Page 6 of Rivals Next Door

The cool night breeze that caressed my skin when I stepped outside felt amazing after being in that hot, crowded room. With my eyes closed, I pulled in a deep breath. When I opened them, I gasped because I was face-to-face with him. We were at eye level because he stood a couple of steps lower.

It was the guy from last week. The one who had caught the football spiraling toward my head. As much as I tried to, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. I guess it was because he was the opposite of most of the guys I’d come across in my circle. Alex stood out. He was tall and lean with jet-black hair. He wore it in a tousled style that was somewhere between meticulously cared for and effortless, and his blue eyes were strikingly vivid.

When he looked at me, I got the feeling that he saw far beneath the surface and way beyond my last name. He made my pulse quicken and my stomach flip-flop. However, I was Olivia Brentwood. I wasn’t allowed to swoon over a guy, so I played it cool.

“If it isn’t my hero… What’s your name again?” I snorted inwardly. As if I could forget…

His lips curled into a knowing smile as if he knew I was full of shit. “Princess Olivia, we meet again.”

I almost smiled at the sound of my new moniker. I knew that was what he’d mumbled when we first met.

“It’s Alex,” he added.

Goodness, did he stare at other girls this intensely, or was I imagining it because I had the hots for him? “Alex… right…” I sounded breathier than usual.

“Leaving so soon?” he asked.

“Yeah, frat parties aren’t my scene. No parties are my scene really…”

“Are you saying that you're uptight, Princess Olivia?”

I lifted my eyebrows. Maybe I was, but no one had ever called me out on it before. “No…” Yes. Being a Brentwood was just so rigid. I lived under a freaking microscope, so I could never really be me.

“I bet you are, Princess. Luckily for you, I’m good at getting people to loosen up…” His playful smirk and the way his words dripped with suggestion were so hot. How could someone his age pull off being so sexy? He said he was a sophomore, so he was likely eighteen or nineteen.

I swallowed hard and willed myself not to blush. “Well, if I am uptight, it works for me. If you’ll excuse me, I need to get going.”

I brushed past him because I needed to make a quick escape. I didn’t know how to handle guys like Alex… non-snooty, charming ones who made my heart flutter. I was feeling too much, and it was hard to keep up my cool, unbothered facade around him.

“Hey, wait a minute.” Alex descended the steps and came after me.

I glanced over my shoulder but kept walking. He spelled trouble… of the intriguing and fun kind, and I wasn't allowed to have that.

“You have a habit of running from me,” he said. “It’s okay. I don’t mind chasing someone I want. I’ll chase you for as long as I have to, Olivia.”

I stopped and spun around because I was a little stunned. The guys I encountered usually played it so cool, they’d never admit what Alex just did. My eyes narrowed to slits as I studied him. What was his game? Did he make a bet with his buddies to bag Olivia Brentwood, the frigid, rich bitch?

Seriously. That was what I overheard someone call me, and it hurt. No one took the time to look past my last name and my dad’s money to see me. Alex seemed to though… or was he playing me?

“Do you know who I am?” I didn’t mean that in a cocky way. It was just that guys had a hard time with my dad when he didn’t deem them suitable for me, so most just avoided the trouble.

Alex’s eyes bore into mine as he replied, “Sure. You’re my future girlfriend.”

I don’t think I’d ever been rendered speechless before now. I gawked at him, waiting for him to laugh, but he seemed pretty serious. The only response I could muster was a little snort of disbelief. I couldn’t deny my interest in him. The attraction was definitely there for his declaration to possibly become true… one day.

“Where are you headed?” Alex asked casually as if he hadn’t just dropped a presumptuous bomb on me.

“Home.”

“Where’s home?”

“A few blocks from campus.”

“Where’s your ride?”

“Parked in my driveway… at home,” I said sheepishly.

He glanced at the fraternity house. “I assume your current boyfriend will come out at any moment to take you home then?”

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