“First of all, the only reason I lied.” She stopped to inhale and nodded. “Okay I should’ve said it was faster to just go along with the Uber thing than to clarify the truth. Not that it was easier to lie because I was afraid he might be mad. It’s not like he’s my boyfriend or anything.”
“Fair enough.” He turned onto that first street finally. “So, will you be telling your boyfriend the whole truth about tonight?”
Feeling the flush again, only this time clear down her neck, Vannah swallowed hard. “I don’t have a boyfriend.”
“You don’t?” Staring straight ahead because she could feel him looking at her again, she nodded. “Oh, I see,” he went on. “Yeah, that makes sense.”
Now she turned to him, because she didn’t like the condescending way he said that last part. Despite his douchey intrusiveness about her personal life, something about his interest in it was strangely thrilling.
“What makes sense?”
“You’re a freshman?”
“Yeah?” she asked even more curious about where he was going with this.
“You live in the dorms so you’re not from around, here right?”
“I’m from San Diego.”
“First time away from home?” She started to shake her head until he added. “Trips don’t count. I’m talking about living away from mommy and daddy.”
Pursing her lips at the pretention in his tone again, Vannah nodded. “It is,” she agreed with caution.
“You’re a beautiful—” He stopped and cleared his throat glancing away as Vannah’s insides went wild. “You’re a pretty girl. I take it you’ve had a boyfriend?”
“I was in a relationship in high school.”
“So, let me guess, now that you’re out here—an out-of-towny—you don’t do the relationship thing anymore?”
Confused by this line of questioning, despite her still dancing insides, Vannah shook her head. “All I said was I don’t have a boyfriend.”
“But do you do the boyfriend thing?” He turned to face her full on as they reached a red light.
Feeling a little ruffled because she finally got what he was getting at, and he was right. She hated to admit it, but he’d already labeled her a liar, so she decided just to be honest. “No, I don’t. Not right now.” He chuckled in that way he had earlier, sounding more annoyed or even disgusted than amused. “I’m trying to focus on my grades and getting all my ducks in a row.”
“So, you just have friends, not boyfriends. Multiple friends you don’t owe explanations to about what you do with other friends. Do you meet them all at these frat parties?”
“This is the first frat party I’ve ever been to, okay? And it’ll likely be my last given how this one turned out.”
Vannah had never gone from feeling so excited to so annoyed in a matter of sentences in a conversation with anyone in her life. This was so not what she thought her first conversation with Byron would be like. The only thing she’d hit right on the nose is how intense a conversation with him might be. He was quiet for a little too long, so she turned to look at him just as the light turned green and they were moving again. To her surprise, she turned just in time to see his jaw clench then unclench.
Seven
The Offer
Byron
He had one goal now. Just one. Get her the hell home and out of his car where Byron could finally get the scent of her out of his nose and stop with his arbitrary questioning. He had zero business questioning anything she did. He’d hoped the smell of puke in his car might mask that intoxicating scent of her. The moment she’d been close enough, he’d been assaulted by her fragrance and no amount of puke was undoing it. It’s why he hadn’t offered to throw the dirty clothes back in his trunk.
From the moment he first laid eyes on her tonight in that tiny dress and those fuck-me heels with her newest friend Joseph in tow he’d felt almost sick to his stomach. How and why a girl he knew so little about except the basics, her name, general age, where she was from and now confirmation that she didn’t do the boyfriend thing, could get so far under his skin, was infuriating. She’d just confirmed she was exactly what Nine had referred to from day one.
She was a young college girl, fresh out of her parents safeguarding clutches. Clearly, she was looking to run free and experiment all of life’s adventures. And as well she should be. It’s what young adults did once they were out in the big world all on their own. So, what did Byron care? He had no business getting any ideas about a girl like this, let alone getting all bent over the fact that she was at least being honest about it. This was a chick he’d been hung up on solely on the basis of her looks and sweet laugh. Seeing what a spitfire she could be, despite the sweet innocence behind those huge brown eyes was hot as fuck. If anything, he should be all for trying to get on her just friends list. It’s all he had time for right now, anyway, right? He did keep saying he needed to get laid.
But while the thought of having sweet, yet sexy as fuck Vannah under him was one that already had his cock twitching, his gut was screaming otherwise. Already he was acting like an entitled prick who had the nerve to question anything about her personal life and choices when it was none of his business. Who the hell was he kidding? Even if he didn’t understand why, his gut already knew getting involved with her in any way would not end well.
Only he was curious about something that did pertain to him. So, he’d ask about that, and then drop the rest of his unjustified interrogation about her personal life.
“How’d you know my name?”
She sat up a little straighter, glancing out the window and cleared her throat. “I saw you last week at Starbucks. Heard them call your name when your order was ready.”
Byron turned to her as they came to another stop. Pulling a strand of hair behind her ear, it was clear she was avoiding facing him. She stared straight ahead instead. Like she had more than once tonight, Byron could see she was blushing again. Even her neck and ears were red now.
As intense as this night had been for him so far, it’s the only times all night he hadn’t been able to refrain from smirking. He was tempted to ask why this embarrassed her, but his tightening gut knew why. Just like she’d turned beet red after saying his name, and again when he’d brought up the subject of boyfriends earlier, Byron was reminded. He may never understand it, and he’d be an idiot to try and figure it out, but Vannah was also feeling something she shouldn’t be for someone she hardly knew. Those moments they’d had in the past several weeks, hadn’t been imagined. But having been down this road before, with this type of young girl, he’d be damned if he’d get sucked into that again.
Without further comment and trying not to overthink the fact that she remembered the name she heard of some random guy over a week ago, Byron drove on silently as his heart sped up. Thankfully, the ride to her dorm wasn’t much further so the awkward silence didn’t go on for too much longer. The dorms weren’t like the ones he’d been expecting. While Byron didn’t stay in a dorm during his time at ESU, he’d been privy to the inside of many. Back in his day of partying in them. Most were no bigger than a small hotel room. He’d driven by these before but assumed they were apartments because of the size of them.