I look down at my oversized U of Wisconsin-Madison sweatshirt, then back at him. This sounds like a date. I’m this close to asking him if it is, when that guy he was with the other time steps up to the desk, slaps Eli on the back, then says, “Hey, tiny dynamo.”
Tiny dynamo?What the heck?
I don’t know why, but that one makes me laugh, though I’m still able to say through the giggles, “I’ve never heard that one before, ya wanker.” I add the last bit in a terrible English accent, so it sounds more like “wankah.”
Both guys break out into full-on laughs, which draws the attention of everyone else in the place. Trying to keep myself from losing it, too, I place my finger over my lips and make the universal librarian sound. “Shhh.”
Bad move because that only makes them laugh harder.
“Emma?” I stiffen up at the voice of Mr. Lane, my boss’s boss. He’s not a nice person.
Turning to face him, I plaster on a fake smile. “Yes, Mr. Lane?”
“I could hear you all the way on the other side of the building.”
“I’m sorry, Mr. Lane.”
“Keep it down.”
“Yes, Mr. Lane.”
I turn to face the guys and can’t help noticing they’re no longer laughing. Hell, they aren’t even smiling. “Sorry, babe.”
That came from the wanker. Too bad, because hearing Eli call me “babe” would be a dream come true.
Leaning on the desk, Wanker moves closer. “I’m Cody.” Then, he winks. Like a wanker.
“Cody.”
“I figure you should know my name since you and my boy here”—he slaps Eli on the back again. Hard enough to push him off-balance a little—“are going to be spending some time together.”
I look over at Eli as he asks, “So, Saturday night? I’ll pick you up at seven.”
“Seven.” What the heck is wrong with me?Shake it off, Em. We’re friends.This is his way to make up for the whole fiasco in the coffee shop. Nothing more.“Sure.”
Holding his phone up, he looks at me. “What’s your number?”
I give it to him. I hear mine chime from somewhere behind me. “Now you have mine. Text me your address.”
“Okay.” I smile, but it’s only half of one.
“Great.” Eli’s smile looks real. “It’s a date.”
What?It’s a date? No. No. That’s just an expression. We all say it. Heck, I’ve said it to Carley before.He’s just teasing. Of course, he is.
“Okay. See you Saturday.” In two days.
“Great,” he says again.
“Great.” This time it’s Cody. “The two of you are riveting, but I’ve gotta go. There’s a hottie studying alone down on two. I’m about to keep her company.” With another wink, he’s gone.
“I hate when guys wink,” I mumble to myself, but I guess Eli hears me.
“Yeah?” He’s looking at me like he’s really curious. “Why?”
“It’s smarmy.”
Eli reaches for his phone again and types something. He reads, “Ingratiating and wheedling in a way that is perceived as insincere or excessive.” He nods. “Yep. Cody is definitely smarmy.”
