Page 99 of Playboy For Hire

“N-no,” I said, suddenly flustered. Her gaze was so direct, I felt sure she had to know about us. But she couldn’t. There was no way. “Not for a little bit.”

“Well, that’s a shame. I thought you two boys got along.”

“Oh, we did. I mean, we do.” I corrected myself quickly. “Things have just gotten, you know. Busy.”

“But you’re doing alright?”

“Yeah.” I smiled. “Yeah, I’m good.”

She looked at me sharply. “Nope.”

“Pardon?”

“If there’s one thing all of my grand-nieces and nephews will tell you, Ryder, it’s that I don’t tolerate lies. And I’m old enough to know when someone’s fibbing. Something’s going on with you, and it’s more than just studying for tests. Now tell me, is it girl trouble? We ladies can be feisty, you know.”

I flushed. “No, not that.”

She arched an eyebrow. “Is it boy trouble, then?”

I cleared my throat. “It’s okay, we don’t have to talk about it.”

“We do if you’re going to spend the rest of your time here moping. So tell me what happened.”

God, this was awkward. How could I tell this story without making it obvious I was talking about Quinn? I didn’t want to say anything at all, but I couldn’t very well back out now. I ran a hand through my hair.

“I just really liked this guy. He was great. But things are over now, and it’s kind of a bummer.”

Way more than just a bummer. I hadn’t been able to sleep well since I’d ended things with Quinn. I had one more week of classes, a bunch of finals, and then graduation to worry about. I hadn’t been able to concentrate on any school stuff, and I wasn’t even sure I was going to go to my graduation ceremony at this point. Why bother, if my parents weren’t going to come?

I’d been phoning in all my work dates, which wasn’t smart. I needed to start finding some more regular clients, if Tessawasn’t going to need me anymore. But it was so hard to care about anything that wasn’t Quinn.

“If he was so great, why did he end it?” Thea sniffed.

“He didn’t. It’s my own fault. I’m the one who said it was over.”

“And why would you do a thing like that?”

“Because he doesn’t realize it yet, but he can do way better than me. When he does realize, he’s going to dump me. And I’m just so tired of being hurt.”

She looked me up and down. “How do you know he’s going to dump you?”

“Because everyone always does.”

“Hmm.” She pursed her lips. “Excuse me a moment. I forgot I have to take some pills.”

She went into the bathroom, and I sat on the edge of her bed, really hoping she didn’t keep asking about my love life when she came back. The more time I spent here, the more likely it was that I would trip myself up and accidentally spill the truth. I needed to get out of here before I got myself in real trouble.

When Thea wheeled out of the bathroom, she had her cell phone in hand. “I called Violet. She’ll be here in a minute.”

Sure enough, there was a knock on the living room door a moment later. Before I could get back there to answer it, a tall woman with steel gray hair set in a wave strode into the apartment. She was halfway down the hall to the bedroom before I’d even made it out the door.

Her eyes swept over me, and that sensation of being trapped under a magnifying glass intensified. I felt like with one look,she’d catalogued everything about me, right down to the flavor of my toothpaste. Then her eyes looked past me to Thea.

“Why, Althea, you tramp,” she said. “All alone with a man in your bedroom? I think I might faint from shock.”

“You’re one to talk,” Thea replied. “I saw you at bingo night with Wallace Mathison, and Isawhis hand on your knee. What do you have to say about that?”

“He was brushing off a stray piece of fuzz,” the other woman said. “And if we’re going to talk about bingo night, we can also talk about how close you and Jimmy were sitting. Not much room for the Holy Ghost between the two of you.”

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