Page 26 of Heartbreak Kings
When the class let out, I watched her leave, then hurried through the milling crowd to catch up with her. “Hey!” I called out as soon as I was near enough. “Sabine!”
She paused and turned—and then turned back again and sped up.
“Wait, please!” I called after her as we exited the classroom, feeling silly but willing to sacrifice a little dignity to have my shot with her.
She turned back, rolling her eyes, arms folded as she stepped out of the stream of students. “What the hell do you want, Daniel?”
Well, at least she remembers my name.Though she might just have memorized it for her little exposé.
“I wanted to apologize.” I caught up with her and stopped a few feet away, moving out of people’s way. “I know everyone made a terrible impression last night.”
Her eyebrow lifted. “Okay, well, that wasn’t what I expected. But if you’re going to use that admission as window dressing for a load of bullshit, save it. I will not be charmed into trusting any of you ‘gentlemen.’”
I winced slightly. I normally relied heavily on charm and wit to catch a lady’s attention. But she was too smart, too tired of bullshit, and too well acquainted with what assholes we could be if we wanted to. “Okay, that’s fair. Especially after Jude’s tirade last night.”
“It wasn’t just Jude. It was all of you.” Her hands slid down to grasp her curved hips, and I felt my mouth go dry. “Each one of you was an ass in your own special way, and I already called you out for it, so don’t think I forgot in twelve hours.”
“Okay, I understand. Even if I didn’t say much negative to you, I still should have stood up against the crap going on. I went along with something I wasn’t comfortable with for the sake of keeping the peace with my friends. And you’re the one who ended up paying the price.” I let my regret show. It was genuine.
She dropped her arms, letting out an exasperated sigh. “If you want me to listen to you at all, you’ve got some explaining to do about last night. And we’re not doing this in the middle of the hallway.”
“Where, then? Obviously, you won’t wish to go to the fraternity house. What about your dorm room?” I kept my smile brief but as charming as possible.
She scoffed. “No fucking way I’m letting you into my space. Pick somewhere else.”
I frowned. That stung a bit. And yet, I could understand her wariness. “Fine, let me take you out to lunch, then, to make up for helping to ruin your meal last night.”
She considered me for a few moments, then nodded. “Fine. Make it within walking distance.”
There was a nice little bistro a few blocks from the main gate of campus. I brought her there, finding us an intimate little table in the back. She gazed around at the frescoes on the walls, then down at the menu. “I’ll have a cheeseburger, curly fries, and some coffee.”
“Perhaps a glass of wine?” I suggested, but she shook her head.
“Coffee. Burger. If that isn’t high-class enough for you, it’s not my problem.” She practically glared at me, and I held up my hands, conceding.
“No problem, then.” She seemed to have a streak of anger against the wealthy. She was right to be defensive and untrusting. She had to fight for her place here, while in most cases, the rest of us had family buy-in to this school that went back generations. I could have coasted my way through if I had wanted, but I didn’t. I worked just as hard as she seemed to. I just didn’t have to.
“Two cheeseburgers with curly fries and coffee,” I ordered when the waiter came around. “Mine medium well.”
“Sure,” said the slim man with the pencil mustache. “Would you like an egg on that?”
“Over easy.” I hadn’t ever had egg offered to me on a hamburger until I came to New York, and I had never tried it. No time like the present.
“Sure.” The waiter turned to Sabine with a smile.
“Make my burger medium, please,” she replied. “No onions, and an egg, sunny-side up. Please bring some steak sauce for the table, if you’ve got it.”
“No problem. Just give me a few minutes, and I’ll be back with your coffees.”
When he left, she turned back to me. “You’re very diplomatic.”
“I’m trying to make amends,” I replied easily. “I know it will be a bit of an uphill battle, but since we have nobody to blame but ourselves for that, I’m game.”
Her expression softened just a little. “Well, it’s true. I know you guys were playing games, and I know you made asses of yourselves. What I don’t understand is why.”
I opened my mouth to tell her that Blake had been having us play bad cop to his good so he could get her into bed. It wasn’t strictly true, and it would have been a knife in his back. I was pretty annoyed with him, but no. I couldn’t.
No more games.
