I raise an eyebrow at her. “You don’t sound like yourself, Tori. Are you feeling okay?”
She chuckles. “Oh, God. What is going on with me? I blame it on Bash.”
“You’re happy. I know the feeling,” I say with a wink.
As usual, the SAC is overflowing with students, who rush out the front doors. We step to the side, allowing them to pass before we head upstairs to the cafeteria. I made Shawn wait a few days before I would let him tell anyone that I am the girl from the party. But his confession was limited to his inner circles.
Always the center of attention, Shawn is standing up at the table to demonstrate what I assume is something football related to his teammates, judging by the position of his arm. I laugh because of how animated he is around his friends. This is the Shawn Finch everyone knows, the sexy football player, who always says and does the right things. But he’s so much more than what he portrays to the world.
Bash gets up from the table when he sees us and raises his hand with a smile. We wave back at him.
With his back toward us, Shawn slowly turns around, and his eyes find mine, pinning me down with one look. My heart speeds up, and a rush of adrenaline shoots through my veins, burning my skin. The first official meeting with his friends has me so unnerved, even though I technically met them once before. But I hadn’t met them as his girlfriend.
The entire table stops eating when Shawn hooks his arm around me, their eyes wide and full of acknowledgment. They know I’m the girl, so here comes the awkward part, I guess. Bring it.
Shawn had promised no one would treat me differently, and that his friends are all good guys who would not judge us. Based on the nods and smiles I get from them, he was right. Still, I am sweating bullets from their intense stares. Everyone wants to know how I nailed down a guy like Finch. Because he’s not Shawn to them. I ask myself that every day. In some ways, Finch is like a unicorn—impossible to catch and easily tamed by a virgin. And he’s all mine.
“Hey, babe.” Shawn plants a kiss on my lips. “I missed you.”
“I saw you less than two hours ago.”
“So, I missed you the second I left the library.” He keeps his voice low enough that no one can hear.
“Okay, fine. I missed you, too,” I mutter. “But stop drawing more attention to us. Everyone is staring at me like I have something on my face.”
“They’re just admiring your beauty.” Shawn tucks me into the crook of his arm and kisses my forehead. “And they are probably jealous. Let them be.”
I laugh at the thought of anyone being jealous of Shawn and me together until I glance down at the end of the table and spot Harper Connelly mean mugging the shit out of me. She has the best resting bitch face I have ever seen. And here I had thought Clarissa was the crowned Queen of Bitchville. Move over, Bitch Mother.
We take our seats next to Clay and Jessica, who greet me with the usual pleasantries and warm smiles. How does Shawn eat dinner all the time with this many people? There have to be at least twenty people, if not more. I will never keep all their names straight. Shawn goes around the table and introduces me to his teammates and a few of his fraternity brothers, ignoring the girls at the end of our table.
With Tori and Bash on the other side from us, the tension eases in my body, though that is not saying much with how I feel now. I hate that meeting these people has me so nervous. But I want everything to be perfect now that Shawn and I are together.
I turn to Shawn and set my hand on his knee. “Did you eat already?”
“Yeah, I had a burger before you got here. Are you hungry? I can get you something.”
“No, not if we want to catch the bus. I promised Mrs. Feighry I would have a late dinner with her.”
“Since she’s the reason you made it to the party, I should be buying her dinner. I owe her big time.”
“We both do,” I say with a smile. “But tonight is girl’s night. I think she’s making us a Southern meal. It’s not often I get to eat home cooked food that I didn’t have to make.”
He frowns.
I squeeze his knee and give it a quick pat, telling him not to worry, even though I know he does.
“Maybe Mrs. F can help you find a way to escape this weekend so that I can take you on a proper date. She seems to be good at getting you where you need to be.”
“I don’t even know how to go about getting away from Clarissa without her watching over the front door.”
“Then, don’t go through the door. If we leave right from school on Friday, that takes Clarissa out of the equation.”
I snort. “Are you joking? She will have my head if I stay out past my school curfew. I’m lucky if she accounts for issues with the bus schedules, let alone if I don’t show up at all.”
Shawn lifts my chin with his index finger so that our eyes meet. “Think about it, okay? I’m sure we can find some way to be together outside of this campus.”
Even though he doesn’t mean anything by his statement, it stings a little knowing I am holding him back from having a normal relationship. He could go on dates with other girls, but he chose me, the girl on permanent house arrest.