I pushed my plate toward him and told him to knock himself out.
“Not much, just been showing Emily the shops. Devon's starting college this year,” Aidan told me. That explained why Devon could order a pint—he must be eighteen.
“That's right,” he said, taking a huge glass of beer from Fang. “Engineering. Good money to be made there.”
“If you're with the right company, sure. But you can make more through R and D with some of the big conglomerates than you can in practical engineering.”
“Ho-ho, will you look at the girl talk.” Devon laughed, setting down his pint. He leaned forward and grabbed my hand. “Now what would a fair thing like yourself know about research and development?”
Why is it that boys think they are the only ones who can understand science? “I happen to have been scheduled to take ayear of advanced study in math and physics, but now that’s off because I’m here. I'm going to be a physicist. Practical, not theoretical,” I added.
“Brainy bird,” Devon said, pulling my hand up to his mouth. I thought for one horrible moment he was going to bite me, but all he did was kiss my knuckles. Which was very cool in itself, but it would have been much cooler if I hadn't been so miffed at him. Still, he did kiss my hand, and he was cute, and eighteen, and all. So I decided to forgive him.
The guys talked about their jobs for a bit (Devon was the only one who didn't work, but I gathered from the hints that Aidan dropped that his parents had a lot of money, and he didn't need to work), and about friends I didn't know. Fang was pretty quiet, only speaking when the other guys asked him a question, but he smiled and laughed with them. It turns out he is older than both of them, nineteen, and is already going to college. He's studying to be a vet, which is really nice, don't you think?
Everything was lovely—me at a table with three hunkables hanging on my every word—until she came in.
“There you are, love,” this tall, blond said as she glared at me for a moment, then leaned over and planted her lips on Aidan. Right in front of me! Deliberately! On my date! “I've been looking for you. I thought you were taking me to the flicks tonight?”
Aidan shot me a quick look but didn't say anything when she plopped herself down in his lap. “Erm...that's not until later, Tash.”
“No harm in getting started early, is there? Who's your little friend?”
Now, let me describe this witch so you can understand just how obnoxious she is—first of all, she wasn't so much taller than me that she had any right to call me little. Maybe a few inches taller, but that's it. Yes, she had on a really cool leather skirt, thigh-high boots, and a studded leather choker, but her lipstick was TOTALLY wrong for her coloring (hair was dyed, natch). She sat snuggling up to my potential boyfriend, cooing at him and touching him and blowing in his ear.
Aidan looked really uncomfortable. Obviously he was too much of a gentleman to push her off his lap, which says a lot about him. Unless he liked her there...you don't think that was it, do you? Naw, it couldn't be. She was clearly not at all his type. He was just being polite.
“Emily, this is Tash. She's Devon's cousin.” And the judges take fifty points away from Devon. “Emily's from the States.”
“And she's going to be a physicist,” Fang said. I gave him my second-best smile, the one where I don't let my eyes twinkle. He grinned back. He might not be as hunkable as Aidan and Devon, but he has really nice eyes and he likes animals. So I'll keep him on my Possible BF list.
“Isn't she sweet, though,” Tash drawled.
Oh! Sweet? Me? Ha! I'll show her sweet,
“Tash works at the beauty salon next to Garfinkles,” Aidan said.
Garfinkles was the closest thing to a trendy shop in Piddle-me-silly-ton. It had a lot of Goth gear, which no doubt explained Tash's obvious leather fetish.
“Yes, do come round sometime,” she positively purred, turning her shoulder so her left boob rubbed up against poor Aidan. I just know he hated it. “I'm sure we can do something with your hair.”
OHMIGOD! Now, you know my hair is one of my weak points, but for her to say that in front of everyone...! I'm going to get her