I ignored the look Wilder was giving me and left to go get in line. I couldn’t get anything past him, but he had it all wrong. I was just being a nice guy, which I was known to be every once in a while.
Pulling my phone out as I waited my turn, there were three missed texts from women I didn’t know who wanted to hang out. I didn’t respond, putting my phone back in my pocket.
“Hey, you,” a sultry voice said, hands resting onto my arm.
Turning my head, I took in a tall brunette with fake lashes giving me a coy smile, her eyes ogling my body.
My side smile instinctively came out, as well as the overly used greeting I used with all the girls. “Hello, beautiful.”
“Did you get my text?” she asked.
I didn’t even know how people got my phone number, but she assumed I should know her.
“I did,” I said truthfully, although I had no clue which one was hers. “Haven’t had a chance to text you back.”
She ran her hand up and down my arm. “I’ll be at the Wolf’s Den tonight. Maybe we can dance.”
I flicked my gaze to where Isla sat, our eyes locking for a fraction of a second before she looked away, continuing her conversation with Olivia.
My first thought was to shake this girl off my arm, but then I remembered who I was—who IslaknewI was. I didn’t have anything to hide. I wasn’t ashamed of my lifestyle.
I returned my focus to the brunette. “I’d like that.”
She pulled me closer to her and kissed me on the cheek. “I’ll see you tonight, then.” She walked away, and I knew I wouldn’t have to look for her tonight—she’d be waiting for me.
I was next in line, and I ordered two turkey subs and then headed back to the table. Isla looked like she belonged with our group as they all chatted. She laughed, and as I looked at her, I had a feeling she didn’t realize how beautiful she was. A very different kind of beauty than the girl who had just latched on to my arm.
Not that it mattered, since we were only friends, but I couldn’t help noticing how attractive she was, with her deep blue eyes, her long blonde hair cascading down her back, her pouty pink lips, and a smile that somehow got through the numb wall I’d worked so hard to build.
I stumbled, but I was quick to recover.What was I thinking?Thoughts like that were dangerous. I needed to snap out of it. I didn’t care how attracted I was to her, that’s where things would stop between us. And thankfully, she didn’t want anything more than friendship either.
It had been a weird day, that’s all. My life had been the same day-to-day for years, and I blamed these thoughts on too many changes too close together.
6
Isla
It was almost noon, and Slate would be knocking on my door any minute. I packed the last of the makeup I needed to finish up my look during the car ride to Riverdell. It was a two-hour drive, and I wanted to wait until we got closer to the start of Amy and Tyler’s wedding so my makeup would look fresh. I’d already curled my hair, pinning a small part of the left side up, just the way Amy had told me to wear it.
I still couldn’t believe she and Tyler were getting married. When I had still been with Josh, it had sounded romantic, but now that I’d been single for the last month, it sounded crazy. Although Amy and Tyler were not me and Josh. They were completely smitten and totally perfect for each other. I was truly excited for them and couldn’t wait to see Amy in a few hours. We’d been best friends since ninth grade, and we had tried our best over the past month and a half to stay connected, but it just wasn’t the same as living together and going to the same university. I missed her like crazy, but things had started to get better at Waterford, which I was extremely grateful for and owed all to Slate.
Since meeting his friends, I’d hung out with Olivia and Scarlet and had a few girls’ nights, met up with the whole gang for lunch a couple times a week, gone to one of Olivia’s once-a-month game nights, and hit up the Wolf’s Den with them on the weekends. It had helped me get to know other people, as well as snag three dates, over the past couple weeks.
None of the guys I had gone out with had made me want a second date, but it had felt nice to get out in the dating world. I admit that part of the problem was me. I was a little rusty when it came to dating—and a lot awkward on the dates. With each date, I had gotten more relaxed, so there was hope for me yet. But I didn’t want anything serious anyway and was having fun acting more like a college student than I ever had before.
The knock I’d been waiting for finally sounded on my apartment door. Grabbing my travel bag, I went to open the door.
Over the past month, I’d seen Slate at least three times a week in our kinesiology class, sometimes at lunch, and most of the time at the Wolf’s Den. But no matter how many times I saw him, I never got used to the initial feeling of seeing him. Knowing this about myself, I took a big breath and steeled my expression, hoping to not give any thoughts away. We were just friends, after all, and I had really come to enjoy his friendship.
As I opened the door, a whiff of Slate’s cologne wafted past me, and I tried not to sigh. I promise I didn’t like him like that, but man, did he look and smell good. He wore a pair of black slacks and a blue button-up with the sleeves rolled up to showcase his exquisite forearms. Yes, forearms could be exquisite. Slate was proof of that. The light-blue shirt he’d chosen made his eyes stand out even more and fit him in a way that showed off his muscular football physique. Riverdell wasn’t ready for this man.
“Hello, beautiful.” He wore that sexy smile of his as he looked me up and down.
Suppressing a sigh, I rolled my eyes instead. “Don’t use your line on me.” In the short time we’d known each other, I’d learned this was his signature greeting when girls came up to him, and I wasn’t one of those girls.
He chuckled. “Fine. What about, ‘Hello, gorgeous’?”
I shook my head. “No.”
