Contradictions (Woodfalls Girls 3)

“Down, horndog. He’s not your type either.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“She means maybe he doesn’t know what he’s missing on Team Derek.”

“No, God, you freaking sluts. I’m saying look at him. He’s straight out of The Big Bang Theory. Completely not our type.”

“Speak for yourself. I like the whole glasses thing,” Cameo said, making a move toward him. “Smart but sexy definitely works for me.”

“Chill,” I commanded her, grabbing the hem of her shirt. “Trust me. Trent isn’t for you.”

“Oh, now I get it. You have the hots for him.” Her eyes practically lit up with fascination in the darkness. “Why didn’t you just say so?”

I gritted my teeth in frustration. “Why don’t you suck it?”

“Sounds like that’s what you want to do,” Cameo returned.

“Ha, you two really know how to speak my language,” Derek chuckled.

Why was everyone so quick to push Trent and me together? I heard the same load of crap from my two best friends in Woodfalls, Brittni and Ashton. They were convinced Trent had some kind of thing for me. I never understood why they didn’t see what I did. Trent and I were complete opposites. He and his parents moved to Woodfalls during our junior year in high school, causing quite the stir. Trent’s grandfather was a respected town resident, having owned the local hardware store for nearly forty years, and Trent’s dad was a Woodfalls native who had moved away many years prior to start college. I couldn’t recall Trent and his family ever coming for visits during holidays or anything when we were kids, which was probably why everyone was so surprised when they suddenly moved to town. New people rarely moved to Woodfalls. Those who did were typically young couples looking for a small-town atmosphere in which to raise their families. Woodfalls was far enough from major cities to make you feel like you were part of a different lifestyle. I had just started dating Jackson when Trent’s arrival caused a ripple of gossip to spread through the school. I was too wrapped up in the newness of my first real relationship to give Trent much thought. Jackson, for some reason, seemed to dislike him from day one. He was always harping on the fact that he thought Trent was watching me. I dismissed his paranoia, telling him Trent could probably just sense a fellow troublemaker. One of the benefits of having Brittni as my best friend was that her mom was the first to get information. She was the town gossip queen and filled us in on the fact that Trent had gotten in some kind of trouble at his old school and his parents hoped a move to a small town would change things for him. After only a few months, I chalked up Trent’s bad-boy rumor as total bullshit. Brittni’s mom had to have gotten some bad info because Trent was boring with a capital B. He kept mostly to himself and was always either tinkering with some computer at school or reading graphic novels during class. And yet, he still managed to pull straight As. We all thought he was a shoo-in for valedictorian, but Suzy Braxton somehow got it. We speculated that whatever Trent had done at his old school must have affected his grades and trickled over.

“And he goes to Maine State. My, oh my, how the plot thickens,” Derek said, rubbing his hands together.

“Shut it. I think he’s in some graduate program. He’s a total brain.”

“I like my eye candy to have a little upstairs too. As long as he can match his abilities downstairs,” Cameo interjected. She eyed him like he was an all-you-can-eat buffet.

I glared at her. “You’re out of your league, honey,” I said, taking a sip of my beer as I watched Trent make his way into the main part of the living room. He had yet to notice me, which was fine with me. I knew when I transferred to MSC there was a chance I would run into him. The previous summer in Woodfalls we had spoken for a few minutes and he made a point of telling me he would see me around campus. Thankfully, our paths had not crossed until now.

“You seem to know an awful lot about someone you have no interest in,” Cameo pointed out.

“We live in a small town. People know when you take a piss in Woodfalls.”

“Maybe, but you seem to have a little sparkle in your eye. Just sayin’.”

Thankfully, Derek changed the subject to some reality show he and Cameo were completely obsessed with. I tried to watch it with them a couple of times, but it took lame-ass to a whole new level.

While they discussed the latest drama on the show—something about one of the girls getting it on with two guys in the hot tub on the same night—I watched Trent. He was stationed against one of the walls, surveying the crowd as if he was waiting for someone. Free to study him without detection, I tried to understand why Derek and Cameo seemed so fascinated with him. As far as Cameo was concerned, the fact that he was male was half the battle. Derek, though, was harder to please. Sure, if you removed his glasses and maybe messed up his hair a little, Trent wouldn’t be half bad. He had been blessed with blue eyes that were so clear they seemed electrified. And I guess I couldn’t deny he looked like he had a decent build, even though his nerdy Batman T-shirt made it hard to focus on anything beneath it. I was watching him so intently that I was caught off guard when he left his spot against the wall. Without thinking, I ducked behind Derek before Trent’s eyes moved in my direction.

“Babes, your hottie friend is heading this way,” Derek said blandly, turning to where I was huddled behind him.

“You can stop hiding. It looks like he found what he was searching for,” Cameo said with disdain. “No way. Is he seriously hooking up with Panty Muncher?”

“What?” I stood up so quickly I felt slightly dizzy. Quick movements were not the best idea when you were on your third or fourth beer. Trent had stopped not ten feet from us to chat with Patty Jones, who we had dubbed “Panty Muncher” since she always seemed to have her panties all up in her junk. She was also notorious for giving half the male population at Maine State College an all-access pass. “Oh, hell no. She’ll chew him up and spit him out,” I muttered, not sure why I even cared. I should have been pleased that he was on someone else’s radar. Maybe if it was anyone but twat-face Patty I wouldn’t have felt the insane urge to rush in and rescue him.

I watched from my vantage point as Patty ran a finger up his arm and leaned in close to whisper into his ear. The need to protect Trent from her roared through me like an angry lion. I practically pounced away from my friends and within a few strides forward, I was standing in front of Nerd Boy and Camel Toe.

“Tressa, hey,” Trent said, pushing his glasses back up the bridge of his nose. They only seemed to magnify the intense blue of his eyes, and I found myself momentarily distracted. “I didn’t know you were here,” he added, extracting his arm from Patty’s.

“What are you doing here?” I cringed

at how bitchy I sounded, but seeing him on my turf was more unsettling than I expected.

“Tristan Wilder wants me to take a look at his laptop,” he answered, not breaking eye contact. This was one of the issues I had with Trent. He looked you right in the eyes, like he was studying you or something. The few conversations I’d had with him over the years made me feel like he was always digging for something more. It was like his mind needed to analyze everything that was said. Being more of a crowd-pleaser, I felt comfortable with lighter conversation and keeping things fun. I felt we didn’t need to take life so seriously. We were only young once. The time would come when we could put on our adult faces, but not now.

“Oh, so you’re not here for the party?” I asked, looking pointedly at Patty, who was still eyeing Trent like he was a hot Scottish man in a kilt.

“Why don’t you mind your own business?” Patty said.