Page 58 of Talk Nerdy To Me
I frown at him, my impatience forgotten. “It’s a community of like-minded individuals who role play in escapism. It’s okay to take it seriously. I made it to Valkyrie princess in record time, and I’m learning to make my own costumes.”
He clears his throat again, shrugging as he gives the guys a smile. “Like I said, I don’t take it as seriously as some people do.”
Corbin pats my shoulder. “If Britt takes it seriously, then so do we. Maybe we should check it out and see if we can get involved.”
They continue to stare at Tommy.
“Oh, I mean I could take it seriously, if I had more time,” Tommy says, confusing me.
I’m quite confused enough at the moment. I don’t need this added to it.
I start tapping my foot again.
“Need to be somewhere, Britt?” Maverick asks, his eyes on my quick-tapping foot.
“I need to talk to Harley.”
“Then go on,” Dane says, winking at me. “We’ll show Tommy around. See what he thinks of the house and stuff.”
Relieved that I can have some privacy, I thank him, and leave Tommy behind as I hurry to Harley, who is fortunately in the middle of most of the other girls.
Surely one of them can explain Base Masters to me. And my predicament.
“Twenty minutes,” Rain is saying as she puts a twenty on the table.
“Thirty minutes. He looks like a trier,” Ruby says as she throws a twenty down as well.
“He looks clueless enough to make it thirty-five minutes at least,” Harley says, putting her own money onto the pile.
“Nope,” Ash says, holding her daughter to her as she puts money in. “Twenty-three minutes and not a minute longer.”
“I think you’re all overestimating him. I say fifteen minutes. Tops. Maverick had that look in his eye…” Salem lets her sentence trail off as she tosses her own money down.
I’ve seen them do this before, and have wondered why, but I’m still reluctant to ask before I’ve drawn my own conclusions just to see how close I am. However, this is the first time I’ve been close to the growing money pile.
Just because I don’t want to seem rude, I also lay down a twenty, even though I still haven’t formed an educated guess as to what’s going on.
Harley just grins at me. “How long?” she asks.
“How long until what?”
“Until Tommy leaves?” Tria asks as she walks up and puts money in, somehow knowing what the conversation is without having been over here prior. “I’m going with forty minutes. The guy isn’t from Sterling Shore. Just overheard him telling the guys that. He’s gonna be a long-hauler.”
“Dammit. Maybe I should change mine,” Rain says.
“I’m standing firm at fifteen,” Salem interjects. “He’s way too gullible and far too mousy, even though he looks like a jock. Look the look, but can’t walk the walk.”
“You’re taking bets on how long Tommy lasts here?” I ask, looking behind me.
Tommy is smiling brightly as Dane shows him one of his many cars inside his garage. I can barely see them as they disappear inside, with Kode smirking as he jogs to catch up.
“He’s not a date,” I decide to say. “So he should make it the entire time. The guys were being really nice.”
“Of course they were. You were standing there,” Rain tells me, blinking. “They still think you’re clueless about their sabotage attempts.”
“Tommy isn’t a date, so I say he lasts the entire party,” I tell them, going on before they can argue. “By the way, they’ve sabotaged me more than I realized. Base assured me that men don’t enjoy the constant mention of a hymen.”
They all groan, but Harley quickly looks around. “Hurry and tell us about Base before they get back.”
