Campus God (Campus)

“Isn’t it possible that I’ve reformed my ways?”

Looking unconvinced, she shakes her head. “I think you’re blowing smoke up the wrong person’s ass.”

I flash a grin. “Or, maybe, you don’t know me as well as you think you do.”

“I wonder why that could be?” Eyes narrowed, she taps her pointer finger against her chin. “Is it because you were too busy acting like an ass for me to get to know you?”

Ouch. Unfortunately, she’s spot on. I did everything in my power not to get to know her. And vice versa.

“Touché.”

Once we reach the glass door, she stops and pulls out a key ring from her pocket before sliding the thin metal into the lock and opening it. Her questioning gaze flickers to mine. I still, unsure what she’s looking for. All I know is that I want to stay and continue our previous conversation.

Just as the moment turns awkward, she blurts, “Do you want to come in for a bit?”

19

BROOKE

Someone please tell me that I didn’t just invite Crosby Rhodes up to my apartment.

From the surprised expression that has morphed across his face, it’s much too late to snatch the words from the air and pretend they never escaped. All I can do at this point is cling to the miniscule hope that he has better things to do and declines the offer. If not, it’ll blow apart the rest of my evening and there will be no salvaging it.

This is precisely what spending time with Elaine does to me. It makes me lose my mind.

“Sure.”

Damn.

My shoulders collapse under the weight of his agreement. There’s nothing else to do other than reluctantly nod as he reaches around me and grabs hold of the door before stretching his arm toward the lobby.

Fate sealed, I step inside the building as Crosby allows the door to swing closed before following me to the elevator. I stab the button and silently berate myself.

What the hell had I been thinking?

Now I’m stuck spending time alone with the one guy I try to avoid at all costs.

Ugh.

Once the doors of the elevator slide open, he waits for me to step inside before following. He’s so close that I can feel the heat of his body and smell his cologne. It’s so tempting to inhale a big breath of him. Instead, I punch the floor button. Seconds later, the doors close, trapping us inside together.

Air stalls in my lungs as a strange, combustible energy snaps and crackles around us. The more time that slowly ticks by, the more explosive the atmosphere feels. It’s as if all of the oxygen has been sucked from the small space. I’ve never understood why my body reacts to him like this. The fact that I find him so attractive considering our tenuous past is disconcerting on so many levels. I want to be indifferent where he’s concerned. The energy that wafts off him is almost suffocating in its intensity. It’s almost like a magnet. One that continually pulls at me, never allowing me to get too far.

When I can’t stand another moment, I shift before giving him a bit of side-eye. “I hope you don’t think I’ve invited you up to have sex,” I blurt.

He blinks before his nearly black gaze pierces mine. “The thought never crossed my mind.”

Heat stings my cheeks as I jerk my head into a tight nod. Could I sound any more like an idiot? “Good,” I mutter. “I just want to be clear so there aren’t any misunderstandings.”

His lips tremble as he presses them together in an effort not to smile. “Trust me, there aren’t. I’m not under any illusion that you want to sleep with me.”

If only that were true.

I almost wince at that thought.

Thankfully, the elevator doors open, saving me from drowning in further conversation. Crosby keeps pace easily with me down the long stretch of brightly lit hallway until I grind to a halt in front of my door. My fingers shake as I open it.

“If you’re not cool with me being here, I’ll leave. It sounds like you’ve had a rough night. Maybe you just want to hit the sack and put it all behind you.”

Thrown off by the comment, I glance at him in surprise.

Everything inside me loosens and I hear myself say, “No, it’s fine. Are you good with watching a movie?”

“Sure. Whatever you want to do.”

The apartment is swathed in darkness as I step inside. My guess is that Sasha is out with Easton. Those two have always been close, but now they’re more like cojoined twins. They’ve known each other for so long and are such great friends. I can’t imagine finding someone who knows me inside and out like that.

Is it strange that Chris immediately pops into my brain?

We haven’t known each other for very long—just a couple of weeks—and yet, I’ve shared so much with him. Both my past and present. We’ve even talked about what we want our futures to look like. I’d planned to call him when I arrived home, but that will have to wait.