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“Hannah, can I talk to you for a minute?” I asked as I jogged up to her and Nikolai.
“Um, sure,” she darted a quick look at Nikolai, who looked disgruntled, but nodded his head imperceptibly.
“I’ll grab something in the cafeteria while you guys talk,” he said, then gave Hannah a deep kiss on the mouth.
“Okay, see you in a bit.”
I guided her outside to a small outdoor eating area designated for seniors. “Did you just ask for his permission to come out here?” I asked sharply, putting my shit with Jack on the back burner.
Hannah stopped and stared at me, her violet eyes widening in shock. “What?”
Feeling kind of stupid now, I hedged. “Well, when I asked you it appeared as though you were looking at him for permission to leave his side…”
“Oh! No, no, that’s not what was going on, but I see how you could have misunderstood it. I mean, I guess I sort of was asking for permission, but not really in a gross, controlling way. Nikolai’s super crazy dad is on the loose, and since he kidnapped Emmy, he’s been a little nervous to have me too far away. I was just checking in with him to make sure he was okay, you know, emotionally, I guess.” Emmy was Hannah’s sister and Nikolai’s father, who used to be the head of the Russian mob kidnapped her. No shortage of drama in Nikolai’s life.
“Oh, god, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have been so judgmental. I had such a hard time with Chad, that when I see anyone that appears to be anything like him, I get so triggered. Sorry.” I reached out and gave her a quick hug.
Hannah knew about my relationship with Chad, so instead of being angry, she was very understanding. “It’s okay, Ava, I get it. You don’t think I still jump every time I see Jeff Connors walking down the hallway?” Jeff Connors had an obsessive interest in Hannah, until Nikolai encouraged him to focus his attentions elsewhere. With his fists. “So, what’s up?”
We sat down at a picnic bench. “So, what’s the deal between Jack and Shelby Miller?”
Hannah looked conflicted. “Well, nothing. Now.”
I rolled my eyes. “What was the deal between them? What’s the history? I sit next to Addison Kowalski in chemistry and she mentioned that I must be ‘fucking’ Jack because he was texting me. I mean, I know Jack’s reputation, and it would be unfair for me to get pissed now over something I was aware of, but damn, the way she said it was so annoying.”
Hannah laughed. “Yeah, Addison isn’t exactly known for her friendliness, no one who hangs out with Shelby is. Well, I guess Casey isn’t so bad, but she would never stand up to someone like Addison or Shelby. So, what exactly do you want to know about Jack and Shelby? Since you know his reputation, you have pretty much the whole story, anyway.”
“Did they get serious at all?”
Hannah frowned in concentration. “Serious? No, not in the way you’re thinking about it. Of course, for Jack, having sex with the same person twice is considered the height of intimacy, so Shelby may have read more into what was going on between them.”
“So, they hooked up more than once?”
“Yeah, I mean, not a ton of times, but definitely more than once. Nik talked to me about it, how lazy Jack was being defaulting to Shelby, that she’d get the wrong idea about it.”
“But he ended it with her?”
“Yeah, definitely. Nikolai told me they ended it before Mark’s party, and she apparently came up to him there and he blew her off. I don’t think they’ve spoken since.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. There was a small part of me that was afraid I was being played. I knew about Jack’s history, but I should probably mention to him that I expect him to not sleep around if he’s sleeping with me.
“Should I worry about her? I mean, if she finds out Jack and I are talking, is she going to try to jump my shit?”
Hannah laughed. “Maybe. Shelby is…temperamental.”
“Ugh, great.”
“Yeah, but as far as she and Jack are concerned, they are super done. I don’t think he even liked her, she was just available and perceived his repeat appearances as an indicator of his interest. I think she was only interested in him as a boost to her ego anyway, getting Jack Becker to settle down for her, that kind of thing.”
“Okay, thanks, Hannah.”
“No problem, but, Ava…” Hannah stared at me with troubled, indigo eyes. “Are you sure you know what you’re doing, messing around with Jack? I’m not saying you can’t sleep with whoever you want, you totally can. I just don’t want you to get your heart broken. I mean, Jack…”
I reached over and grabbed her hand, so thankful to have a confidante like her after years of my so-called friends selling me out and encouraging me to stay in a toxic relationship. “I know what you’re thinking, Hannah, and I don’t blame you for advising me to steer clear of Jack. He’s not exactly what you’d call a safe bet. But I thought Chad was a safe bet, and he turned out to be a nightmare. I want to do something adventurous, have fun. I know, I am taking a major risk. Maybe I’ll fall in love with Jack Becker and be crying into a pillow a month from now, but I’m excited I can make that choice, even if it turns out to be a painful one.”
Hannah shook her head, like my explanation defied logic. Maybe it did, maybe I just wanted to be with Jack and was continuing to ignore all the obvious warning signs.
“Okay, Ava. Stranger things have happened. I mean, I’m dating Nikolai Ivanov.”
