Page 45 of Accidental Roommates

“Maybe not,” Dave says. “She might have to work.”

“Work?” I laugh. “Nikki doesn’t work. As far as I know, she’s never worked a day in her life.”

“Carter said she got a job,” Lance says, “but you know him. He never gets shit right.” He smiles at Kenzie. “So you got stuck living with this guy?”

She smiles back. “He’s not that bad.”

She sets her stuff down and takes a seat on one of the loungers. I take the one next to hers while my buddies take off for the pool, which is full of girls.

“You good?” I ask.

“Yeah.” She squints at me as the sun hits her eyes. It’s cloudy, but the sun is starting to peek through. She reaches down to her bag and gets her sunglasses. “You see anyone yet?”

“What do you mean?”

“Girls.” She leans over to me and lowers her voice. “Do you see any you’d want to ask out?”

Honestly, I haven’t even looked at the girls here, except Kenzie. My eyes keep going to her, even though I told myself to stop.

“Hey, Jace,” a girl says.

I look up and see Andrea. She dated Troy last year. They broke up, but they’re still good friends. They hang out together so much I keep wondering if they’ll get back together, but they claim they’re better as friends than as a couple.

“Andrea, I want you to meet someone.” I stand up and motion to Kenzie, who also stands. “This is Kenzie. She just moved here.”

“Hi.” Kenzie shakes Andrea’s hand. “Do you know Jace from school?”

“Yes, but he’s also friends with Troy.”

“Are you Troy’s girlfriend?”

“I was. We broke up last summer.”

“Oh.” Kenzie looks embarrassed. “Sorry.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Andrea says. “Troy and I are friends now. We hang out together all the time. I’m actually here with him today. He gave me a ride in case I end up going home with someone.” She smiles. “Hopefully, that someone will be Tad Langley.”

“You’re interested in Tad?” I say.

“What’s wrong with Tad?” she asks defensively.

“The guy wears a tie to class. He’s stuffy. Boring. And I’m pretty sure he wears hairspray to keep his hair like that.”

“Yeah? So? Guys can use hairspray.”

I shrug. “Sorry, but I can’t see you with Tad. He’s the complete opposite of Troy.”

“I’m trying something new. I had the party boy. Now I want a man. A man who has goals and knows what he wants in life.”

“And what does he want?”

“I don’t know, but he seems to have his life together which is more than I can say for Troy. I love the guy, but he’ll never grow up. He’s a forever bachelor.” She turns to Kenzie. “Do you have a boyfriend?”

“I did yesterday,” she says. “Not today.”

I’m surprised Kenzie would say that. Saying it means having to talk about it, which I know she doesn’t want to do. But Andrea has a way of making people talk. She makes you feel comfortable, and before you know it, you’re spilling your guts.

“Sorry about that,” Andrea says. “Was he cheating?”

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