“As long as I’m around for count, what difference does it make?” Sydney asked.
Monica shook her head. “No, no. You misunderstand. I was just making small talk.”
It didn’t sound like small talk—it sounded like fishing. I stepped forward to where Monica was standing at the door and waited. Monica stepped aside, and I opened the door, and Sydney threw Monica her own dirty look before sliding into the room. I slipped in, as well, and Monica turned to face the room as if she was going to stick around, but I waved and slowly shut the door in her face.
“God, she is weird,” Sydney said.
“No kidding,” I responded.
Sydney pointed excitedly. “Oh! You said something to me that wasn’t sarcastic!”
In the mixup with Monica, I’d forgotten I’d taken a stand against Sydney. “Don’t get used to it.”
“Come on, Nina. I still have more reasons. Eighty-two of them. I’ll list them all, and you know it.” I sat down on my bed and started to unpack my purse, and Sydney sat down on the other bed, facing me. “Reason nine.”
I scoffed. “Stop it.”
“Reason nine, I locked you in this room with a majorly hot guy. You told me it was my job to get you over Kai. I handed you a virgin-killer on a silver platter.”
My gaze shot up to her. “Virgin-killer?”
“Yeah,” Sydney said. “Sleep with Devon. Duh.”
“I’m not gonna sleep with Devon.”
Sydney pointed at me. “You’re blushing.”
I put my hands up over my cheeks. “No.”
She giggled. “Come on. He’s super hot, and he’ll be here every night. Why wouldn’t you sleep with him?” I didn’t immediately respond, and she let out a groan. “Tell me you don’t still think it’ll be Kai?”
I shrugged. “Devon thinks he likes me.”
“You told him about Kai?” she asked.
I rolled my eyes. “It’s complicated. Anyway, I don’t know. I think things could work with Kai.” I had Devon’s new advice, after all. Maybe this was finally my year.
Sydney switched to sitting next to me on my bed. She put her arms around my shoulders and set her head against mine. “Sweetie, I just don’t want you to hurt over him anymore.”
I curled my arms up over Sydney’s and sighed. The strain of being mad at Sydney was waning. She’d always been a woman of many plots and ploys. I guess now probably wasn’t the time to decide to take a stand. If I was going to survive the year, I was going to need my best friend.
“I know. I’ll be okay,” I responded. “I promise.”
“Well, at least sleep with Devon until you’ve worked all the Kai stuff out.”
I leered over at her. “I’m not sleeping with Devon.”
Sydney released me and crossed her arms. “I don’t get it. He’s super hot. If I wasn’t in love with Henry, I’d be all…” She clicked her teeth. “Hey, baby, I’ll let you buy me breakfast in the morning.”
I laughed, officially letting my anger go. “You’re a freak.”
Sydney laughed and smiled, clearly relieved that I was feeling better. “Yeah, but you love me.”
I nodded. “I do.”
A knock on the door pulled our attention. “I swear to god, if that’s Monica,” Sydney grumbled before calling, “Come in!” The door opened, and Devon walked into the room. Sydney chuckled. “Speak of the viciously sexy devil.”
“Shut up,” I hissed. “Hey, Devon.”
“Hi. Is my phone down here? I can’t find it.”
“I haven’t seen it, but we can look around,” I replied, and Sydney, Devon, and I set to flipping covers and lifting books in search of the device.
Finally, I peeked into the bathroom and saw it sitting on the counter. “Got it!” I grabbed it and walked out of the bathroom and handed it over. “Here.”
Devon smiled at me. “Thanks.”
“So,” Sydney started with that tone in her voice that let me know she was up to no good. “How are things going with you two crazy kids?”
I shook my head at Sydney as subtly as I could. “Fine.”
Devon nodded. “Yeah, I think it’s going fine.”
“Yeah? Nothing really crazy? No crazy sex—”
“Stop,” I cut in. “Stop it right now.”
Devon was snickering, letting me know he knew where the conversation was headed. Devon tucked his phone into his pocket, but Sydney was still slithering over with a suggestive look on her face. I went to stand between the beds, eliminating whatever Sydney had planned, and she pouted, all while Devon continued to laugh at the exchange.
“Oh. Sorry to interrupt.” Both Sydney and I sighed as Monica’s voice filled the room. She was standing in the open doorway with a fake smile on her face. She looked up at Devon. “Hello. I’ve seen a lot of you around. What’s your name?”
“I’m Devon,” Devon replied coolly. He held out a hand. “You are?”
“Monica,” she responded, shaking his hand. “You’ve been spending a lot of time here. Do you live in the East Tower, as well?”
I opened my mouth to protest, but Devon was already responding before I could stop him. “I do. On the eleventh floor.”
“Wow. Long way down.” She chuckled. “Any particular reason you’re hanging around down here?”
“I’ll tell you why,” Sydney said, and I was certain she was about to rip Monica a new one. She held her arms out toward Devon and me. “These two are dating.” Devon and I both shot looks at Sydney, but she ignored us in favor of staring Monica down. “Do you have a problem with that?”
Monica held up her hands. “Of course not. Your personal relationships are your business, although I have to say…” She looked at the space between Devon and me and then eyed me. “You two don’t seem like a couple. Maybe I’m wrong, but I wouldn’t peg you two for a good match.”
Again, I opened my mouth to say something, but Devon started moving. He walked up to me, curled his arms around my waist, and pulled me to him. His head dipped to mine, and a second later, his lips were against my lips. It was all-consuming, like everything in the room dropped from around us, leaving only Devon and me behind. He squeezed me as close to him as he could, and I couldn’t resist the urge to raise my hands up and lock them behind his neck. He did more than was needed to be convincing, but I found myself without the ability to resist. His lips were somehow tasty, almost sweet with the lingering flavors of his breakfast. I was swimming before I knew it. For a first kiss, it was one hell of one.
Devon pulled away, and my head spun so much that I thought I may pass out. He looked over his shoulder at Monica. “Not that we should have to prove anything to you, but is that convincing enough?”
Monica nodded. “Y-yes, that’s fine. I’ll just go.”
“Good,” Sydney called out, even though she was already scuttling away. “Don’t come back!”
“I hope that was okay,” Devon said, slowly pulling his arms from around me. “I could tell she wouldn’t leave, otherwise.”