What the hell is the matter with people? It’s infuriating how they grant themselves the right to say whatever hurtful poison they want, without giving a shit about the person they’re hurting. Actually, you know what? I’m not even pissed at the rumormongers. I’m pissed at whoever invented the Internet and handed the assholes in the world a platform on which to spew their venom.
Fucking Internet.
My best friend treats my silence as an invitation to keep babbling. “Piper’s a bitch, okay? You know how possessive she is about the hockey players. She acts like every single one of them belongs to her, which is total bullshit. She’s probably consumed with jealousy that you managed to land one of the star players, who, by the way—” Ramona lowers her voice to a conspiratorial pitch “—she’s been chasing after since freshman year, but he keeps shutting her down.”
Sweet mother of Moses. Now we’re gossiping about Piper? Are there any mature adults at this motherfucking university?
“Can we please not talk about her?” I clench my teeth, which makes it difficult to take a bite of the noodles I’ve just raised to my mouth.
“Fine,” she relents. “But know that I’ve got your back on this, babe. Nobody talks shit about my BFF and lives to tell about it.”
I decide not to point out that Piper wouldn’t have been talking shit in the first place if someone hadn’t implied to Maya that I’d made everything up.
“If you want, we can talk about my misery,” she says glumly. “As in, the fact that Dean didn’t ask for my number after the movie last night—”
Ramona stops talking when footsteps sound from behind us. My shoulders tense, then relax when I realize the footsteps belong to Jess. Then they tense all over again, because it’s Jess. Lovely. Let another round of torture commence.
“Hey,” Jess greets me, her eyes awash with sympathy. “I’m so sorry about this Twitter bullshit. Maya shouldn’t have said anything to her sister. She’s such a gossip.”
If I had a dictionary on me, I would’ve opened it to the H’s, passed it to Jess, and forced her to read the definition of HYPOCRITE.
Luckily, my phone buzzes before I give in and hurl a bitchy retort her way.
When I see Logan’s name on the screen, my heart does an involuntary flip. I’m tempted to hop up on the table and wave the phone around to prove to everyone in Carver Hall that contrary to what Piper Stevens has posited, John Logan is “aware of my existence.” But I resist the urge, because unlike some people, I don’t need a dictionary reminder—I already know the meaning of futile.
Logan’s message is short.
Him: Where u at?
I quickly type back, Dining hall.
Him: Which 1?
Me: Carver.
No response. Okay then. I’m not sure what the point of that conversation was, but his consequent silence has a dampening effect on my already flailing self-confidence. I’ve been dying to talk to him since last night, but he hasn’t called, texted, or attempted to make plans. And finally he gets in touch and this is the result? Two questions followed by crickets?
I’m horrified to realize I’m on the verge of tears. I’m not sure who I’m even upset with. Logan? Piper? Ramona? Myself? But it doesn’t matter. I refuse to cry in the middle of the dining hall, or give anyone the satisfaction of seeing me rush out five minutes after I got here. The girls at the neighboring table haven’t stopped smirking since I sat down, and I can still feel them watching me. I can’t make out a word of their hushed discussion, but when I glance over, all five of them quickly avert their gazes.
Ignore them.
Although my appetite has disappeared right along with my self-esteem, I force myself to eat my dinner. Every last bite, shoving stir-fry down my throat while pretending to care about Ramona and Jess’s conversation, which has blessedly shifted to a topic that doesn’t involve me.
Fifteen minutes. That’s how long I last before I can no longer take it. My eyes are actually sore from the incessant blinking required to staunch the threatening flow of tears.
I’m about to scrape my chair back and feed my friends an excuse about needing to study when they both fall silent. Jess literally stops talking mid-sentence. The table beside us has gone suspiciously quiet, as well.
Ramona looks like she’s fighting a smile as she peers past my shoulders in the direction of the door.
Frowning, I shift in my chair, turn my head—and find Logan standing there.
“Hey,” he says easily.
I’m so surprised to see him that all I can manage is a dumbfounded look. With me sitting down and him looming over me, he appears even bigger than usual. A Briar hockey jersey stretches across his massive shoulders, his dark hair windblown and cheeks flushed with exertion, as if he was just out for a run.
Our gazes lock for one heart-stopping moment, and then he does the absolute last thing I expect.
He leans down and kisses me.
On the mouth. With tongue.
Right there in the dining hall.
When he pulls back, I’m gratified to find that Ramona and Jess are slack-jawed—and so are the girls at the next table.
Not feeling so chatty anymore, are you?
I’m still basking in the glow of victory when Logan flashes me that crooked grin I love so much. “Are you ready to go, gorgeous?”
We didn’t have plans. He knows that and I know that, but I’m not about to let anyone else know it.
So I play along by answering, “Yep.” I start to get up. “Let me just bring back this tray.”
“Don’t worry about it—I’ll do it.” He plucks the tray out of my hands, says, “Nice to see you again, Ramona,” and then plants another kiss on my lips before striding toward the tray return counter.
Every female in the room admires the way his black cargo pants hug his spectacular ass. Myself included.
Snapping out of my butt-leering trance, I turn to my friends, who still look dazed. “Sorry to eat and run, but I have plans tonight.”
Logan comes back a moment later, and I paste on the brightest smile I can muster as he takes my hand and leads me out of the dining hall.
The second I slide into the passenger seat of his pickup truck, the dam I’ve struggled to keep intact all evening shatters to pieces. As the tears spill over, I make a frantic attempt to wipe them away with my sleeves before he notices.
But it’s too late.
“Aw, hey, don’t cry.” He quickly reaches inside the center console and pulls out a travel pack of tissues.
Damn it, I can’t believe I’m bawling in front of him. I sniffle as he hands me the pack. “Thank you.”
“No prob.”
“No, not just for the tissues. Thank you for showing up and rescuing me. This whole day has been so humiliating,” I mumble.
He sighs. “I guess you saw that Twitter feed.”
My embarrassment triples. “Just so you know, I haven’t been going around and telling everyone about us. The only person who knows we hooked up is Ramona.”
“Obvs. She was there at the movies.” His smile is reassuring. “Don’t worry, you didn’t strike me as the type to B&B.”
I offer a blank stare. “Bed and breakfast?”
He snickers. “No. Bag and brag.”
“Bag and brag?” I’m laughing through my tears, because the phrase is so absurd. “I didn’t realize that was a thing.”
“Trust me, it is. The puck bunnies excel at it.” His voice softens. “And just so you know, the chick who started the Twitter bullshit? Huge puck bunny. And she’s still pissed at me because I turned her down last year.”
“Why did you do that?” I’ve met Maya’s sister, and she’s beautiful.
“Because she’s pushy. And kind of annoying, if I’m being honest.” He turns the key in the ignition and gives me a sidelong look. “Do you want me to drive you home? Because I was thinking of taking you somewhere else first, if you’re interested.”
My curiosity is piqued. “Where?”
His blue eyes twinkle mischievously. “It’s a surprise.”
“A good surprise?”
“Is there any other kind?”
“Um, yeah. I can think of a hundred bad surprises off the top of my head.”
“Name one,” he challenges.
“Okay—you’re set up on a blind date, and you show up at the restaurant and Ted Bundy is sitting at the table.”
Logan grins at me. “Bundy is your go-to answer for everything, huh?”
“It appears so.”
“Fine. Well, point taken. And I promise, it’s a good surprise. Or in the very least, it’s neutral.”
“All right. Surprise away then.”
He pulls out of the parking lot and turns onto the road that leads away from campus. As I gaze out the window and watch the trees whiz by, a heavy sigh leaves my chest. “Why are people such assholes sometimes?”
“Because they are,” he says simply. “Honestly, it’s not worth getting angry over. My advice? Don’t waste your time obsessing over the stupid actions of stupid people.”
“It’s kind of hard not to when they’re slandering my good name.” But I know he’s right. Why bother expending any mental energy on bullies like Piper Stevens? Three years from now, I won’t even remember her name.