The Hazards of Skinny Dipping (12 page)

I didn’t expect such a large crowd on a
Wednesday night. I knew Thursdays were big, but the middle of the
week? I recognized a lot of the people from around campus, but it
was different seeing everyone in going-out clothes and obviously
drunk. By ten o’clock, I was exhausted. Of course, that’s when
Dylan and his friends decided to walk in.

“Oh no,” I groaned when I noticed them
maneuvering through the crowds.

“What’s wrong?” Reed asked. “Oh, great.”

“You really don’t like him, do you?”

“Look who’s talking. You’re sleeping with
him, and you aren’t happy to see him.”

Obviously Reed was right. I was sleeping with
Dylan, but it still felt weird to hear him say it so bluntly.

I wanted to run into the kitchen. You’d think
I’d no longer be nervous about seeing Dylan—but I was. I still had
that same churning stomach reaction. It was always worse when he
smiled at me—which he did the moment he saw me.

I was ringing up a couple of girls from my
biology class and tried to ignore the way Dylan watched me. I
closed the register, and it was Dylan’s turn. He wasn’t alone. A
whole group of his brothers and some pledges stood nearby. There
were also a handful of girls, including Tally. I guessed Gregg must
have invited her.

Tally waved. “Hey, looking good, roomie.”

“Ha, thanks. What can I get you?”

“We need a few pitchers and maybe three
pepperoni pizzas,” Ryan ordered.

“How many’s a few?”

Dylan played with a plastic display on the
counter. “Make it four.”

“Four it is.” I rang them up. “That will be
forty-eight sixty.”

Dylan put down a fifty. “It doesn’t leave
much for a tip, but I’ll tip you later.”

My stomach did a summersault and not in a
good way. Was it normal to have that reaction to the thought of
having sex with the guy you were dating? Probably not.

“Don’t worry about it.”

Dylan didn’t move.

“I need to keep helping people.” I forced a
smile.

Dylan ignored me. “What time do you get
off?”

“Midnight.”

“All right, I’ll come back to get you.”

“Oh, that’s okay. Reed’s going to drive me
home.” I turned to see Reed glaring at Dylan.

“Is that right?” Dylan gave him the death
stare right back. “That won’t be necessary. I’ll be bringing Juliet
home with me.”

“Oh. I’m going to stay in my room tonight.” I
so didn’t want to be discussing that topic at work with tons of
people around.

“Why would you do that?”

“Because I need a good night’s sleep.”

“You don’t sleep well at my place?” For the
first time, he looked a little worried.

“I do, but I sleep better in my own bed.”

“But I sleep better when we’re together.
You’ll just have to get used to it.”

Did he really mean that? Did he just like
having someone with him, or was it specifically me? “Do you really
sleep better when I’m there?”

“Yes. I’ll pick you up after work.”

“She said she didn’t want to.” Reed pushed
his way in front of me.

Dylan tensed. “I’m not talking to you.”

I edged back in around Reed. “I can handle
this.”

“No, you can’t. Your jackass boyfriend is
holding up the line.” He turned to Dylan. “You can sit down. We’ll
bring the pies out. Juliet, go help Justin in the back.”

“What?”

“Go, Juliet.”

I wanted to stand and argue, but technically,
Reed was my boss. I‘d never heard him talk that way.

I asked Justin if I could help, but he didn’t
want any.

I didn’t have long to wait. Reed stormed into
the back. “What the hell was that? Do you always let him boss you
around?”

“Excuse me?”

“Why do you act like his little slave? It’s
pathetic.”

“Did you just call me pathetic?” I glanced at
Justin.

“Justin, go out front.” Justin nodded and
hightailed it out of there. No one usually questioned Reed.

“Are you going to apologize?” I tried to hold
back the tears I knew were coming.

“Juliet. I didn’t mean it. I just think you
should be with someone else. At least take a break from him.”

“Quit trying to play big brother. I have two
of my own already.”

“I’m not playing big brother. I just won’t
put up with that in my restaurant.”

“It’s not your restaurant.”

“It may be called Al’s, but who runs the
place?”

I wrung my hands. “Oh, so every interaction I
have here is your business now?”

“Yes. I’m not going to have my employee
harassed.”

“He wasn’t harassing me.”

“Juliet.”

“I’m not doing this. If you’re going to act
like this, I’ll find another job.”

He reached out and touched my arm. “No. I’m
sorry. I was out of line. It was just the way he was looking at
you. It was condescending.”

“Calling me pathetic is condescending.”

He moved his hand. “I never should have said
that. You aren’t pathetic. I overreacted.”

“All right. I should probably get back to
work, though.”

Reed nodded, and I headed back to the counter
to ring up a few more people.

Dylan and Ryan had already grabbed the beer,
but Justin and I carried over the pizzas. Dylan scowled at him. I
was almost positive he’d somehow be mad at me for all of this.

“Thanks, Juliet.” Tally smiled. She was
sitting with Gregg, but I caught her throwing Ryan a flirtatious
look. Who knew what she was getting herself into?

“Enjoy your pizza.” I turned to leave, but
Dylan grabbed my wrist. “I’ll pick you up at midnight.”

“I really need to get some sleep.”

“Are you sure?”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh nothing.” He stood up. “I was just
wondering if you were using that as an excuse to get your
supervisor to drive you home.”

“Of course not.”

“Are you positive?” He moved his hand up my
arm. “Because I thought we already established we were
exclusive.”

“We are.”

“Okay. Just making sure we were on the same
page. I’ll see you in a few hours.”

“Not tonight. Maybe tomorrow?”

He let out a deep breath. “All right. Dinner
first?”

“I work again.”

“Two nights in a row?” He leaned in closer to
me.

“That way I get weekends off.” It was hard to
think with Dylan so close to me. Why did he still have the ability
to affect me so much?

“Then lunch. It’s about time I take you
out.”

“I can do lunch. I have a break between
classes at noon.”

“Are you on the main quad?”

“Yeah.”

“Same. I’ll meet you outside Sanders Hall at
twelve.”

“Great, I should get back to work.” I glanced
over my shoulder. Reed was staring.

Dylan leaned over to whisper in my ear. “And
don’t forget you’re all mine after work tomorrow night.”

“All right. Have a good night.” As I turned,
he grabbed my ass.

When I turned back, he held his hands up in
defense. “Sorry, couldn’t resist.”

“Sure.” I rolled my eyes and went back to the
register.

Reed looked pissed, but I could tell he was
trying hard. “I’m going to keep my mouth shut.”

“Good.”

Twenty minutes later, Dylan and his friends
left. He waved on his way out. I waved back. I let out a sigh of
relief when the door closed behind them. The rest of the night went
by in a blur, and before I knew it, I was getting into Reed’s
Toyota Tacoma so he could drop me off.

“Are you still annoyed at me?” He put his key
in the ignition but didn’t start it.

“No.”

“Really?” He took his key out.

“I know you didn’t mean it. Dylan can be a
jerk.”

He turned in his seat to look at me. “Dylan’s
more than a jerk. He’s dangerous.”

“Dangerous?”

“Yeah. First, it’s telling you what to do,
then it will be cutting you off from your friends. This is just the
beginning.”

“Reed, you’re really reading too much into
things.”

“I’m not.” He angrily buckled his
seatbelt.

“How would you know? And what do you care?
You don’t even know me.”

“I do know. Trust me. And why do I care? I
don’t want to see a nice girl get hurt.”

“What if I’m not a nice girl? Maybe I don’t
mind it.” I crossed my legs.

“Listen to yourself. That’s bullshit. You
deserve better.”

“No, you listen. I’ve wanted Dylan to notice
me for years. He finally has. I’m not screwing it up.”

“Why him? What’s so special about him? You
can get other guys.”

“I don’t have to explain myself to you.”

“It’s because he’s rich, huh? You’re willing
to let him buy you.” He started the car.

“Buy me? You make it sound like I’m a
prostitute. He’s not buying anything. He hasn’t spent a dime on
me.”

“And that’s okay? Don’t you think you at
least deserve a guy who takes you out?” He smacked his hand against
the steering wheel.

“He’s taking me to lunch tomorrow.”

“And that makes it all better. Right.”

I moved to open my door.

“Where are you going, Juliet?”

“Home.”

“Let me drive you. I didn’t mean to upset
you. I just think you deserve better.”

“That’s not for you to decide.”

“Fair enough. I’ll keep my mouth shut from
now on.”

“Will you?” I turned to him.

“I’ll try. That’s all I can promise.”

We sat in silence as we drove toward
campus.

“Do I still have a job?” I asked tentatively.
The silence hadn’t been the comfortable kind.

“What? Of course you do.”

“I didn’t know…you seemed pissed.”

“I’m not going to fire you. You’ve got a
job.”

“Thanks.” Despite my annoyance, I knew I
wasn’t going to find a job as good as Al’s anytime soon.

“I’m guessing you don’t want me to kill
him?”

“No. I don’t.”

“All right.”

“Good night.” I opened my door.

“Take care of yourself.”

“You, too.”

To: [email protected]

From: [email protected]

Subject: Hi again

Dear Juliet,

I’m having fun. What about you? Is college
all you hoped it would be?

Your Older and Wiser Cousin,

Amy

Dylan didn’t notice my approach. He was on
his phone yelling at someone about something. I took a seat on the
bench right next to him, not sure how long he was going to be. The
quad was packed, and I enjoyed people watching. One of the things I
found so interesting about college was how differently people
dressed—especially girls. Some girls went to class in sweats or
pajamas, while others were dressed to the nines. Left to my own
devices, I’d be in the middle, but unless I wanted to be shunned by
my house, I had to make an effort. I figured I looked decently cute
in a casual sundress. At least flip flops were always
appropriate.

“When did you get here?” Dylan pocketed his
phone.

“Just a few minutes ago.”

“You should have told me.” He held out a hand
to help me up.

I accepted his hand. “I didn’t mind
waiting.”

“You never have to wait on me.” He led me
over to where his car was parked.

“Do you usually drive to class?” Considering
how close the frat houses were, it surprised me.

He gave me a disbelieving face. “Of course
not. I knew we were going out.” He held open my door for me.

I got in, glad when Dylan turned the AC on
full force. The leather seats were hot against my bare legs, and I
awkwardly tried to pull my skirt down as much as possible.

“Are you in the mood for sushi?”

“Oh. Sure.” I wasn’t the biggest sushi fan,
but I didn’t hate it or anything.

“Nice.” He put a hand on my leg as he pulled
away from the curb. “I’m glad I finally get to take you out.”

I didn’t like the way he said it. As if I was
the one making it difficult. “You and me both.”

“I owe you, don’t I?”

“Don’t say it like that.”

He squeezed my leg. “I don’t want you to
think I can’t take care of you. I’m going to take good care of
you.”

I got this warm feeling when he said it. I
liked the thought of being taken care of by Dylan.

“I know.”

He parked in front of the restaurant. I got
out of the car, content to let him lead me inside. We walked
through a beaded curtain, and as the hostess led us over to the
table, I tried not to laugh at the strange sci-fi music playing
from speakers somewhere. It definitely was a unique place. We got a
booth in a corner, and I scanned the menu.

Dylan gave me a serious look. “I want to talk
to you about something.”

“Yeah?”

He didn’t answer right away because the
waitress came over to give us water.

As soon as she left, he put down his menu.
“You don’t have to work at Al’s if you don’t want to.”

I sipped my water, unsure where the
conversation was headed.

“You’re doing it because you need extra
money…but you don’t have to.”

“I don’t mind it. It’s an easy enough job,
and I can usually get some studying done.”

“But—”

He was interrupted when the waitress
returned. Dylan quickly rattled off an order. “We’ll have a volcano
roll, spicy eel, rainbow roll, and a crunchy shrimp. Does that
sound all right?”

“Oh. Sure.” At least I’d heard of crunchy
rolls. I liked those.

He waited until the waitress left. “As I was
saying, you don’t have to work there. I’m going to be paying for
everything on our dates, and I’d love the excuse to spoil you.”

I felt blood flooding to my cheeks. “Spoil
me?”

“Yeah. Like I said, I’m going to take care of
you.”

“Dylan, I’m not poor. I’m just working to
make some extra money. It’s not a big deal.”

“But I’d rather you had more free time. Three
nights a week is a lot.”

“It’s not that much. Really, it’s fine.”