“What are you doing here? Are you here to see me?” Paul asked, eyebrows raised.
I tugged Hazel’s arm to place her partially behind me. Maybe it was irrational, but I didn’t care.
Paul eyed me, sizing me up. I silently prayed he wouldn’t recognize me from the gym. Thankfully, he’d barely glancedmy way that day, because zero recognition flashed in his dark eyes.
“Oh, um, no.” Hazel licked her lips. I was mentally screaming at her to play it cool. I wasn’t sure I could take a repeat of her getting in someone’s face and yelling at them. Unlike her frilly ex-boss, these two looked like they’d fight dirty. I wanted no part of that.
“We were touring that apartment,” I said quickly, pointing to another new build right across the street.
Paul and his friend turned their heads to follow my gesture.
“Do you live over here?” Hazel asked, finding her voice again. “I totally forgot. All of these new builds look the same.”
I wanted to hug her for sounding so believable.
“You two?” Paul looked appalled. “You’re withthisguy? Are you serious?” He wasn’t even bothering to hide the anger in his voice. I couldn’t blame the guy. He and Hazel had broken up not too long ago, and here she was, allegedly apartment shopping with some other guy.
I must not be mentally okay, because that idea went straight to my head. When I slipped an arm around her shoulder, I tried to tell myself that I was playing a part, not being possessive.
“I know it’s fast, but we basically already live together,” she said. I nearly snorted at the not-quite-lie but I kept my face composed. To my immense satisfaction, she leaned into me. “But we’ve been talking about moving in together next year anyway. And there’s been some theft in my building lately. We figured we might as well find somewhere more secure.”
My heart pounded at her not-so-subtle mention of the theft, but Paul looked completely unfazed. Or, I guess I should say he seemed completely unfazed aboutthat. He looked pissed. Real pissed. He shot me a withering look, not bothering with any pleasantries.
His friend, doucheface, snorted. “That’s fast, don’t you think, Hazel?”
She rolled her eyes. “Nice to see you again, Callum.”
“Are you taking advantage of her?” Paul shocked me by asking, staring me up and down.
“Never,” I said, glaring at the guy. Who the fuck did he think he was?Metaking advantage of her? I bit my tongue to keep from going off on him.
“We’d better go,” Hazel said flatly.
Paul took a step forward, like he wanted to reach out and grab her to keep her there. I hoped he wouldn’t, or I’d be the one physically escalating the situation this time, not Hazel.
“Hazel, your granjustdied. Is this really the time to be jumping into a relationship?”
What a manipulative dick.
I bristled at his words, and Hazel tensed underneath my arm.
He must have noticed the shift in her, because his eyes did a quick calculation before he took a small step forward. “Can we talk some time? Please?”
I stifled the “No” that threatened to break free from my mouth. Even if I was supposed to be her fake boyfriend in this scenario, I still didn’t want to come off like some controlling freak—the way Hazel had said Paul used to be.
“I don’t think so,” she said cooly. Suddenly I could breathe again.
“We’ve got to go.” I squeezed her shoulder and spun us around.
“Let it go, man.” I heard Paul’s friend say.Yeah, dude. Listen to your friend. Back off.
Hazel and I quickened our pace, not stopping until we’d rounded the corner. The car was still a block ahead and to my surprise, she ran, sprinting for it.
Without thinking, I took off after her, boots pounding against the sidewalk, heart racing. When I reached her at the car, I froze, dreading seeing her face. Would it be crumpled? Sad? Would she be crying?
But when she faced me, she was laughing, hard, wheezingin and out through her mouth. Despite my bewilderment, a grin broke out on my face.
“Are you okay?” I asked, unsure if the laughter was some kind of coping mechanism or if she had finally lost it under the pressure.
