Page 22 of Loving the Liar

“You’re wrong. You are mine, no matter what. The status of ex or girlfriend doesn’t change anything about that.”

He grabs the towel, steps back, and lets me turn around, but he still blocks me from walking away.

“So,” he says, like he’s about to repeat something extremely simple that I was just too thick to understand. “Stay away from other guys. It’s not so hard, is it?”

“How about you stay away from me, asshole.”

His eyebrows rise as a small smile tips the corner of his mouth. “Stay away from you? Don’t be silly, Ella. That’s a ridiculous concept. And watch your language. You know I hate when you curse.”

And with that, he finally turns to the side so I’m not cornered anymore.

Fuming, I stride back to Enzo, plant my hands on his cheeks, and kiss him with enough force it makes him stumble.

How’s that for staying away from other guys?

My eyes flick to Chris the second we separate, and I don’t enjoy the knowing smile he’s wearing. Like I’m so predictable. But I do love the way I see his hand clench into a fist. He’s mad, and there’s nothing he can do about it in front of everyone.

“Why do older men love our parties? Don’t postgrads have their own? This is Xi Ep not…not…I don’t know…some place where people can just waltz in.” Peach’s words are slurred as she crashes down next to me on the sofa.

Enzo went to get us more drinks, but he must have bumped into other lacrosse players and decided to stay with them because he never came back. Instead, I’m with my two best friends.

“Did that guy just take a picture of you?” Alex gasps.

I ignore both of them, my eyes glued to Hermes’s post on my phone. It’s a picture of Chris and me in the hallway of the humanities building three days ago. It was taken exactly when he was close to me, and from an angle where you can’t see that we weren’t actually touching.

Ella Baker…do I hear wedding bells?

If you went to Stoneview Prep…you know who he is. And if you didn’t attend Stoneview Prep…what are you even doing at SFU?

Christopher Murray is back, my babes. Our beautiful, perfect mix between a classic gentleman and a sexy protector transferred to SFU!

Was it because he missed his ex? Because we all know how much she missed him. (Five years single…ouch.)

I heard Chris is someone else’s now. But does it look that way to you?

Chris & Ella, your secrets are safe with me.

Until they aren’t.

#Chris&Ellasittinginatree #FutureMrs.Murray? #Raiseyourhandifyoudon’tcareaboutMeganMcLean

“What a fucking asshole,” I curse. This is the kind of time I’m glad Luke doesn’t go to SFU. Only the students have access to the app, and I wouldn’t want him to see this post. Only a handful of people knew Chris and I were dating in high school, but when college started, rumors grew, and I guess now it’s a known thing around here. With Luke being in LA, it never mattered, but he’s around now, and I don’t want to add anything to his plate.

If someone caught Chris and I talking in what I thought was an empty hallway, there will certainly be pictures of him cornering me in the kitchen tonight. And then who is going to look like the girl who doesn’t care that he has a girlfriend?

Peach wraps an arm around my shoulders. “Oh, come on, Els. Forget about Hermes for one night, please. We’ll burn down their house tomorrow.”

“How?” Alex hiccups. “We don’t know who they are.”

Peach looks at both of us, hooded green eyes glinting from all the alcohol she drank. “I don’t have a plan right now, but I’m sure I’ll have one by tomorrow.” Her eyes catch someone in the crowd. “Alex,” she sing-songs. “You’re in trouble. T.R.O.U.B.L.E,” she cheers like we’re cheerleading on the lacrosse pitch. “Trouble!”

We all turn to look at Alex’s boyfriend walking toward us, as grumpy as ever, his dark eyes focused on the only woman who matters in this room.

God, I would die, go to hell, make a deal with the devil, and come back to have a man look at me that way. The only thing ever written on his face is how desperate he is to have Alex near him.

“He wasn’t supposed to be here,” Alex mumbles, then turns to me. “And Ella, that guy keeps taking pictures of us,” she insists.

Xi stops in front of our field of vision, blocking the crowd. Blocking the freshmen girls who were trying to reach us and start advertising themselves as to why they should be friends with us. The guys who were looking from afar who were counting our drinks to time exactly when to come hit on us.

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