going to say what I thought he was?
“Turned out that beautiful woman was Senna, who is in my English class. And whose favorite book is the same as mine,” he said.
“No shit.”
The man was besotted by any woman who loved the books he did.
“I have more to add to the story,” Jamie said.
Jesus. What more could there be?
“I dragged Benno back to the club so I could see her. He left when she came on, but I held out and finally got a look at her.”
Benno and I looked at him while we dodged the slower runners.
“Just like she’s in Benno’s English class, she’s also in my math class.”
“She is not,” I said, almost tripping over a crack in the sidewalk. “She’s in both your classes? Jesus, what are the chances?”
Benno laughed. “Dude, what are you gonna do if she ends up in your French class?”
Fucking marry her, that’s what.
Chapter 14
SENNA
“We are not missing this party. I got a babysitter, dammit.”
There was no talking Godiva out of the fraternity party I’d made the mistake of telling her about. Slamming her foot on the gas of her yellow Ford Fiesta, she picked up speed to make a light, as if, should we be one minute late, we’d miss the festivities.
It had been news to me, but patiently explained by my fitness center boss Patti, that college students don’t just join a fraternity or sorority. You have to essentially ‘try out’ by attending what are called ‘rush parties.’ I had no interest in joining anything of the sort, but Patti had promised a blowout event at the Phi Sigma Delta fraternity and begged me to join her. I’d resisted as long as I could and finally caved, fully with the intention of finding a last-minute reason to cancel.
My next mistake was telling Godiva the story, thinking she’d get a chuckle out of the machinations of ‘traditional college life,’ just like I did.
Instead, she exploded in excitement, and immediately lined up a sitter to watch her little guy.
Not the way I’d planned for things to go. And now we were looking for a parking spot outside a mansion that looked like something out of Animal House. I could just imagine the place full of drunk dumbasses like in the movie, with girls fawning all over the guys while they figured out the fastest and easiest way to get laid.
Sure, there might be some cuties there—Patti had sworn there would be. But I had no expectations and besides had no time for dating, even if the opportunity presented itself.
Christ, my head was still reeling from my office hour appointment with Professor Adler.
I’d met his friend from the French department, Professor Baldwyn, a rockstar-looking guy if ever there was one, with his ponytail, jeans falling off his hips, sleeve tattoo, and leather bracelets. And as if that weren’t hot enough, he had crazy-deep dimples when he smiled, and the most perfect lips I’d ever seen on a man.
I kind of wanted to sign up for his French class just to be able to look at him.
Adler had more or less kicked him out of his office when he kept trying to chat me up, and when we got down to business, it turned out he liked my idea for the term paper he’d assigned us on our first day, which he’d give us a couple weeks to write. He probably thought I was sucking up by choosing to write about Somerset Maugham, but the truth was, he really was my favorite author. His stories were so raw, the way they exposed human weakness. Something about that spoke to me. The fact that he was also Adler’s favorite had nothing to do with it.
But it was still a cool coincidence. I wasn’t used to meeting people who liked Maugham. Or people recommending bookstores to me, even if the proprietor was a rude prick.
“Okay. Are you ready?” Godiva giggled, adjusting her boobs.
Oh, for heaven’s sake.
“Let’s go,” I groaned, getting out of the car and heading toward a crowd of people with red cups of beer in their hands.
“Hey, Senna!” a voice hollered over the loud music after we’d done a couple laps through the crowd.
What? I didn’t know anyone there but Patti.
I couldn’t make out who’d called my name until a gigantic hand landed on my arm. Godiva’s eyes widened before I realized it was Ty’s hand, the non-reading dunce from my English class who also happened to have a convertible he used to impress girls.
It just