The guy you admittingly crushed on for years finally gives you a second look. He took you out. He paid for your meal. He’s helping you finish your master’s. I may not know the guy as well as I know Easton—” I want to tell her she doesn’t know East, but I’m not even sure I really do. “—but he sounds like a good man. Definitely somebody you should give a chance to. See where it goes.”
My heart squeezes a little over the thought of my absent roommate. Jenna heard through the grapevine that he’s supposed to be back tomorrow night. I don’t know when, I didn’t ask. I tell myself it’s none of my business regardless of our living arrangements.
“What’s really stopping you?” she finally asks quietly, her hand brushing my arm as she walks over to face me.
When I meet her eyes, I bite down on my bottom lip and fight off the onslaught of tears that well there and blur her image. “Everything.”
She hugs me. “It’ll be okay, Piper.”
I want to believe that.
But do I?
I’m not sure how she does it, but Jenna gets me to agree to watch Ainsley for the night so I can grade papers with Carter in his office. No dinner, no outings, just work. At least, that’s what I tell myself. But when I arrive at his office at the agreed upon time in the late afternoon, the smell of Chinese food wafting from the opened door has my eyes narrowing and stomach growling.
Knocking on the doorjamb, he looks up from the computer and smiles at me. Sitting on the corner of his desk is a bag with a well-known Chinese restaurant logo on the front. I’ve seen the delivery vehicles coming and going when I walk to my car. “You ordered food?”
Dropping my bag beside the usual chair I occupy I study the various boxes and containers piled inside the delivery bag.
He gives me a small smile and rolls back in his chair, standing to reach for the bag. “I skipped lunch earlier because I had to head home for a tiny emergency. Figured I’d order some food for us while we work.” His brows go up as he pulls one of the containers out, lips twitching upward as he passes me it. “You still obsessed with sweet and sour chicken?”
Cheeks blossoming with heat, I accept the container full of my favorite Chinese entree and plop down into the seat. Memories of begging Jesse and Carter to take me with them to the Chinese restaurant in the town over from where we lived buzzes to the front of my mind. “Why do I feel like I’ll never live those moments down with you guys?”
His low chuckle makes me shake my head as he places all the takeout containers on his desk before sitting back down. “Jesse was adamant on not letting you come every time you asked, but you were insistent otherwise.”
“Jesse never wanted me around,” I grumble, popping open the food and searching for a utensil to use. “Like I said before, I get it. You guys are older than I am and it probably wouldn’t have been fun to have me along wherever you two went.”
He passes me chopsticks and a plastic fork, giving me a knowing look. “I never figured out how to use those, but I know you did. And if it makes you feel better, I was always cool with you tagging along. Jesse just had a lot going on back then.”
I rip open the chopstick wrapper. “I know he did.” Between his mother and sister, I just wanted to be there for him. “That’s why I wanted to be around. To look after him. Show I cared.”
Cared. Care. Same difference.
He watches me for a moment. “He knows you do. We actually spoke the other day. I mentioned you were doing your student teaching with me. He asked how you were.”
I snort, picking up a piece of chicken. “I bet you told him I’m riding on rainbows and unicorns over here. That I’m your favorite student-slash-assistant. Am I right?”
Amusement lightens his features. “You know, I must have forgotten to enlighten him on the rainbows and unicorns thing, but he knows you’re doing well. He’s proud.”
Refraining from rolling my eyes over that, I pop some chicken into my mouth and chew slowly while he digs into his own food. He leans back in his chair, shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and cocks his head at