Page 40 of Consume Me

“So how was your night?” asks Abi, slurping from a smoothie.

“Nothing more happened between us so… same old,” I reply.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Celine asks.

“Blake and I… I don’t even know, but can we change the subject?”

“Are we postponing your dating plan?” Abi asks.

“Of course,” Celine says.

“It would be for the best,” says Bailey.

“Why should I? I want to live for as long as I have—”

“Don’t you dare think like that,” Celine interrupts, wrapping her arms around me. Abi and Bailey join the hug.

“Thanks, girls.”

It’s easier to go through difficult times with friends who feel more like family. Before Celine, I never had a best friend. Now, I have three, and I will not lose any of them.

Reaching the main campus, we wave at each other as we go to our respective departments. My eyes land on Blake, watching me from an alcove next to the entry door.

My feet carry me to him. “What are you doing here? You should be in class.”

“Go to yours first.”

“I can’t stop you from watching over me, but at least do it so I can’t see you. You wouldn’t want to give me the impression you care.”

“This is fucking serious, Mia. We don’t have time for you to be petty.”

Such an insensitive asshole.

I poke a finger in his chest. “You’re not my boyfriend, you’re not my brother, you’re not even my friend.”

“Don’t you dare reduce our…”

I jut my chin at him. “Our what?”

His lips press together in a line. “Nothing.”

“Exactly. And just a heads up. I’m going to date and do whatever the bloody hell I want because I want to live a bit before your sperm donor catches me.”

I storm away when he says, “Good luck with that.”

Infuriating man. Yet throughout the day, his words repeat in my head like a broken record.

I am fuming by the time classes end. Outside, I plant my ass on a bench, determined to find a guy who can take my mind off of Blake and my current situation.Hey, by the way,someone wants to kill me. Would you like to date me in the meantime?

That wouldn’t work, but whenever a guy looks at me, I smile back at him, encouraging him to approach. Yet,no one does. Instead, they steal furtive glances and then hurry off.

Huffing, I stride over to a brown-haired guy. Dressed in business casual attire, complete with a blazer and a laptop bag slung over his shoulder, he looks like he’s got his life under control. He glances at me and says, “I don’t want any trouble. You’re Blake’s girl, right?”

“No, why would you think that?”

He looks around and then takes a step back when he sees Tyson and Blake deep in conversation. “Sorry,” he gulps and scurries away.

Nostrils flaring, I march toward Blake and Tyson. I step up close to Blake, lifting my eyes to him.God, he’s tall, all raw masculinity and strength. No one does it better for me than him. That’s why I ditched my romance books—I was waiting for someone who could match those heroes, only to have mine not want anything romantic to do with me.

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