Dominic didn’t arrive until the bus was turning the corner. With his hair sticking up in every direction, I’d bet money that he’d woken up late. I was surprised he was bothering to attend at all. He and Max had no shame when it came to ditching college.
For whatever reason, Dominic seemed determined to make it today, breaking into a jog. Tapping his pass as he boarded, his eyes sought us out.
No, not us.
Max.
His gaze passed right over me as though I didn’t exist.
Jaw clenched, I tore my gaze away. It was fine. I didn’t need his attention. Didn’t fucking want it, either.
The bus rumbled to life, and Dominic gripped onto the bars as he made his way down the aisle. With my peripheral vision, I saw him reach Max. He was beside Amy, an arm slung over her shoulders. “Not sitting at the back today?”
That was what they’d been doing ever since Max had started dating Amy. Five people could fit there with ease.
Plenty of room, for example, for an erstwhile twin. I never bothered trying to join them, always choosing a seat right near the front.
“Nah,” Max said.
I glanced back to see the seats were free. Dominic was doing the same, a crinkle between his brows.
“You should sit with Ryan,” Max said coldly. “Seeing as you’ve been spending so much time together.”
I rolled my eyes, turning to face the window more fully. God, Max was a petty fucker when he wanted to be. This was his way of punishing Dominic for including me at lunch. Didn’t matter that he spent every spare minute sucking face with his girlfriend. Apparently Dominic was meant to just sit in silence, not talking to anyone else.
That wasn’t fair. Max wouldn’t have an issue with Dominic spending time with anyone else.
Just me.
I didn’t look around as Dominic dropped into the seat next to me. He didn’t speak either, but I could almost feel the ire rolling off him.
Max had drawn a line in the sand. He should have known better.
Dominic didn’t like being controlled any more than Max did.
My stomach dipped as I wondered what this would mean for me. I doubted Max had influenced anything that had happened between us so far, but if he was going to take a stand…
Things would change.
The question wasn’t if, but how.
I tried to pretend Dominic wasn’t next to me, but it was too difficult. Bus seats aren’t exactly spacious. Add two teenage boys, both of whom were over six foot, and you found yourself closer than expected. It wasn’t just his proximity either, it was his scent. His aftershave smelled stronger than usual—probably because it wasn’t intertwined with the acrid odour of cigarette smoke that normally followed him everywhere—and it filled the air around us, making it impossible to so much as breathe without thinking of him.
I glanced sideways at him. I couldn’t help it; my eyes didn’t appear to be under my control. His lips were thin and tight, his eyes fixed pointedly forwards. There was a light dusting of stubble over his jaw, suggesting he’d not had time to shave as he usually did. Add that to the dark circles under his eyes, and I was willing to bet he hadn’t slept well.
But why? Was it because he’d lain awake thinking about the weird showdown we’d had? Was he thinking about it now? Wondering why he’d asked me not to take Maya out again? Wondering what it meant that I’d agreed?
Because I was. It was all I could think about.
And I had no idea what that meant.
Suddenly, the bus took a corner too fast. I was thrown against Dominic before going the other way.
Straight towards the glass, face first.
I winced, my muscles tensing as I waited for the collision. But when it happened, I didn’t hit the glass.
I hit Dominic’s hand.
