Falling for the Beast (A Modern Fairy Tale Duet 2)
Page 6
“Had a good night?”
Courtney squeaked. “I thought you’d be asleep.”
“Couldn’t sleep. I was just watching a movie.”
“Oh, well.” Courtney stood there awkwardly.
Erin narrowed her eyes suspiciously. What the hell had gotten into her roommate? Her stance looked faintly guilty, like a teenager caught out for the night, even though neither girl had kept tabs on the other. Wait a second…
“You got back together with Derek, didn’t you?”
With an embarrassed sound, Courtney flopped onto the couch beside her. “Yes. Okay. Is that so bad?”
“Yes,” Erin replied. “No, that’s not what I meant. I mean, you can do what you want. No one can judge you for your choices, least of all me.”
“But you don’t approve.”
Well…no, she didn’t. Derek was a bit of a douchebag. He didn’t appreciate Courtney; he just called her when he was bored. “I just think you can do better, that’s all. You’re gorgeous, you’re smart.”
“He’s a good catch,” she said defensively.
“I know,” Erin agreed, knowing there was no way to win this fight. If she trashed Derek, she’d push her friend away.
With a flurry of plastic wrappers, Courtney dug around in the mess on the coffee table until she found the popcorn. “I know how he comes off. And mayb
e I could do better, but…”
“But?”
“But not everyone can find someone who’s perfect. A soldier, a professor. He’s kind to you, he’s crazy about you. You basically hit the boyfriend jackpot.”
A slow smile spread across her face. “Yeah. I did, didn’t I?” Abruptly her smile faded. “Oh man, now I really want to see him.”
“Girl, you have it bad.”
Erin groaned, turning her face into the lumpy throw pillow. “I know.”
“How’s your thesis going?”
“Okay. I had the interview today.” She didn’t need to explain which interview. All of the interviews she’d done for her thesis were emotional and important. Only one was personal. The intern had reluctantly agreed to talk to her on the phone.
“So the senator’s guilty?”
“I’m not sure. She said it was all a misunderstanding.”
“Oh shit. That means he’s guilty and he paid her off.”
“Or he threatened her,” I muttered, glum in the face of these options.
“So are you going to tell the jackpot?”
“And make him choose between me and his family? No, thank you. I’ve been down this road before. It ends with me stranded with no car.”
Chapter Three
Blake
One week until the end of semester