“Jesus, Robbi. Sexist much?” snaps Lindsay.
It makes me giggle.
“Oh, like you don’t want to know,” Robbi snaps right back. “Cooke is the hottest man I’ve… no,we’ve”—she points at every roomie as she finishes—“ever seen, and our girl here went home with him. I want details.” She glares at Lindsay. “I know you do too.”
She shrugs. “It’s just not cool to call a guy a ‘hot piece of ass.’”
“Get over it,” Robbi grumbles. “Go—”
“Okay,” I cut in quickly before Robbi says too much. “I’m sorry. Yes, I’ll tell you all about it when you guys are ready.”
As the girls leave the room, I reach out and touch Patsy’s wrist. When she looks at me, I can tell she’s truly upset with me. “Pats?”
“Yes?” she asks, sounding very formal.
“I’m sorry.”
She sighs. “I know. I was worried, that’s all.”
“I get that. I had no idea.” What? No idea they cared? No, I knew they cared; it’s just a surprise to see the extent. I feel a connection to these girls, especially now that Kara is out of the picture. Which reminds me. “I talked to Gage last night.”
“Gage?” She looks confused. “The cop?”
I nod. “I think you should know that Kara is the one that ran over my scooter.”
“Shit,” she mutters, looking back into the room. “Sus,” she says absently. “I’ll need to call Mom. Does Kara know we know?”
“I’m not sure. I’m going to the station today to fill out papers. They charged her with hit-and-run.”
“Fuck.”
I know she’s worried about her mom’s job. “I’ll let you know what else I find out, okay?”
“Yeah. Okay.” She steps away from me, then turns back. “You do whatever you need to do, Quinn. Kara deserves to be punished. What she’s said and done to you is bullshit. I’ll let my mom know so she can be prepared, just in case.”
“Oh. Right.” I sure hope her mom doesn’t get fired because of me.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
I’m late for class. Again. Luckily, my ceramics professor is cool. Not so lucky that being the last to arrive to class means I’m forced to use the crappy wheel in the way-way back of the room. The one with the kick-wheel instead of an electric pedal. I much prefer the electric one, because I can’t seem to throw a pot and use my foot to make the thing run all at the same time. I’m just not that coordinated.
Case in point, we were supposed to be working on a simple cup shape. One you could drink from, or if you add a handle to it, it could be a coffee mug. But mine didn’t quite turn out that way. I’d say mine was more of a, well, a plate. No worries, I still have time to make another one next class period. I’ll just have to leave extra early for class next time. Cooke won’t be here, so I’ll have all the time in the world. The thought makes my heart drop in my chest. I’m going to miss him so much, and we just met.
At a few minutes past eleven, I rush into the Hub in search of the man himself. When I spy him, he’s standing at a tall table near the window talking to someone. Not just someone, a woman. And not just any woman. She’s drop-dead gorgeous. I’ve seen her before, and I’m positive she’s in a sorority, but not only that, I’ve seen her in Iowa State cheer squad gear. She’s a cheerleader. I take one step back to watch them interact. Cooke is smiling and nodding at something she’s saying. He looks interested. When he laughs, I feel my heart slip down further than before.
Of course he’d be interested in what she’s saying. Why wouldn’t he?
I’m about to turn and walk away when his attention moves from the beautiful blonde woman to me. I catch my breath at the smile on his face. When he raises his palm to wave me over, I push my shoulders back and take one step, then another, until I reach his table. The woman, whoever she is, turns her head to look at me. I don’t know what I expect her to do, but she only blinks a few times before her attention returns to Cooke. “So, anyway…,” she starts.
“Love?” Cooke moves around the table to stand next to me. The second he reaches me, he leans down and kisses me softly on my lips. “Quinn, meet… uh?”
“Krissy. With a K.”
“Right.” Cooke nods. “Krissy with a K, this is Quinn, my girl.”
His girl.Wow, I love the sound of that.
“Really?” Krissy with a K sounds surprised.
