what made me fall for him in the first place. I need a real reason otherwise I’ll feel like maybe he was right about us.”
“What’s wrong with being in love because you know you are?”
“That’s what I asked him!” I groan heavily then sigh, clutching my keys and stepping past Harper. “I have class today. I’ll be back in a few hours and we can talk a bit more.”
“Great,” she says, finishing the first half of her bagel. “Because we really need to get the hell out of this house tonight. Dawson is in Tampa with his cousins so I thought we could go out to eat or something? We really have a lot to talk about. I don’t know if you heard me on the phone last night, but Dawson and I haven’t been on good terms lately.”
My eyes stretch. “What? Why not?”
“Because . . . we just haven’t. I don’t know. I’m so confused with him and I’m kind of glad that he took a trip to Tampa. I needed some time to myself to think. This whole commitment thing just feels so . . . I don’t know . . . blah!” She nibbles at her bottom lip and right now I just want to drop my keys, drag her to the sofa, and have her tell me everything but I have my most important class today, English, and the professor is talking about Edgar Allen Poe. I don’t want to miss this lesson.
“Well then we are definitely going out for some girl time. We’ll go out to eat so be ready to tell me everything.”
“I will,” she sighs, tucking a few strands of blonde hair behind her ear.
Nodding, I turn around and hurry for the door. I’m glad Harp wants to get out and I’m glad I have her to talk to. Maybe she can help me see clearly. I feel as if I’ve been so blinded by love that I don’t know the real reason behind it. I loved Bryson because he made me feel better about myself (the first two years while we were dating) and because . . . well he was my first love.
With Nolan, it just seems so different. I won’t say that it’s wrong because it’s far from that. It felt right with Nolan and I loved it so much. I got so caught up in him that I didn’t even realize that I was falling in love with him. The day at the airport when he had to leave for California, half of me was walking away. My heart is with Nolan but what made me give it to him? What made me fall?
“Damn it,” I hiss, pulling the door of my car open and hopping inside. Why is this shit so complicating?
****
Professor Doran is already giving his lecture as I step into the classroom. Tucking my notebook beneath my arm, I rush for the middle aisle and take my regular seat near the window. A few people look my way, as if they’re just now noticing I’m in their class but I focus my gaze on my notebook and flip to a blank page. I dig for a pen out of my satchel bag but just as I’m about to write the objective of our class for the day, a broad body comes into view and sits in the chair right beside me. I look towards the stranger who has a smile on his lips but as I look at him, my eyes remain glued to his.
He has the softest hazel eyes I’ve ever seen. His lips are still hinting with a smile and the features of his face are structured and chiseled to perfection with a soft edge. His hair is purposely mussed, a gentle, dirty blonde (something I usually don’t go for in a guy but with him I would totally make an exception) and he has some minor facial hair above and below his lips. I swallow as my eyes fall down to the tight blue T-shirt he’s wearing and then down to his dark-wash Levi jeans. Somehow, I finally find the will to tear my gaze away and look around the room. There are plenty of open seats. There is only twenty people max in this class and we could each have our own table, but he decides to sit next to me?
I turn to look at him again and he smiles down at me, his hazel eyes sparkling from the splash of sunlight