be late to your class.”
Eva looked at her screen, then frowned. “Crap, you’re right.” She shoved her phone back in her leggings pocket and grabbed her coffee from the table. “Luckily, the TA loves me. He’s fine if I show up late every once in a while.”
I shook my head. It was the first week of classes, and Eva already had a fan club. She was going to rule the world one day. I only hoped I’d stay on her good side.
“Dress shopping on Sunday,” she sang as she grabbed the tote bag I hadn’t even noticed behind my chair.
Just like that, Eva managed to arrange things exactly to her liking. As usual. She toasted us with her coffee and sauntered out of the shop, flipping off her nemesis behind the counter without breaking stride.
The alumni dinner would probably be a disaster, but I didn’t regret giving in. D would be there to act as a buffer—hopefully one strong enough to counter the increasing draw I felt every time Chloe looked at me with need in those big green eyes.
4
If D sent me another text message, I was deleting his ass. I’d ignored Eva during the drive to the dress shop while I dealt with his temper tantrum. Not that he could do anything from New York, but I didn’t want him taking his frustration out on Noah.
We managed to make it to the sidewalk in front of the shop before D’s eleventh message in the last five minutes flashed across my screen.Why was it necessary for him to be between your legs at all?
I gritted my teeth as I stabbed out a response.How many times do I have to tell you? It was a dare, and the video is taken out of context!! Believe me or don’t, but stop harassing me. I haven’t even seen Noah all week. Don’t you have practice or something?
A few beats went by, then D finally responded like a reasonable adult.I believe you, Clo. Sorry I’m making things harder. I’ll see you at the dinner, brat.
Crisis averted, I closed out the messaging app and opened the bookmarked video from the coffee shop. Honestly, I didn’t blame D for getting upset. It wasn’t exactly a flattering depiction of me, and he’d been there for my breakdown in high school after Vince started spreading rumors.
This was different though. Somehow more invasive and less upsetting at the same time.
I scowled at my screen, where the fuzzy video of Noah kneeling between my legs was ticking closer to one million views. Downtown Addison had great Wi-Fi. I could watch my life unravel in real time while dress shopping for an event I wasn’t sure I wanted to attend.
All week, my phone had been blowing up with notifications from my various social media accounts. Mostly from skeezy guys asking for a turn. D had at least waited until mid-morning to come at me with his shouty caps.
He wanted to believe me, so he did. I wasn’t even sure I’d lied to him. Noah was currently avoiding me, which didn’t lend credence to any warm fuzzy feelings he’d caused. The sharp, achy feelings were even worse.
The soft touch of his fingers on my inner thighs, right over my tattoos, haunted my sleep. Not exactly restful. Luckily, the video didn’t catch that part, or the part where I begged him in my mind to move a little higher.
Nope. Some random asshole had filmed just enough to make us look like we were hooking up in public. They’d even included a helpful comment wondering which of my brother’s friends I’d choose next.
Oh yes. Noah may be the strong, silent type, but the student body knew who their star football players were, and I’d been lumped in with them, thanks to D.
Eva snatched the phone out of my hand. “Glaring at the video for the thousandth time won’t make it go away.”
I transferred my glare to her. “This is all your fault.”
“Sorry, honey, but you brought this on yourself. My version, which is much nicer by the way, is still safely locked in my cloud. You’re the one who dared Noah to step out of his comfort zone. And to my great delight, he rose to the challenge.”
I pulled my mass of hair off my face and into a ponytail. “He wasn’t supposed to be so sexy—he was supposed to blush and stammer out an invitation.”
Eva snorted. “You don’t know Noah very well then.”
I wondered the same thing myself, but then I remembered the quiet way he stood between me and the trouble that always followed me. In the back of my mind, I’d known he wouldn’t back down from my dare.
He hadn’t even wanted to ask me to the dinner, but he’d made a spectacle of himself on my behalf anyway. Noah hated being the center of attention. The more I thought about him pushing his boundaries for me, the more I questioned my “no dating, no second chances” rule.
