Alpha Erased (Alpha Girl 9)

It wasn’t just his looks that had me hooked, although that was a no-brainer. Something about him seemed safe and comforting when I had absolutely no reason to feel that way toward him. At least not yet. My attraction to him should make me feel anything but safe, and he was little more than a stranger.

But when I looked at him, it felt like something inside me just unlocked. He felt familiar in the most unusual way. I had such a hard time making friends, and yet this was coming so easy.

Maybe it was just who he was—nice, understanding, kind, generous. I mean, he heard my stomach growl and made me this feast. Who did that for a stranger? And now we liked the same music, and he magically had a spare ticket to my favorite DJ-production group?

Life didn’t work out this way for me. It wasn’t ever easy. Good things didn’t just happen out of nowhere. At least not in the last twenty-one months I could remember.

I had a really tough time making friends. For some reason, everyone in my classes ignored me. Anytime I asked someone to study or grab a coffee, they no-showed.

Georgine was the only person who ever showed up, and that was only because she had some sort of obligation to my mother. We had nothing in common except our classes. And she absolutely despised dance music. She’d never go with me to something like a club. She’d be horrified that I would think of going to something so crowded and loud.

But I wanted to go to the club. And not just because it was Above & Beyond. I wanted to go with Dastien. “Are you sure you guys don’t mind me tagging along?”

“Don’t make the guy beg for—” Chris started to say, but there was another thunk under the table.

I looked at Cosette, but she just grinned as she stabbed a noodle off her plate.

Something was going on, but it felt like I was missing everything. “What’s the deal?”

“You should try the mac and cheese. It’s delicious. Dastien made it with four kinds of cheese.”

“That was a really abrupt subject change.” I usually wasn’t one to call someone on it, but I was feeling particularly comfortable. Maybe it was the flip-flops and T-shirt. Maybe it was the music. Or maybe it was that I really liked these people. All three of them.

Cosette put down her fork and leaned a little on the table. “Can I be honest with you?”

“Please.” I hated lies.

“The guy at the end of the table—” She nodded her head toward Dastien. “—has his eye on you.”

She couldn’t be serious.

But she seemed serious.

No guy had ever shown any interest in me. Why would he?

“He’s a really nice guy. Hang out with us as much as you want. We’d love it.” She reached between the plates of food to grab my hand. “I swear, everything is great.”

There was something calming about the way she said it, and her hand felt so warm. The kind of warmth that spread through my body, through my soul, until I felt settled. Relaxed. At home.

“Okay.” I heard the word come out before I could think it through, and for once in my life, I didn’t want to think it through.

Instead, I pulled my hand away from Cosette and took a bite of the mac and cheese.

Cosette wasn’t lying. It was incredible. Chris asked Cosette about her favorite place to eat in LA, and then everyone seemed to settle into conversation. I was glad that I could contribute a little. I’d gotten really familiar with all the restaurants around town. I’d learned to cook pretty well, but sometimes it was a pain to cook and clean up. So, I ordered in a few times a week. Almost everywhere in the city did amazing takeout.

The whole time we sat there, Dastien kept adding other things to my plate and telling me to try it.

At first, I turned it down, but then he added something to Chris’s plate, and then Chris put something on Cosette’s plate to try. It all just seemed like something they did, so I shrugged it off. As long as they were eating, then it was okay for me to keep eating.

So that’s what I did. I kept eating.

And eating.

And eating.

I wasn’t sure where it was all going—because there had to be nowhere else for the food to go—but I was still hungry.

Eventually, Cosette stopped eating, but the guys kept tucking into their food. Cosette wasn’t giving me any dirty looks. Nothing even close to what I would’ve gotten from Georgine. So I kept going.