Page 6 of Meet Me at the Metro

“Well, Nora—”

“Eleanor. Ellie,” I clarify.“Not Nora.”

“Well,Nora,” he says again, not giving a shit about my preferences. “You didn’t help. In fact, you made it worse. So if you plan on being around more often, you should probably start being more considerate of theshitthat’s around you.”

“Aww, that’s nice advice,” I scorn. “It was an accident. Maybe you could try being more considerate to thepeoplearound you.”

He narrows his eyes at me. “You first.”

I meet his gaze firmly. “You know, I would love to sit here and argue with you all night, but honestly, that sounds really fucking boring. Excuse me,” I say, shoving past him.“Theo.”

I’m not entirely sure, but out of the corner of my eye, I swear I see him flinch as his name rolls off my tongue.

“Have a great fucking shower.”

“Oh, I will,” I assure him, rolling my eyes.

I go to shut the bathroom door but freeze as I notice something pink and cylinder dangling between Theo’s fingertips.

“Wouldn’t want you to bleed out on anything else, would we?”

He flings the clean—thank God, never used—menstrual cup my way before I can even conjure an appropriate response.

I catch it before it hits the floor and slam the bathroom door, falling back against it as I fight to get a grip on my fleeting dignity. There’s a pulse in my ears and a tremble in my fingers as I soak in everything that just happened.

I throw a towel up against my face and scream into it, releasing all the tension and frustration of the day—of that interaction.When I’m sure I’ve gotten the majority of it out, I go to inspect myself in the mirror.

I look like a hot freaking mess.

My cheeks and nose are a flaming red. Dark circles have formed beneath my blue eyes, making it look like I haven’t slept in days, and my golden-brown hair is a bundle of knots on the top of my head.I try to brush my fingers through the tangles and distract myself from the thought of that guy’s fingers on my damn menstrual cup, but it’s no use.

That memory is going to haunt me for the rest of the night.

I force myself to breathe, strip myself of my clothes, and step into the shower. I turn on the faucet and let the water get as hot as possible. I needsomethingto help relax my tense shoulders, but as I wait for a thick billow of steam to form around me, Theo’s voice replays in my head, and I find every muscle fiber inside me tightening more.

Who the hell does he think he is calling me Nora like that? I’d love to see how his ass would react to me calling him a name he didn’t go by. Judging by his behavior just now, I’m sure the little hothead would probably throw a hissy fit.

I’d love to see it, too.

And you know what...Teddy does have a nice ring to it.

3

TRAIN WRECK

E L L I E

The shower wasn’t hot enough to wash away the distraught image of that little asshole’s fingers on myunmentionables.

If it weren’t for the reminder that Evie and Harvey were waiting for me to head out to dinner with them, I would probably spend the remainder of the night locked inside my bedroom.

I wrap myself in my towel and stealthily slip out of the bathroom. My wet feet scuttle across the hallway floor as I dart straight for my room. I quickly shut the door behind me, grab my cell phone off the nightstand, and plop back against my bed. I send Mom and Dad a text to let them know that I made it to London safely and assure them that I’ll give them a call tomorrow.

John is next on my list.

Hey! Made it to London in one piece. Missing you already. About to head out to dinner with the roomies.

Headed out already? Didn’t you just get there?

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