Saturday was a free day, so I spent that time lounging in the study room with Morgan, where there were bean bags and recliners and ottomans, to read a new book I’d picked up from the book store.
“Hey, you guys hear about the thing happening tomorrow at DeBartolo?” Morgan asked, plucking an earphone out and looking between Gina and me.
“No—what thing?” Gina skimmed through her textbook, a pen tucked behind her ear.
“I don’t know. Supposedly, it’s for students who are striving for a brighter future and want to run their own e-commerce or business. It sounds cool. After this whole college thing is over, I would like to open up my own daycare center and maybe even sell baby clothes online. I used to knit with my mom.”
“Really?” I asked. “You, Morgan Page, running a day care and making baby clothes?”
“Like, with actual kids in it?” Gina egged on.
“Yes, with kids!” Morgan flailed her hands. “I love kids, believe it or not!”
“Gotta tell you, darlin’, I don’t see you as a kid-loving person,” Gina teased.
“First of all, screw you,” Morgan said with a middle finger pointed in her direction, fighting a smile, “and second of all, I do love kids! I’m majoring in early childhood development and everything. Please come with me, guys! It’s only supposed to be for an hour. We don’t have practice tomorrow morning either, so it’s a win.”
Gina groaned. I shrugged. I had nothing better to do anyway. “I’ll go with you,” I said.
“I guess I will too,” Gina muttered. “But if it’s borin’, I’m walkin’ out. Not even kiddin’.”
“Yes! Okay, deal!”
Sure enough, the next day, Morgan, Gina, and I were walking up the steps that led to the DeBartolo Performing Arts Center. I tugged on the collar of my coat, relieved when Gina swung the door open and a gust of heat licked my cheeks.
“Fuck, it’s cold out there!” Morgan hissed. “Gonna end up freezing my damn tits and ass off at this school!”
“Might as well get used to it.” Gina took off her scarf. “Just wait until it starts snowin’. You’re gonna want to punch someone in the face with a cold fist.”
I laughed with them as we walked down the corridor. To my surprise, the room where the program was being held was filled with more people than I thought. The rows were mostly occupied in the back and since Gina and I weren’t that into the program to begin with, we let Morgan choose where to sit. Big mistake. She took the first row on the left, right in the damn front.
I read over the pamphlet that was placed on my seat. It didn’t say much, just had the name of the program listed at the top and a stock image of a woman smiling way too hard while typing on a laptop beneath it. What had Morgan dragged us to?
Sighing, I placed the pamphlet on my lap to pull my cellphone out of my coat pocket, needing to return my text to Frankie. We were both excited. We would be seeing each other in a month for Thanksgiving and I couldn’t wait to squeeze the life out of her and play catch up.
Just as I’d send my text, I heard deep, boastful voices.
I glanced over my shoulder at the door, spotting Leo coming into the room. Trailing behind him was Brody.
“Oh, shit.” I ducked my head.
“What’s wrong?” Gina asked.
“Brody’s here,” I mumbled, keeping my head low.
“Oh…shit.” Morgan looked over her shoulder. “He’s taking a seat in the back. No point in hiding though. He’s staring right at you.”
“Figures.” I sighed.
I sat up higher in my chair, keeping my focus on the podium up front instead. I was glad a young woman walked behind it a few minutes later, starting up the program with introductions.
During the woman’s speech, I could feel eyes on me from behind. Her voice was a buzz, but I did my best to concentrate and ignore the burning glare on the back of my head.
It was impossible.
I hadn’t spoken to Brody since the night of his birthday and deep down I felt awful. He constantly sent text messages and called with no luck. He’d even left voicemails with sincere apologies, but I couldn’t push myself enough to call back and talk. I knew I was going to have to face him eventually, tell him the truth. I just needed to figure out the right words to tell him.
“…He became nationally known when he was only twenty-seven years old, and is now one of the highest paid multi-millionaires in the country. Please give a warm welcome to our surprise guest, Mr. Quinton Cane!”
Wait…
WHAT THE FUCK?
Chapter Twenty-Four
KANDY
If I thought my heart was beating too fast over Brody being around, it was literally about to rip right out of my chest when that name was called.