I’d never do that for the rest of my life.
“So, not a vegetarian,” Sean said. “You just don’t think about where your meat comes from.”
I sighed. “It may not make sense to you, but I really love animals. I get that we’re at the top of the food chain and all, and that we’re omnivores and are meant to eat meat. But I don’t like to think of an animal suffering just so I can have pepperoni on my pizza.”
“If it helps,” Brad said, his voice low and soothing, “we treat our animals really well. They’re pastured and fed with local grasses, and we don’t sell our cows to dairy farms just to get hooked up to a milk machine. Our steers and cows have a great life, even if it is a short one.”
“We treat our pigs really well too, Daph,” Patty said. “Because we’re such a small operation, we focus on quality.”
I smiled at both of them. “I’m glad. Thank you for telling me that.”
“Your pepperoni probably came from some disgusting place, though,” Sean said.
“Jesus, Murph,” Brad said.
“Yeah, that was kind of rude,” Patty agreed.
Sean swallowed a bite of pizza. “The truth hurts, guys.”
Brad threw a wadded-up napkin at him. “The truth is you’re a douche.”
Sean laughed. “Takes one to know one.”
Then Brad laughed. “Tell me again why you’re my best friend?”
“Because I find all the hot women.”
I warmed, but Patty, of course, spoke right up.
“You found us? What a crock. Daph and I found you, right?” Patty nodded to me.
Several times, I’d started to open my mouth to tell Patty that no one had ever called me Daph, but now I stopped. It was growing on me.
“Right, Pat,” I said.
I finished my diet soda and wiped my lips on a napkin. The two beers from the kegger on campus had worn off, so I was feeling shy again.
“Is this the best pizza you’ve ever had or what?” Sean said.
“Can’t say I’ve ever had better,” Patty said.
“It’s our favorite,” Brad said. “Beats anything on the western slope too.”
Normally, I’d go along with what the majority said. Life was easier that way. But though this pizza was delicious, it wasn’t the best I’d ever had.
“Sorry,” I said. “It’s great, but not the best.”
“You torture me,” Sean said dramatically. “We haven’t done our jobs, Steel. Now we’re going to have to find a better pizza for Daphne.”
“You don’t have to,” I said. “The best isn’t too far from here. It’s a little mom-and-pop Italian place near where I live in Westminster.”
“We’ve got cars,” Sean said. “Let’s go.”
“Sounds great,” Patty agreed. “Except I’m stuffed.”
“Tomorrow, then.” Sean grabbed the last slice. “That work for you, Steel?”
Brad smiled at me, and his eyes seemed darker than before. “That works great.”
“Pat and I have orientation starting tomorrow.”
“The evening stuff is crap,” Sean said. “All social stuff. You can skip it and have pizza with us.”
“I don’t know…” I said.
Brad touched my forearm.
Sparks shot through me. His hand was so big, and he wore a gold ring with a strange symbol on it. It was intricate, and I didn’t recognize it. I loved the tan of his skin against my fairer flesh.
“Please,” he said. “I really want to see you again.”
I wanted to see him again too, but no way would I say that. I’d be too embarrassed. I settled for, “Okay. I guess we can miss the evening stuff. Is that okay with you, Pat?”
“Absolutely! If you know pizza that’s better than this, I want to try it.”
I smiled, meeting the dark gaze of Brad Steel, and something dawned on me.
I’d smiled a lot in his company, more than usual, and that made me feel good.
I liked that feeling.
Chapter Four
Brad
Murph seemed to accept the fact that he was with Patty, because he asked her to go on a walk around campus when we got back from dinner. She’d quickly agreed, which left me alone with Daphne.
She was so quiet, but silence with her didn’t seem odd. In fact, it seemed perfectly normal. So she wasn’t a big talker. I wasn’t either, really. The quiet between us was comfortable. In fact, I hadn’t felt this comfortable with a girl in a long time.
Wendy and I had been together for so long that there was a certain level of comfort with her, but it didn’t feel like this. More often than not, I was treading on eggshells with Wendy because she seemed to snap at the slightest provocation. She could snap at something that hadn’t bothered her days ago. She blamed it on her hormones.
But I was beginning to think a twenty-year-old woman couldn’t possibly be so hormonal. She seemed to snap more often every time we saw each other.
Something else was going on—something I wasn’t sure I wanted to be a part of anymore.
If things worked out the way I hoped they would with the beautiful young woman whose hand I was holding, I’d end things with Wendy once and for all.