and all.”
Holy crap.
She thinks I was the one who wasn’t into the kiss? She thinks I downplayed the fact that I wasn’t into the kiss not to hurt her feelings?
I’ve got to set this straight right now.
“Maya, I’m pretty sure—”
Just then, a guy appears close to us, hovering by our table.
I’m getting some serious déjà vu.
Why does everyone always feel the need to be right by me and Maya for our early morning Gizmo conversations?
I turn and see this gangly junior, who I remember from freshmen year but haven’t seen around. “Can I help you?”
“Yeah. I just want to say hello to Maya.”
My heart drops.
Maya jumps up, hugs the guy, and he kisses her on the cheek.
“Hey, man, nice to meet you,” he says, sticking a hand out. “I’m Jude,” he says. “I studied abroad with Maya in Italy.”
“Oh, got it. Super cool,” I nod.
Why do I feel my blood pressure rising? I’m hyperaware of all the movement between them. Are they dating? I can’t tell. And why is this making me enraged?
“We were just meeting up to walk over to our advising appointment,” Jude adds, then looks at his watch. “Shall we? Time to declare our majors officially, to the office!”
“Are you doing a minor too, or just the Art History major?” I ask.
“I’m changing my minor to Business,” she says.
“Oh, business,” I say. “What about painting? Why not do that as your minor?”
Jude pinches his eyebrows and interrupts. “You paint?”
Oh, shoot. Guess I wasn’t supposed to tell anyone that.
“No,” Maya says, “It’s…nothing.”
Jude puts his hand on her shoulder, and I feel the bad kind of chill whirl through my body. I can’t tell for the life of me if he’s just an affectionate friend, or if he’s more than friends and Italy was their romantic getaway.
“We really need to get there,” he says. “Appointment is at seven thirty, class starts at eight thirty.”
“Right.” Maya stands up. “Let’s go. Good to see you again, Grant. I guess I’ll see you…in the suite.”
“Definitely,” I smile.
She throws her coat on and opens the side door of the Gizmo, heading out for her appointment. They laugh, speaking words in Italian that I don’t understand. Probably sweet nothings and promises for things to come.
I face palm.
What on Earth am I doing?
I feel like a fool. I’ve been holding out all this time, turning women down left and right because it just didn’t feel right. And…for what? Could she be any clearer that I’m just a friend to her?
My stomach sinks, and I shoot Luke a text.
Grant: Maya’s got a new guy. They were speaking Italian together…the fucking love language. I might speak three languages but Italian’s not one of them.
Luke: Seriously? You throwing in the towel, then?
I swallow, and I wonder to myself if that’s a better idea.
Grant: I was never going for her to begin with.
Luke: Don’t bullshit me, man. You like her. I could hear it in your voice. Look, before you back down, at least put yourself on the line. Make it clear that you like her. Don’t leave any doubt. Get a hard no, and then you move on with your life. Okay, hombre?
I nod, looking down at Luke’s text, and I know he’s right. It’s true. The coward dies a thousand deaths. The brave may die but one.
Maybe my kiss test was too obscure. Fuck it, I’m not backing down.
I feel a surge of energy race through me, and cold as it is, my veins start to run hot. This isn’t over.
Look out, Jude.
I’m gonna steal your girlfriend and there’s not a damn thing you and your Italian sweet nothings can do about it.
Sometimes, even the good guys have to tap into their dark side.
I’m okay with that, as long as it’s for a good cause.
8
Maya
“How was Italy? Tell me everything!” Professor Flores smiles, then glances up at the clock in her office. “And by everything, I mean tell me everything you can in five minutes. I want to leave a full ten minutes of this appointment to sort out your classes.”
I give her the rundown of Florence, filling her in on the amazing professors I had, the trips I took, the delicious cuisine, and my new boyfriend.
Like a lot of freshmen, I waited until the last possible moment to declare my major so I could keep my options open, just in case. Professor Flores isn’t in the history department, but since I didn’t yet officially declare my major, she’s still my general advisor.
I tell her about Jude.