Trust in Me(102)

            I grinned and then inhaled deeply. There was dampness in the air. “Does it have something to do with a day that’s not Presidents’ Day?”

            She laughed, and my grin spread. Shortcake had been laughing a lot lately. “I’m not going to tell you.”

            “I see how it is.” We stopped near the covered entrance of the social-sciences building, and I pulled her toward me. She came willingly, stretching up on the tips of her toes. Sliding the cap around so it was backward on her head, I rested my forehead against hers. “Can you smell it?”

            She laughed as she placed a hand on my chest. “My breath?”

            Rolling my eyes, I wrapped an arm around her waist. “No, you little dork. There’s snow in the air.”

            “Oh.” She giggled.

            I kissed her softly. “Well, be careful on your special, secret shopping trip.”

            “I will.” She reached up, taking off the cap and then fitting it on me. “You coming by tonight?”

            “That’s a stupid question.” I didn’t want to let her go.

            She made a face at me. “Thought there were no such things as stupid questions.”

            “That’s a lie.” Dipping my head, I kissed her once more and then let go. When she turned to leave, I tapped her ass, causing her to jump and shoot me a dirty look. I laughed. “You liked it.”

            Her flushed cheeks told me I was right.

            The snow fell outside, coming down pretty fast. I was glad I was able to convince Shortcake to skip with me tomorrow. Classes would still be happening, but the campus would be an ice-pit death trap.

            I glanced down at her and smiled. After eating pizza and hanging out with Ollie, she was tuckered out. Deeply asleep, she was curled on her side, her head resting on my leg. I scooped a strand of her hair off her cheek, tucking it back.

            “She’s cute, you know?” Ollie bent forward and picked up the last slice of pizza and stood. “Only she could pass out in the presence of our awesomeness.”

            I laughed softly. “It was too much for her. She was overwhelmed.”

            He grinned as he stepped over my legs. “I’ll let myself out.”

            In the following silence, I traced the elegant curves of her face with my gaze, committing the sweeps and angles to memory. Earlier in the day, as I’d walked over to West Campus with Ollie, he’d made some kind of comment about me being whipped. Funny thing was, it hadn’t ticked me off. I’d laughed. Maybe I was a little whipped. Maybe I was a little obsessed. Maybe I was—

            On the coffee table, Avery’s phone beeped and the screen lit up, and I looked before I realized what I was doing.

            You’re a lying whore. How can you live with yourself?

            I leaned forward, reading the message three times before the light faded from the screen and the text disappeared.

            Shock made me stupid. I had to have read it wrong. Three times? Not likely. Muscles in my back and neck locked up. I don’t know how long I sat there in stunned silence, but beyond the shock, anger simmered in my veins like a slow-burning brushfire. Who in the fuck would’ve sent that to her? Lying whore? I wanted to find the person responsible and rip their spine right out.

            But why would someone send that to her? If Avery was a whore, so was a nun, but why? A muscle began to thrum in my jaw and didn’t stop when Avery stirred.

            Yawning, she sat up and pushed long strands of hair out of her face. A sleepy smile formed on her lush lips. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to fall asleep on you.”