With that, he was racing out the front door, leaving Harmony with everyone's eyes on her, a half a bottle of wine, and at least another forty-five minutes of class. She took a deep breath, glared at anyone who dared look her way, and settled in to finish herpainting.
"When didyou ask her on theseconddate?"
"Why wouldyou think I asked her onanotherdate?"
6
Dominick walkedinto his dorm with several different ideas of where Conrad could put his confidence. He'd loosened up, played the part of the guy who was self-assured, and where had it gotten him? Looking like a complete tool with wine all over the borrowed pantshewore.
Not only that, he’d abandoned Harmony with no explanation. What had he beenthinking?
The small space of his room smelled like pizza, and Conrad was sitting in his usual spot on the edge of his bed. On his head was the headset he always wore while playing his online video games. He looked up at the sound of the door slamming. Dominick's expression must have been more gloomy than he realized because Conrad took one look at him and set both the headset and his controller down and stood up in the middle oftheroom.
"Duuuude," he said slowly. "What happened to youtonight?"
Dominick shook his head. "A disaster,that'swhat."
"What's all over yourpants?"
"I think you mean your pants." Dominick raised his eyebrows. "And it's red wine. I doubt it'll come out, and I'm going to have to buy you a new pair. Please tell me they're notexpensive."
He held his breath knowing it was a very real possibility. Conrad was a walking contradiction. He was charming but rude, cheap yet cultured. For all Dominick knew, these pants that were often wrinkled on the floor of their dorm could have cost a couple of hundred dollars. It was money Dominickdidn'thave.
"It's fine." Conrad waved his hand in the air as if he was physically pushing the question out of the room. "Tell me aboutyourdate."
Dominick stared at Conrad, only breaking his gaze for one long, dramaticblink.
"Thatbad?"
Dominick let out a puff of air that might have been considered a laugh by some. "Let’s see, I already told you she thought I was going to be someone else, and now I'm home early with wine stains on your pants. What do youthink?"
Conrad wrapped his hand around the back of his neck and chuckled. "Thatgood,huh?"
"The entire night was a disaster." Dominick began pacing in the small room. "She would have been better offwithPax."
"Pax?"
Dominick stopped, and crossed his arms across his chest. "Yeah, Pax. Mr. Perfect. Blond hair, blue eyes. Charming, I'm sure. The guy she was supposedtodate."
Conrad mirrored Dominick stance and crossed his arms, waiting for Dominick tocontinue.
Dominick flopped down on his bed and put his elbows on his knees. "And now I'm out a bunch of money I really shouldn't have spent in the first place. This is exactly why this whole Date Maker thing was a bad idea. I'mhopeless."
"Maybe not." Conrad's voice was quiet. Dominick looked up to see his roommate's brows furrowed, his hand resting onhischin.
"What are you talking about?" Dominick asked. "Of courseIam."
"No, no, no. That's not what I mean. You’re still hopeless." He smiled at Dominick, who only groaned in response. "I wonder if your packet was the one that was correct and hot coffeechick—"
"Harmony," Dominickinterrupted.
"Right. Maybe Harmony's was the one that wasmessedup."
Dominick chuckled. "Oh, yeah. I'm sure that's what happened. And now that you mention it, all those glares were probably just her way of flirting. And the way she told me she wished I was Pax was her playing hard to get. Oh, why didn't I think of that? If only I would have stayed at the painting class, Harmony would be madly in love with merightnow."
"Dominick," Conrad sighed. "You don't have to be so dramatic about the whole thing. I'm just saying it's a possibility, right? Did Morgan say she mixed up your packet? Or are you just assumingthings?"
He pulled out his phone. Dominick had sent a quick text to Morgan when Harmony wasn't paying attention, but she still hadn't responded. And if Harmony had been on the phone with Morgan when he pulled up to the painting class, she hadn’t said they were on thewrongdate.
