Page 5 of Chasing Sophia

Go away, brain. You don’t know a thing about me.

“So what will you do now?” Luna asks thoughtfully.

I shrug, because I’m out of options and the time is ticking. Tomorrow night, I have to be at Miss Tee’s with my handsome, amazing boyfriend. “Maybe I’ll tell her that I lied.” My heart deflates and hope of ever performing at the New Year’s Gala evaporates.

“I think it’ll work out. When God closes a door, he always opens a window.”

I smile at Luna’s perpetual optimism. If she wasn’t so sweet, I might even be jealous of her. She has the luxury to be optimistic in life. I’m sure if one door closes for her, multiple windows spring open. My abhorrence of the wealthy doesn’t extend to Luna. I’m sure she’s an anomaly. Her volunteering at school three days a week is proof of that. Not many rich women would do that.

As we get out of the school’s building, frigid air hits my cheeks, and I tighten the wool scarf around my neck.

“It’s cold, Soph. Shall we drive you?” We stop where Luna’s driver is waiting for her.

I shake my head with a smile at her offer, which she makes every time, whether I’d be facing heat, cold, wind, or traffic.

After waving her a goodbye and watching her car leave, I’ve taken a step toward the bus stop, when I hear my name from behind.

“Sophia, right?”

Hairs at the back of my neck rise at a voice I’m trying to forget, though it has pervaded my thoughts every night.

“No,” I whisper to myself and hurry my footsteps. “I’m imagining this.”

“Sophia, wait.”

I lose my balance at the way my name rolls off his lips, and he gets right in my face.

“I’m trying to talk to you,” he says.

God, he’s handsome. I didn’t imagine that mole over his lip in my dreams; it’s really there. I take a deep breath, trying to get out of the stupor, but all I inhale is his rich cologne.

A gust of icy wind whips through, making me shiver, and I find my voice again. “And I’m trying to ignore you. Now, let me go.” My teeth chatter. “I’ve lost enough because of you. I don’t want to miss my bus too.”

I try to skirt past him, but he shifts, his big broad frame halting my every attempt. My nostrils flare when his lips twitch in amusement. This man has some effing nerves.

“Listen, mister, it seems like no one taught you any manners, so here’s a news flash. When someone asks you to leave them alone, you leave them freaking alone.”

“And what do you do when you want to befriend someone?”

“Befriend?” Did he really say that? “What gave you the impression I would even for a second consider being your friend?”

He starts to open that gorgeous mouth, which I now know gives hot kisses, when I stretch my hands before us and take a step back. “Forget it. I don’t want to get into an argument with you.”

“Why do you hate me? What did I do?” His brow creases in genuine confusion, and I wait for a second, hoping he’ll crack a smug smile. But when he doesn’t, laughter shoots out of me.

“What did you do? Let me think.” I tap my finger over my bottom lip, but only for a second. “You ruined my date. You—”

“Your fake date,” he interrupts, the humor long gone from his eyes.

“What… You…” I’m once again fumbling for words before him. I close my eyes because looking at his gorgeous face definitely kills some of my brain cells. “You ruined my chance at performing in one of the biggest events of the year.”

“How?”

My eyes shoot open when his thumb lightly grazes my cheek. Like the previous night, electricity crackles between us, but today I feel the calluses on his skin. His hand moves from my face to my hair as thin flakes of snow fall around us. A shiver runs through me, and I know it’s not because of the cold.

“Listen…” I press my lips together. My voice is obnoxiously soft when I continue. “If you’re here to apologize, I accept your apology. But I don’t want to see you ever again. I’m sure a rich guy like you has better things to do on a Friday evening.”

“I’m not here to apologize.” His hand drops, but somehow the distance between us has shrunk. “And how do you know I’m rich?”

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