Linden: Rocking Pleasure: New Adult College Romance (Coral Gables Series Book 3) (9 page)

“
He’s engaged,” I reply dryly.

“
Okay, then don’t give it a chance, but enjoy the evening anyway.” She grins.

I have to smile in spite of myself. “I’ll see how it goes. But if it gets boring, you’re going to have to be my fallback. Promise you’ll call me when I text you for help.”

“
I’ll be there if you need me, yes.” She nods. “And don’t worry your pretty head about Colton. I bet he’ll come crawling back to you soon with his tail between his legs, same as last time.”

“
We’ll see if I still want him then,” I pout.

“
Déjà-vu.” She laughs. “That’s exactly what you said a few months ago, and yet you took him back again.”

I shrug and offer her an innocent grin. “Well, sometimes I don’t seem to know what I really want.”

“
Nobody knows until they feel it. Do you remember when I met Delsin?”

“
Ugh. Don’t remind me. A story for a cheesy soap opera, if ever there was one.” I giggle.

She boxes my upper arm playfully, but then she laughs. “Okay, you have a point. It was bad.”

“
I know,” I agree dryly. “But now I really gotta go. There are a few things I still need to study for tomorrow’s exam. I’ll call you tomorrow, okay?”

“
Okay.” She hugs me tightly. “Talk to you then, and don’t let anyone get you down. Promise me that.”

I pull away and kiss her on the cheek. “Promise.”

***

I head straight for the kitchen and fix a strong pot of coffee for my study session. Then I drop my backpack in my bedroom and change into my comfy clothes. It’s just a pair of capri pants and a crop top, but those are my favorite at-home clothes. Then I head into the bathroom to braid my hair and take off my makeup. I don’t intend to leave the house again before class tomorrow, and I don’t need to look like a poster girl while I’m sitting at my desk. I mean, I don’t wear a lot of makeup anyway, but without it, I feel much better. I do cover up the ugly scar on my chin every day. Only Cami, Hailey, and Colton have ever seen it. I got it when I was in a stupid bike accident as a child, and even though it has faded a lot, it still looks kind of bad. People tend to think I’m flawless, but I’m actually far from it. I mean, nobody’s perfect, right? Everyone makes mistakes, and everyone has flaws that make them unique. I don’t aspire to be perfect, I love myself the way I am. Even if I do hide this scar from everyone. Sure, it’s part of me, but that doesn’t mean the world must see it. On my tanned skin, it’s a stark white line. Not pretty to look at, and what’s makeup for if not covering up our little flaws?

The coffee machine beeps, so I rush back into the kitchen. I pour the contents of the pot into my large thermos and take a mug from one of the cabinets. It’s an insulated mug, too, so I don’t have to drink cold coffee if I get too immersed in my notes.

“
Hey,” Draven interrupts my thoughts of the task ahead.

I raise my eyes to meet his and smile. “Hey. How was your day?”

“
Ugh,” he sighs. “Don’t ask. I should have chosen a different major.”

I don’t even know what his major is. “Uh … Did we ever talk about what our majors are?”

“
Music, Thally. And yes, we did.”

“
Oh … Sorry, I must have forgotten that.”

“
Don’t worry. It’s not that important. How was your day?”

“
The first class was a recap of last year, so that was good, but then the two that followed were pure horror. Both professors are way too fast for me, and we’re going to take a bunch of tests right away. I need to study a lot, or else I’ll be starting all over again.”

“
Sounds shitty.”

“
Yep, sounds as craptastic as it is,” I confirm, picking up my thermos and the mug. “Which is why I’m going to hunker down and start studying now. Oh, and later tonight, if you hear the doorbell, could you yell? That’ll be my dinner, and I often don’t hear it in my room.”

“
Aye, captain,” Draven says.

“
Thank you.” I leave the kitchen and walk into my room, setting the coffee on my desk. I sit down and pull the books and notes from my backpack, sighing one last time before delving in.

***

“
Thally, your pizza is at the door!” Draven calls.

“
Coming!” I spent four full hours going through all the material I have. My head is spinning. If it were possible, I bet steam would be coming out of my ears right now. My brain has done overtime. Anything I don’t know now, I won’t know tomorrow. I’m done, and I don’t want to risk a blackout, which happened once in high school when I overtaxed myself—I forgot everything right in the middle of the test. I think I’d be able to get a B or C on the test we have tomorrow, and a C would be sufficient to pass, even though I’d love to see a B or even an A at the top of my exam for once.

I rise, stretch, and walk to the front door. “Hey, Jim,” I greet the delivery guy. He’s become almost a pal, because I’ve seen more of him than my friends recently.

“
Hello, Thalia,” he says, blushing. He’s always blushing, and I think it’s cute. He studies engineering, too, and we’re in some of the same lectures, though we rarely ever talk when we meet on campus. Most of the time all we say is hi, because he’s a real loner. I give him twelve bucks for the pizza, plus a generous tip, because I know he gets no money from his parents and needs this job to get by. He does have a grant, as he once told me, but it hardly covers the cost of tuition and textbooks.

“
Thanks. I’ll see you tomorrow in class,” he says as he pockets the money.

“
Yeah. Do you think you studied enough?”

“
Hardly, but this is a topic I’m good at.”

“
Okay. Then I guess I’ll be the only loser tomorrow,” I say with a half grin.

“
What exactly do you need help with?” he asks.

“
Oh, there are a few things I just can’t seem to keep straight, but I’ll go over those one last time while I eat. The rest is hoping I’ll pass.” I shrug.

“
Sit next to me. I’ll help you when Salters isn’t looking.”

“
Salters has eyes in the back of her head, but thank you anyway, Jim.” I smile.

“
You’re welcome. See you tomorrow, Thalia.”

“
Bye.” He leaves, and I close the door behind him. Then I carry my precious pizza into my room and place it on the bed. I fetch my notes from my desk, so I can have another look at them while I eat. I just have to pass this damn test. I’m not a total idiot, so I should definitely be able to do this.

I bite into the first piece of pepperoni pizza and sigh with satisfaction. That reminds me that I haven’t eaten much all day, and I finish the whole thing quickly. The textbook is open in my lap, and I try to focus on a few passages that sound like gobbledygook to me. So boring, and so confusing at the same time!

But after the pizza’s gone, my focus returns, and I suddenly seem to understand the difficult parts. I hope that’s enough. I’m so engrossed, I completely lose track of time.

***

“
Oh, crap!” I swear when I happen to look at my alarm clock. It’s already eleven p.m., and I should really try to get some sleep if I want to feel half rested tomorrow.

I rise from the bed and pack my backpack for the next day so I don’t get stressed in the morning. When I finally switch off the light and lie down, my damn phone rings again. “Yes?” I say.

“
Hello. Thalia?”

“
Who is this?” I ask warily, because I don’t recognize the number.

“
This is Linden Priest. Did I wake you up?”

“
No, but I was just about to go to sleep. I have a test tomorrow morning. Why did you call?”

“
I just wanted to make sure Friday evening is really okay with you,” he explains. “You didn’t seem all that thrilled when your friend said you would have dinner with me.”

I sigh. “Yeah. Well, I want to have dinner with you, but on one condition.”

I can hear him swallow. “What’s that?” he asks, sounding wary as hell.

“
We stop addressing each other sometimes as ‘miss’ and ‘mister.’ I’m twenty-one, and I’ll feel awfully old if we go on like that,” I say with a smirk.

He breathes in. “I’m Linden.” I hear him chuckle.

I have to smile, because he sounds so damn unsure of himself. Not at all like a rock star. “And I’m Thalia, or Thally.”

“
I’m looking forward to Friday night, Thalia. Is it okay if we eat at my place? Alexis told me my hospital stay is already all over the tabloids, and I’d rather not run into any paparazzi, you know?”

I’m puzzled. “At your place? But I thought you live in New York City.”

He chuckles again. “No. I have a house right here in Miami. I can send someone to pick you up so you can have a glass of wine … and also because I’d like to keep my address secret.”

One of my eyebrows shoots up at that. “Could we talk about this tomorrow? I really need to get some sleep.” I’d rather cut him short than say anything wrong now, because I don’t want to risk spending Friday night on my own after all.

“
Okay. When can I call you tomorrow?”

“
I’m in class until two, so I’d say after four? By then I’ll be home and done with everything.”

“
Great. Sleep well, Thalia.”

“
You, too, Linden.”

I hang up and set my alarm for seven a.m. I also set the alarm on my phone to make sure I don’t sleep in again. Then I switch off the light and close my eyes.

***

“
Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice,” I whimper softly to myself, because the very worst has happened. I’m having a blackout. This test is going to be the end of me. Things were fine up until I reached the second to last question. My eyes flit back and forth between the last two questions, but I can’t hold a single thought anymore. There is nothing but mush in my head.
Crap!

I really hoped I might pass this test with sort-of flying colors, but no. Jim is sitting next to me, and he seems to sense what’s going on, because he leans back and gives me a meaningful look. I can clearly see what he has written and hasten to read what he put on the bottom of his page. His grades are always good, so it can’t be all wrong. As I copy them, I quickly reformulate his words to make it less obvious.

“
Thank you,” I mouth, after writing down something quite similar to what he has on the last two questions. Copying is really low, but I don’t see how else I could pass this test now.

“
You’re welcome. Pay for my coffee later,” he answers under his breath and winks at me.

“
Black?”

“
Yeah.”

“
I’ll meet you on the front stairs. I’ll get the coffee,” I whisper as I rustle my sheets of paper, straightening them for one last check.

Professor Salters comes over to the back and gives me a piercing look. “Are you done, Miss Leroux?”

“
Yes,” I say, and she takes the test papers from me, pointing at the door. “You can go home then.”

“
Thanks, Professor.” I hasten to put all my stuff in my backpack, trying to be quiet so I don’t disturb my fellow students. Then I shoulder the backpack and sneak out. I hope Jim follows soon so I don’t have to wait outside for too long.

I walk outside and search for Darren, the guy who mans the cute little coffee shop-on-wheels. His coffee is the best on the entire campus. “Hey, handsome,” I greet him with a smile.

“
Oh, hi, Thalia.” He grins. “The usual?”

“
Yes, and another large one, please,” I say, handing him my insulated mug.

He fills it and then adds a paper cup. “So how did the test go?”

“
Don’t ask. At first it seemed to be going just fine, but then I suddenly had a blackout,” I confide. “If Jim hadn’t helped me, I couldn’t have answered the final two questions.”

“
Oh. Well, I hope you answered the rest of it correctly. How do you know Jim’s answers were correct?” Darren asks.

“
I don’t, but he’s good at this stuff, and I mean, as long as I wrote down something, it shows I tried, right? Even if my answer is only half correct.” I shrug.

“
True. Always stay positive, right?”

I shrug again. “What’s done is done. I can’t go back and change anything anyway.”

Darren hands me the two cups. “I admire that, I really do. I used to just bang my head against my desk, and I ended up being a barista. I didn’t even finish college.”

“
Yeah, but you own the damn thing,” I remind him with a chuckle.

“
I could have achieved more,” he insists.

“
Darren, you sell the best coffee on campus and you own three stores in Miami. I would say you achieved a whole lot.” I shake my head. I admire people who are their own bosses and don’t have their heads in the clouds.

He sighs. “I know. You’re right.”

“
Yep. And now I gotta get back, because Jim’s waiting for his coffee.”

“
Something going on between the two of you?”

I shake my head. “No. I just promised I’d pay for his coffee because he saved my ass in there.” I can’t help but smile at the thought of Jim and me. We’re completely different, and we’re on friendly terms; that’s all.

“
I see. Well, see you tomorrow then,” Darren says.