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My heart sped up. Something had definitely happened. I had no message from Jace, one of Connor’s best friends from his East Coast prep school rowing days. So, I opened an app to check our friends’ profiles. There were some new pictures from a party last night, but nothing unusual. I skimmed through the photos again. At the edge of one of the photos, a little blurry and partly in shadow, was someone of Connor’s approximate shape and size, wearing a Berkeley rowing sweatshirt, holding hands with a girl who didn’t quite make it into the photo. Interesting. But Jace hadn’t posted that one. So, I kept scrolling. That’s when I saw it. “Beloved History Professor Suspended,” read the title above a photo of my former boss.
I opened Lacie’s message again, and my thumbs hovered over my screen as I considered my reply. I typed:Miss you, too!
I stared at the words for a minute, and then hit send. After, I flipped back and started to read through the article, but a notification popped up almost immediately. Lacie. I opened it.
Can’t believe you missed B’s engagement party last night. Connor said you were in London. What r u doing in London?!
Technically, I was miles from London, but I supposed, from Vermont, it seemed close enough. I replied:Visiting family. How’s B?
I wanted to ask what else Connor had told her, but I hadn’t spoken with Lacie or Becca in months. As much as I didn’t want to chat about how everyone was doing, or talk about my trip, I also didn’t want to look too desperate for information, just in case Connor hadn’t told her anything. Just in case that article Jace posted had nothing to do with me after all. I tapped my finger against the edge of my phone while I waited for a response.
Lacie:Fine. Wish I were there! Is that why you and C broke up?
My thumbs froze an inch above the screen. Connor and I had broken up months ago. I wondered what Connor been telling them at the party. As I considered my response, another message popped onto my screen.
Lacie:Didn’t ask him for details. Taking your side. Esp after watching him drool all over Haley last night. Yuck.
Haley. So, the girl in the photo was his little sister’s best friend, Haley? I wasn’t really surprised, but I did wonder if this was new or if it had been going on for a while now and he’d been keeping it from me. More important, though, I wanted to know what she meant by “taking your side.” I suspected it may have something to do with the article and my ex-boyfriend’s inability to keep his mouth shut about my business.
Thanks, I sent. Before she could reply I added:GG. Talk later?
She replied.Ltr <3
I checked the time. If I didn’t hurry, I’d miss my chance to have lunch with my uncle. I sent a short message to Connor:What time?Then I shoved my phone in my pocket and headed down the hall to the top of the stairs.
Halfway down the hall, my phone buzzed. I reached into my pocket and glanced down at the screen. But before I could check my message, I crashed into another body. I looked up and found myself staring into a pair of brown eyes, framed by floppy brown waves of hair. Strong hands squeezed my upper arms. Liam.
“Sorry,” he said. His hands held me in place, about a foot away from his chest.
“I should be the one apologizing. I wasn’t looking where I was going.” This close, I realized that he smelled like fresh snow, or maybe my mind was still stuck in Vermont. I slipped my phone into my pocket and resisted the urge to step closer.
“You all right?” His lips had suddenly become very distracting.
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.
“I was just coming to tell you that your uncle said he’s really busy and wanted to have tea with you this afternoon, instead,” he said. “Since we have time, Vivian asked if we might pick up some things for her in town. Interested?”
I squinted at him. This seemed entirely too convenient given our earlier discussion. Still, I could use this change of plans to my advantage and try to pry some information out of him. “Sure,” I said. “Just let me get my jacket, and I’ll meet you downstairs.”
I jogged back to my room to grab my jacket and wallet. Then I hurried down the stairs, past the Faerie Queen tapestry, to the entryway. When I got there, Liam was leaning against the front door like he owned the place.
“Ready?” he asked.
I nodded, instantly regretting that I’d agreed to spend any time with him at all. Silently raging at his smug grin, I fought to shove my arms into my jacket sleeves, which had become a tangled mess, making me look like an uncoordinated idiot. Just about the point where I wanted to throw the thing on the ground and stomp on it, Liam reached down and lifted the jacket from my hands, holding it so I could slip my arms into the sleeves. As he settled the coat on my shoulders, he let his hands linger for a moment before I turned to face him.
“Thanks.”
He lifted an old leather jacket off a peg and shrugged into it before opening the front door. “After you,” he said, stepping aside so I could pass.
I shivered when the brisk wind hit me, just outside the door.
“You need a hat,” he said.
“I didn’t bring one. I didn’t realize it would be so cold here.” I tugged the collar of my coat closed and held it in place with one hand before stuffing the other deep into my pocket.
He shook his head. “We’ll find you one in town.” He stepped up next to me and offered me his arm. “Shall we?”
I looked at his arm and then up at him. “Are we walking?” Based on what I’d seen from the taxi when I’d arrived, we were miles from anything resembling a town, and there were no cars anywhere in sight.
