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“But you don’t have my number.”

“You’re right. I don’t. You had mine.” Nicole couldn’t help herself, even with Cedric looking at her now like she’d lost her mind.

God, she hoped she didn’t sound bitter. Sure, the disappointment had stung a little at first, but after a few days, Drew’s silence had started feeling like a favor. It wasn’t like she’d spent all that time checking her answering machine every time she walked through the door. No, she’d moved on. She was fine. Really.

Drew nodded once without trying to explain himself, like he knew he had it coming. “I’m calling you tonight.” Then he turned and walked away.

And just like that, Nicole was standing there with eight pairs of eyes on her and no good explanation for any of it.

“Who is he to you?” Cedric asked, that edge in his voice.

“That’s just Drew.”

“I know who he is. Everybody knows who he is. But who is he to you?”

Everyone was waiting for her answer, including Toni, who knew a hell of a lot more than the rest of them did.

“He’s nobody to me.” Nicole lowered her voice. “Why’d you make it sound like you and I are back together?”

Cedric looked down and took a breath before meeting her eyes again. “That’s the plan, right?”

“We don’t know that yet. We’re still figuring things out, remember?”

“I was only trying to have your back. I didn’t want him thinking he could just step to you like that and expect you to give him the time of day.” Cedric’s eyes cut across the quad, past the crisscrossing walkways and wide lawns, toward the far side where the white students usually gathered. “He can take that shit over there.”

“I know you were trying to look out for me, and I’m sorry he interrupted us. But you didn’t have to do it like that. I was handling it.”

“Were you, though?”

“Hey, don’t do that.”

“Fine. I’ll drop it.”

Cedric clearly had more questions, but after a moment, he gave a short nod, his shoulders still stiff.

Her family adored Cedric. He was a grad student from a good family, a Kappa like her dad and all the men on her mother’s side of the family—and he was gorgeous. What more could she have asked for?

He’d gone home with her last Thanksgiving, and after they got back, he’d started talking more and more about their future—getting married, having kids, raising a family in the suburbs. That’s when things changed for Nicole. Maybe it was cold feet? Maybe it was more?

Breaking up with him had been hard. She’d almost talked herself out of it at least three times. But he deserved better than her, better than someone who had to keep talking herself out of leaving him. What kind of girlfriend did that make her?

A shitty one, she’d decided.

Now he wanted to try again, and after the way she’d ended things, the least she could do was find out if she’d made a mistake.

“I have to get to class.” She shifted her backpack higher on her shoulder.

“I’ll walk you.”

“That’s okay.” Nicole reached out and squeezed his arm just above the elbow. “But I’ll see you Saturday.”

“And I’ll call you tonight.” He leaned in and kissed her cheek.

When Nicole waved goodbye to the group, a few of them waved back. The others just watched her, like they weren’t quite sure what to make of her after Drew’s little performance. She turned and started across the quad.

Cedric would call tonight. In all the time she’d known him, he’d always done what he said he would. No hesitation, no games, no two weeks of silence.

But as she walked, with the November sun warm on her face, the only thing she could think about was whether Drew would keep his word this time. She hoped he would, and she hated that she did.