Page 4 of In the Net
Sebastian fixes a thoughtful expression on his face. “Well, there were the two times here. Once this morning at the coffee shop. Once on the campus green. Two times in Anthropology class. So six, meaning I need to find two more occasions to flex before midnight to hit my daily quota.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t fly past that quota flexing for yourself whenever you saw a mirror.”
Sebastian blows a raspberry and looks at me like I’m an idiot. “Obviously, flexing for myself doesn’t count. I thought we were talking about flexing for an audience.”
“Oh, how silly of me,” I snark.
He grins. “Don’t worry, I won’t hold it against you. I’m a gentleman with my dates, after all.”
Our drinks arrive, and I waste no time grabbing mine and pulling down a gulp. My brow jumps and my back straightens as the liquor burns down my throat. The waitress wasn’t kidding about this drink.
Sebastian regards me with wry amusement before his gaze ticks over my shoulder to somewhere behind me.
“Don’t look now,” he says, “but Mackenzie can’t stop glancing at you, and she looks awfully envious.”
I know that’s not just Sebastian’s ego speaking, assuming that any girl would be envious to see me with him. Nothing matters to Mackenzie more than status, and as much as I’m loath to admit it, being seen on a date with Sebastian Lawrence definitely gives any girl status points with the more high-school-minded among us. Which Mackenzie certainly is.
I take another sizable sip of my drink. It loosens my lips. “It would be petty to be a little satisfied by that, wouldn’t it?”
“Very. But I won’t tell anyone.”
An odd shiver dances down my spine at the conspiratorial tone in Sebastian’s voice. It’s almost like there’s a little thrill in the idea of sharing a secret with him.
It must just be the alcohol.
“You know, I never could stand her,” Sebastian says. “She always acted so stuck-up to me back when we went to school together, before I transferred to St. Bart’s.”
Memories of those days swirl through my mind, of the Sebastian I used to know before he got that prep school scholarship and became the star player on their hockey team.The Sebastian it’s sometimes hard to detect a trace of anymore in the cocky campus celebrity who sits across from me.
This drink really must be strong, because I even allow some of those memories to bring a smile to my lips.
“Well, that was before you were a hotshot jock,” I joke.
Sebastian glances down, huffing a laugh that sounds dry … and maybe a little bitter? “Yeah. Way before.”
My drink might be strong, but it’s served in a small glass, so soon I’m finished with it. When Sebastian notices me take my last sip, he tilts his drink and gulps down the rest of his soda.
“I think we can probably dip now,” I say. “Like we just stopped for one drink and are heading somewhere else.”
Sebastian’s brow creases just slightly, and something flashes in his eyes. It can’t be disappointment. That makes no sense. Clearly, I’m prone to misinterpreting expressions after a stiff drink.
He pushes up from his seat and holds out his arm in the direction of the door. “After you.”
Once we’re far enough away from the cocktail place to go our separate ways without Mackenzie spotting us, I turn to him.
“Thanks,” I say. “My cousin never would’ve let me live it down if I had to admit I really had been stood up.”
“Don’t mention it. If there’s something I can do to keep Mackenzie’s high horse from getting any higher, I’m up for it.”
“Well, thanks again.” I take a deep breath and blow it out, a mixture of exasperation and surprise. This night sure hasn’t gone how I expected it to when I left my house an hour ago. I’m sure my roommates will enjoy the debrief when I get home far too much. “Thus ends our first, and definitely last, fake date,” I say.
Sebastian smirks, his blue eyes lighting with a roguish glimmer. “Don’t jinx it.”
2
SEBASTIAN
“Harper Brees,” Professor Braxton announces. “You’re up.”
