Bared Souls - Ellie Wade Page 0,43

but I need him enough to settle for today.

TWENTY

Alma

“We’re not original at all. You know that, right? We’re going to be those cliché sexy kittens at the Halloween frat party. There will probably be another twenty girls dressed just like us,” I say to Quinn, her face deep in concentration as she draws whiskers on my face with black eyeliner.

“You’ll be the hottest,” Leo comments from my bed, where he’s sprawled out, looking at his phone.

“Yes, we will!” Quinn cheers in agreement. “Listen to your boyfriend. He knows. There might be other kittens at the party, but none of them will be as gorgeous as us. Plus, you can’t beat a two-dollar costume.”

Quinn found us black kitten-ear headbands and fishnet stockings at the local dollar store. Paired with two of her skimpy black dresses and some dark makeup and whiskers, we are pretty sexy.

“It’s not too late for you, you know,” Quinn says to Leo. “We could make you a pirate or a rock star. Oh! You could wear a white button-down shirt and underwear and be Tom Cruise from Risky Business!”

“Yeah, I’ll pass,” he deadpans. “Halloween isn’t my thing.”

“Have you ever seen Risky Business?” I ask Quinn.

“No, I’m not a fan of old movies. Movies that came out before we were born are all grainy and stuff. But … that scene where he slides across the floor in just a shirt is classic. People would know what that costume was. Stay still,” she commands while circling the eyeliner around the tip of my nose.

“Are you almost done?” Leo asks.

“Shh,” Quinn warns him. “You can’t rush perfection.”

“Clearly, but if you want to make it before Halloween is over, we should get going,” Leo states.

“Leo Harding, you will wait.” Quinn glowers toward Leo, and I can’t hide my smirk.

Over the past couple of weeks, I’ve been making an effort to hang out here with Leo sometimes. I would’ve hated it if Quinn had been the one to start dating someone and left me alone all of the time.

The time spent here in our tiny little dorm room has been good for me too. Sometimes, it’s hard to put things in perspective over at Leo’s semi-mansion. College relationships aren’t meant to have that much room or privacy—along with a king-size bed and bubble baths in a claw-foot tub.

It got too deep, too fast. One minute, I was kissing a boy for the first time, and the next, I was yelling at him because he couldn’t promise me that he’d marry me. It wasn’t fair to Leo or myself.

After our fight the night of the bubble bath, I realized that I had to make a change. As much as I crave alone time with Leo and love playing house with him, I’m eighteen. This entire life—college, roommate, parties, job, boyfriend—is an adjustment. I almost sabotaged it before it even really started.

A knock sounds on the door. Quinn and I exchange expectant looks. Everyone we know should already be at the party. Quinn opens the door, and there stands Amos in a fighter pilot jumper and aviator sunglasses.

“Oh my gosh!” I stand from the crate I was sitting on and rush over to Amos. “What are you doing here? I thought you were going to a party in Ann Arbor.” I throw my arms around him, hugging him tight. I haven’t seen him since we went home for his mother’s birthday.

“I was, but I missed you.” He kisses the top of my head, and I release my hug, taking a step back.

“We were just talking about Tom Cruise!” Quinn says gleefully.

“What?” Amos seems confused.

“Tom Cruise. Top Gun. That’s who you are, right?” she asks.

“Oh.” Amos looks down at his costume, as if he forgot he was dressed up. “I was just going for a fighter pilot. But, sure … we can say Top Gun.”

Quinn claps. “Oh, good. I love that movie.”

“I thought you didn’t watch ’80s movies?” I eye her in question.

She rolls her eyes. “Everyone’s seen Top Gun, Alma.”

“Hey, I’m Leo. Nice to officially meet you.”

I stiffen when Leo’s voice sounds from behind me. I start to panic. For a second, I forgot that he was here.

“Yeah, you’ve heard all about the new boyfriend, right?” Quinn says with a grin.

“Oh, you’re dating Quinn?” Amos says, extending his hand to shake Leo’s.

Leo drops his hand before Amos can shake it and grabs my waist, marking his territory. “No, Alma,” he growls.

Crap. Crap. Crap.

I was planning on telling Amos about dating Leo, but it just