Page 13 of A Favor Owed

He exhales dramatically and wipes his forehead. “Jesus, Pines. That was terrifying. You’re good.”

“Did you go to a lot of games?”

“Tons. My dad and my brother and I.” He squints at me over his coffee cup. “So how did a girl from the California foster care system end up at Columbia for undergrad?” he asks.

I take a sip of my espresso before answering. “Scholarships and kick-ass grades.”

“You got brothers or sisters?”

“Nope.”

“Aunts, uncles, or cousins?”

“Not a one.”

“How did you know that the Red Sox are the Yankees’ worst enemy?”

“Common knowledge.”

“Not for girls.”

“Sexist much?”

“All the time.”

I smirk at him. “Are we done with the third degree or are you just taking a break?”

Those green eyes are looking right into mine. “Where’d you get eyes like that, princess?”

They narrow at him. “I’m not a geneticist, McDaniels, but I’m gonna guess they come from someone I share DNA with.”

His narrow back. “Right.” He stretches out his lean-muscled body, leaning back against the sofa, his long legs making right angles. “Well, they’re nice.”

“Thanks.” They certainly cost me a pretty penny, back when I had access to a healthy bank account.

“So what were you all in a huff about back there?”

“I wasn’t,” I say. “I was just meeting with the academic achievement professor.”

He frowns. “You having a problem with one of your classes?”

“I’m having a problem with all of them,” I say. “With no quizzes, no midterms, just that one final exam grade for each course…” I shake my head. “If I don’t keep my scholarship, I’m done. And I have no idea if I’m doing this right.”

“That’s it for you, huh?” he says, and something seems…off. “No fallback?”

I shake my head. “No. No fallback.”

He shrugs. “Well, I wouldn’t worry too much about it,” he says. “You always know what you’re talking about when you get called on in class. More than most people.”

“Who knows how that’ll translate on an exam? Speaking of which,” I say, looking at my watch. “There’s a study workshop in a few minutes. Are you going?” I’m not ready for my time with Brady McDaniels to be up, but it’s not safe to get used to hanging out with him. We can’t be friends. We most certainly can’t be more than friends. But he’s hot, and funny, and has just enough of an edge to his happy personality that it makes me feel warm in places I’d like to but can’t let him explore. There’d be no dwelling in my cave.

“Sure, I’ll go with you.” He says it like he’s humoring me.

“I wasn’t, like, inviting you!” I say, taken aback. Am I that obvious?

“You don’t want me to go?”

“No! I mean, yes. I mean, it’s a school thing. Anyone can go. I don’t care if you go. I mean…”

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