Page 35 of Call My Bluff
“Then, Robin wanted to ask that guy from her music class last semester, and... well, that would make an odd number, and she hates when things aren’t balanced, so...”
Lexie was babbling now, and Olivia groaned. “So she picked somebody for me,” she finished.
“Well... yes,” Lexie admitted, and Olivia let out a deep sigh. Sometimes her friends couldn’t leave well enough alone.
She dumped a package of frozen shrimp into the stir-fry and doused the whole thing in soy sauce. “Who is it this time?” she asked.
“Well, she wanted to ask some guy from her nutrition class—”
Olivia groaned again and squeezed her eyes shut. “I hate her nutrition friends,” she complained. “They always want to mansplain carbs and proteins.”
Lexie raised her shoulders. “That’s what I said,” she replied, “but she threatened to call him anyway if I didn’t have a better idea.”
Olivia muttered a few unkind words. “She could have askedme, you know,” she said.
“Yeah, but it was just this morning, and you were in that orientation meeting at the Harrelson Center,” Lexie went on. “Anyway, I suggested the first person I could think of who you wouldn’t totally hate, and we asked and he happened to be free, so he’s coming.”
“Who did—”
Just then, the doorbell rang, and Lexie pushed away from the counter. “I’ll get that,” she said quickly, then she hurried from the room and left her roommate standing at the hot stove.
“Lexie! Who is—” Olivia shouted, but in the next moment, she heard the front door open, and a voice entered the apartmentthat made her question irrelevant. She’d really hoped to have more time before dealing with him again—like, the whole semester, if she was lucky.
But apparently, her luck hadn’t lasted very long.
She straightened her spine and stirred the contents of the skillet with a vengeance as heavy footsteps came down the short hall. Someone stepped through the kitchen doorway and stopped. She didn’t have to turn to know it was Noah; she could tell by the now-familiar scent of wintergreen and pine that had followed him into the room. The fact that she could associate a smell with him at all irritated her even more than his unexpected presence.
“Well, hey, Pixie!” he drawled. “See? I knew you’d ask for a second date sooner or later.”
“I didn’t ask you,” she bit out. Then she glanced over her shoulder and surveyed him where he was leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed over his chest as he watched her with a smirk that made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end. All at once, the memories she’d worked hard to keep at bay came flooding back: the press of his mouth over hers, the heat of his hands on her neck, the feel of his scruff against her face. A rush of warmth crept up her spine, and she went back to her cooking with a huff. “And thisisn’ta date,” she added, just on principle.
Noah stepped farther into the room and came to stand behind her, as if looking over her shoulder while she worked. “Why are you mad at me, Pix? I haven’t done anything yet.”
“No, but you will,” Olivia muttered darkly, “and then I’ll have to put up with it.”
“Put up with it?” he echoed, his voice far too smooth for her liking. “You didn’t seem to just ‘put up with it’ the last time I saw you.”
Olivia took a slow breath and tried to rein in the frustration she could feel building in her chest. It wasn’t really abouthim; he could have been any guy from anywhere. It was about the way her body insisted on responding to him—the way she wanted to melt back against his chest like that was where she was supposed to be. It was infuriating, and she wouldn’t have it! She flirted, sure, and she kissed, occasionally. But she didn’t do...this.
Whateverthiswas, exactly.
“That’s not going to happen again,” she said firmly.
Noah moved imperceptibly forward, and she felt his chuckle against her shoulder blades. “What isn’t?” he taunted, his voice full of false innocence. “Oh, you mean when I kissed you?”
Olivia pressed her lips together and swallowed, her attention fixed solidly on the stir-fry in front of her. “Yes.”
“And when you kissed me back?”
She reached out and shut off the hot stove eye, probably using more force than necessary.
“Because youreallykissed me back, Pix,” he went on. “Like the world was ending and you only had five more seconds to—”
Olivia whirled around and sealed the palm of her hand over his mouth mid-word. The surprise on his face was gratifying. “What happened to ‘nothing in here will follow us out there’?” she demanded. “It happened, okay? I’d rather not relive it.”
His brow knit together down the middle, and she dropped her hand as she felt his smile fade. “Why not?” he asked, his humor now gone. “We didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Easy for you to say,” she mumbled, not wanting to discuss the issue any further. She yanked open the silverware drawer, but Noah put his hand out and shoved it closed again.
