“That’s what I told him,” he says, smirking. “Did you meet with the architect?”
“Not yet, but I need to this week.”
“You’ve said that about your entire to-do list.”
“Because practice starts soon, and only two of the guys have played together in the past.”
“Are you worried about it?”
I nod my response. They’re good, but we haven’t had a chance to hang, outside of meetings, which isn’t ideal. Things flow smoother on the ice when you click with the person skating beside you. We’re going golfing together for charity, and Lachlan suggested a barbecue at his house—as long as Lyla is comfortable and hasn’t given birth by then. They’re just more things on my to-do list, but I can handle it. Josslyn is the only thing on that list that’s making me crazy, and I plan on checking her off very soon.
24
JOSSLYN
The longer I stare at the flowers, the more I begin to question Finn’s motives. I’m not a petty person, so that wasn’t my first, second, or even third thought when I first got them, but now, I don’t know … Did he do it to one-up Tate? He hates him and it’s obvious that he was bothered by the flowers. Deep down, I know they’re probably just apology flowers and I’m reading too much into it, but even that makes my heart flutter, because Finn isn’t the apology type and this … is a lot coming from him.
My heart does a little flip when I think about the way he reacted to seeing me with Tate. I’ve never been with someone fiercely protective of me—and I’m not sure if that’s what this is, or if I’m just a toy he’s possessive over until he gets sick of me—but it feels good to feel wanted by him. I shake the thoughts away. I need to focus on what’s important. I check to make sure I’m signed up for the correct class, Social Work Research II, and exit the school portal. It’ll be my first on-campus course in four years, and even though it’s the last few credits I need to be done with school, I feel like it’ll be my first day all over again. So much so that Olivia and Damian have agreed to go to the mallwith me so I can get an outfit for the day class starts. It’s not just that. We also need to pick up Dame’s tux and get dresses for the fundraiser that’s looming—and spinning more out of control by the second.
Every other comment on my post is someone asking if it’s true that Finn is going as my date. Of course, the follow-up question is, “Are you together?” which … I can’t answer. I know neither one of us is hooking up with anyone else. I also know he doesn’t want other guys touching me. But that’s it. We’ve never gone on a date or gone to each other’s apartments. We’ve never hung out alone at all—the times we’ve hooked up don’t count.
It’s a sucky realization, but thinking about it reminds me that I want to get in touch with Scarlet, my only friend and connection at Onyx, to ask her a few questions, so I do that.
“Time is just a man-made construct,” Livie says.
I snort out a laugh but keep my comments to myself. Every time Olivia and Damian smoke together, they turn into dollar-store versions of Socrates and Plato. Their nonsense makes a twenty-minute car ride feel two hours long, especially when I’m the one driving. By the time I pull up to the mall, I feel like my head is going to explode.
“So is money,” Dame says, as I park and turn off the car.
“If money is a man-made construct, why don’t they just print more of it?” I ask, knowing it’ll take them a while to think of the obvious answers, but at least they’ll shut the fuck up while they think.
We’re pretty efficient at the mall. I find my new outfit—sneakers and cute cotton shorts with a matching crop top and hoodie. It takes us an hour to get our dresses for the Alma Foundation fundraiser, but even that seems to go by fast. We leave Damian’s tux for last, since it’s near the food court and we want pretzels.
“Who’s F?” Damian asks out of the blue.
My head snaps up while my heart drops a little. “Why?”
“The flowers,” he says. “Is it Barlow?”
“That starts with a B,” I try lamely, which earns me a look. “Fine. It is but it means nothing.”
His brows hike. He’s quiet as we walk, pensive, and I hate it. Livie, on the other hand, starts chatting away about the meaning of different flowers and how Finn definitely did his research.
“I don’t want details,” Dame says. “But I’m confused by the gesture.”
“Welp,” Livie says. “If you want to ask him yourself, you can in about a minute. He’s headed our way.”
My heart does a full drop now as I see Finn and Will walking with bags from Neiman Marcus. I nearly roll my eyes, becauseof course, those two shop there. Someone stops to take pictures with them, then another stops them for autographs, and finally, they reach us.
“Fancy meeting you here,” Will says.
“I was thinking the same thing,” Damian says. I pinch his arm, which makes him hiss and look at me.
Thankfully, the expression on his face tells me he’s not going to ask Finn about the flowers. When I dare to look at Finn, I find him watching, checking me out. I feel my face heat and bite my lip, as our eyes lock and his expression darkens. I’m wearing one of Damian’s old Fairview t-shirts with a pair of shorts.
“What’d you get?” Livie asks and starts walking, so we all move with her. “Come with us. We’re getting pretzels.”
“Not much,” Will says, lifting one of the bags. “Underwear, socks, and some other stuff.”
