Page 27 of This Is War: All's Fair Duet
Her face falls as she wrinkles her nose. “I’m sorry for being distracted. I’m a terrible date, aren’t I?”
One side of my mouth twitches upward. No way am I asking a damn thing about the argument with Logan. Not yet. “Terribly cute, maybe.” I touch one finger to her cold nose. I come in close, then whisper, “I asked if you were okay with coffee.” Her rosy cheeks make herlook so damn pretty and almost have me forgetting what the purpose in getting in good with her is. I shrug. “It’s fucking cold.”
She nods quickly with a smile. “Let’s do it.”
We hurry to the edge of campus and cross the street to where the new coffee shop, the Latte Spot, buzzes with activity. The name is atrocious, but the coffee and desserts are fuckin’ out of this world. For that reason, it’s quickly become a popular hangout in the few weeks it’s been open. Rya waves to a group sitting at one of the small round tables as we walk up to the counter to place our orders. I recognize a couple of them as residents on my floor who I haven’t met officially yet.
We take a few moments to peruse the list of specialty drinks on the chalkboard. She stands just in front of me, and I put my hands on her shoulders, ducking near her ear to ask, “What can I order for you?”
“Um. Maybe a vanilla latte?”
My head bobs. “You got it.” I meet the eyes of the bored-looking guy working the cash register, and it makes me uncomfortable for a moment because I could so easily be him, working long hours at this shop.Fuck my father, anyway.
The guy clears his throat. “Are you ready to order?”
Snapping myself out of my tortured thoughts, I step closer, with Rya under my arm. “A small vanilla latte and”—I gesture to the board—“a small Milky Way Delight.”
The guy—Ted, according to the badge affixed to his shirt—nods and scrawls the order on two cups. “We’ll bring it over to you if you’re going to sit down. Anything else?”
“Sounds good.” I glance at Rya, then at the assortment of desserts she’s eyeing longingly in the case. “One of those big chocolate peanut butter chunk cookies, please.” After paying, I steer her over to a small round table in the corner.
“Vanilla, huh?” I question as I hold out the chair for her.
There goes that nose wrinkling again. It’s cute, but also does something to me. She grins at me, her cheeks pink. “Is vanilla bad? I know I’ll always like it if I order the same thing.”
“You have a point, I suppose,” I concede, taking the seat to her right. “But I think you’re anything but vanilla.” I squint, playfully observing her. “More like the drink I ordered with caramel, whipped cream, and candy bits on the top. Sweet.”
Right as I’m about to reach for her hand, ol’ Teddy boy interrupts with our drinks and dessert. I give him a smile that in guy language readsGet the fuck outta herebefore I bark, “Thanks, man.”
“No problem.” He sets the mammoth cookie betweenus with two forks and delivers an all-too-interested perusal of Rya before walking away.
Ted’s lucky he didn’t say anything else. I give him a hard look when Rya isn’t paying attention.Jackass.He’s lucky I’m more interested in moving forward with her than I am fucking up his face, though I wouldn’t mind the latter at all.
I pick up my drink and blow carefully before taking a sip. Rya hasn’t tried hers yet, but she’s wrapped her hands around the cup to warm them. “Do you need sugar or anything else for your drink?”
“Oh, no. I’m good.”
I pick up the forks and hold one out to her. “Have some of the cookie with me.”
“I shouldn’t.” She shakes her head, holding her hand up.
“I didn’t say you had to eat the whole thing.” I chuckle good-naturedly. “Just a bite? So I’m not eating alone?”
Our eyes connect across the table, and she begrudgingly accepts the fork. “Okay, but if my tour-jetés tomorrow are more like tour je-fuckups, I blame you.”
My shoulders shake with amusement, and, by some miracle, a peal of laughter leaves her lips. I like the way she throws her head back, giving in to the moment. After she calms, she uses the side of the fork to break off a bit of the soft, gooey cookie, then scoops it up and into hermouth. “Mmm.” She closes her eyes, and I watch her chew while I take a bite myself, enjoying the look of rapture on her face even more than the melty chocolate and cookie in my own mouth.
Fuck, I’d better watch myself.
She sets the fork down, finally reopening her eyes to train them on me. “Okay, that was worth making a fool of myself in class tomorrow. Thank you.”
“You won’t.” My brow arches, and I scoot my chair around so I can sit closer to her, then pull out my phone. Unlocking it, I open the camera app and put an arm around her. She stares at me with her mouth partway open. I can’t help myself. I scoop her close to me and tickle her ribs.
“Jaxon!” Rya shrieks with laughter as I continue to attack her with my fingers. While she’s squirming, I press my lips to her cheek, then nuzzle my face against her neck when her giggles begin to slow, breathing her in. Fuck, she smells good. Like fucking sunshine. Citrus and vanilla and warmth. Huddling against my side, her hand splays over my chest, and she gives a sigh. She’s gonna bring me to my knees when my goal is to bring Logan to his. I don’t give a fuck. Whatever it takes.
“That’s my fuckin’ girl,” I murmur, pressing another kiss to her temple. “You could never make a fool of yourself. No way.”
At my words, a tremor runs through her that I can feel, and she glances away, a faint smile on her lips as she picks up her vanilla latte and takes a sip. She exhales unsteadily while staring into the cup, almost like she needs a few seconds before saying anything more… and the thing is, I don’t think it was me calling hermy fuckin’ girlthat’s the problem, either. Meeting my gaze, she winces as she states cautiously, “I know I haven’t been myself tonight. Thanks for being patient.”
