Page 21 of False Assumptions

Evan frowned. “I have friends who are girls.”

Laughing, Elena gave him a dubious look. “Like who?”

“You,” he said after thinking for far too long.

“Yeah. I don’t count.”

“Don’t be so hard on yourself, Elena. I hate to think you have such a low self-esteem. Of course you count.”

“Ha ha.” She patted his arm, and he bit back a laugh at the patronizing gesture coupled with her patronizing tone. “We all know I don’t suffer from low self-esteem. We also know that you only spend time with girls other than me for one reason.”

That made his jaw clench, irritation prickling over his skin. “Why does everyone think I’m such a … such a …”

“Manwhore?” Elena supplied.

His jaw clenched again. But, “Yeah. That. I’m not a manwhore. I just like to have a good time. There’s nothing wrong with that.”

“Oh, Evan.” Elena’s hand on his arm gave a little squeeze of reassurance. “Of course there’s not. You know I just like giving you shit. I don’t mean anything bad. But you have to see why I’m curious about this girl who, A, hasn’t been swayed by your charm, which I’m sure you’ve tried on her already, and, B, has you so willing to go out of your way to help her.”

“She was hurt. I couldn’t leave her there by herself.”

Carter interrupted. “Guys. I know it was nice out today, but it’s dark, and it’s February, and I’m cold. Can we go meet her, give her back her keys, and go home?”

Evan led the way up the stairs. He rapped on the door with his knuckles before unlocking it and letting himself in. Layla blinked at him from the spot on the couch where he’d left her, ankle still propped up, but the ice pack sitting on the coffee table. Good. He’d been gone for over half an hour with all the talking. At least she’d remembered to take it off.

Still in the doorway, he offered her a quick smile. “Hey. My roommate and his girlfriend wanted to come check on you too. Is that okay?”

Her dark eyebrows rose, and she adjusted so that she could sit up a little more, setting the book she’d been holding on the coffee table. “I guess so.”

That was all it took for Elena to push past him into the apartment, heading straight for Layla. “Oh, you poor thing. First you get hurt, and then you get stuck with this doofus to look after you.” She hooked a thumb over her shoulder in Evan’s direction. He rubbed his face, burying his laugh.

Layla looked from Elena to Evan and back again, her brows drawing together. “What? No. He’s been great. He helped me off the trail and stayed with me at the ER when my friend Alyssa didn’t answer her phone. And he went and got my car.” Her face cleared, and she glanced at him again. “Did you get my books?”

Crap. “No. I got distracted by these two. Hang on. I’ll go grab them.”

When he got back with Layla’s books, she was sitting with her foot on the coffee table and Elena on the couch next to her. Carter loitered by the door, leaning against the wall, his arms crossed, watching the two girls talking. It was Carter’s position that made him realize that Layla didn’t have a TV, though. Her couch faced the window that overlooked the parking lot and the adjacent wall held a variety of bookshelves—two of the cheap five-shelf ones you can get at any big box store, a smaller three-shelf version in a different finish, and another shelf made of cinder blocks and boards. All of them full of books. Well, that was apparently how she kept herself entertained.

He set the stack of books he’d brought from her car next to Layla’s feet, and she stopped talking to look up at him. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” He touched the toes of her injured foot. “You’re supposed to be keeping this elevated.”

“I am!” She crossed her arms over her chest, her eyes narrowing in indignation.

Smiling, he sat down on the coffee table, propping her feet on his legs. “The swelling goes down faster if you keep your ankle above the level of your heart. That’s what I meant by propped up. With you sitting up more and your ankle lower, it doesn’t work as well.”

Her arms fell to her sides, and her eyes relaxed. “Oh.” She chewed on her lower lip, looking down at her hands before meeting his eyes again. “Okay. I’ll be sure to keep it up as much as possible once you guys leave.”

He nodded, his hands absently massaging her calves. “How does it feel? Did the ice help? Have you taken any ibuprofen yet?”

She shook her head. “No. I figured you’d yell at me for getting up if I moved while you were gone. It still hurts. Not as bad as earlier since I haven’t been on it at all, but it’s uncomfortable enough to make sleeping difficult even though I’m really freaking tired.”

Smirking at her choice of words, he stood, placing her feet carefully on the coffee table once more. “I’ll get it for you. Where do you keep it?”

He found it at the back of the narrow cabinet she’d told him to look in next to the sink. Filling a glass with water, he brought it all to her and waited for her to take the pills before ushering Elena and Carter out of the apartment.

“Thanks again, Evan. I really appreciate all your help today.”

He gave her a smile from where he stood in the doorway. “No problem. Why don’t you give me your number before I go, so I can check in on you later. I can give you a ride to school on Monday if you need.”

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