Page 11 of More Than Chemical
Suddenly, I felt empowered. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe Texas was interested in me, and he hadn’t talked to me yet because he needed to find out if I was taken.
“What did you say?” I asked.
He rubbed the back of his neck but said nothing.
“You didn’t tell him about my sex cures insomnia theory, did you?” The muscles in my jaw quivered.
“Of course not.” He ran a hand through his hair. “The whole idea of you having sex with someone for that purpose alone is…well…off-putting.”
I flinched. There was nothing appealing or unappealing about casual sex. It just was.
“I told him he wasn’t your type,” Jay said.
My lungs deflated, the air replaced by a burning, scorching pain. I wrapped my scarf around my neck and tightened it. I pushed open the door, only to get hit by a fierce wind blowing against my side. I had criteria, yes, but not a specific type.
“Ade, wait.” Jay grabbed my arm. “I said it because I was doing you a favor. You’re too good for him.”
I snorted. Too good? Ha!
I pulled away and stomped through the accumulating snow.
No, I wasn’t. I’d known that for a long time. I wasn’t too good for anyone. Including Texas. Which meant I had some figuring out to do about him, irrespective of Jay’s assumptions and meddling.
Four
Girlfriends Weigh In
Pasta night.
I took the top tray from the stack and asked for spaghetti with Alfredo sauce. I carried the tray to the salad bar and added greens and veggies to the plate. No dressing. There was already enough of my allotted fat intake in the white sauce. Not to mention the fact that it was congealing into globs.
There must be some kind of ingredient that would prevent that from happening. When I finished with dinner, I’d do a search on it.
Scanning the dining hall, I saw Priya and Emma sitting at our usual table, already half done with their meal. I sat next to them.
“Omigod, you’re here.” Priya chewed and swallowed. “What are you going to do if you-know-who shows up?”
“At this point, it’s inevitable.” I placed my napkin on my lap.
Priya’s eyebrows shot up. “It is?”
“I saw him today. He’s in my chemistry lecture.”
She gasped.
“That’s unfortunate.” Emma turned her fork face down on her plate and stared at me.
“Maybe.” I stabbed a piece of romaine. “Maybe not. I now know he’s good-looking, attractive,andintelligent. There’s a good chance he might be the one.”
“The one?” Emma asked.
“The one to cure my insomnia.”
Her eyes widened, and she grimaced. “You can’t be serious.”
The hairs on my arms stood up. “Why not?”
“Because he’s a sleazeball.”
