Page 90 of A Class of Her Own

“And with me to play buffer.”

Aryn stood across the room, her deep green, almost black, dress catching my eye at the same time she waved. Her eyes coasted over me, smiling in welcome, and then over my shoulder where they froze in surprise.

“Friend one has spotted you. Green dress, red hair, tall, and pretty.”

“Where?” he asked.

“The one all the dudes are hanging around. She’s an athletic sort who looks like a model, so, yeah, find the guys, find Aryn.”

He made a noise and ran his thumb over my ribs, eliciting a chill. “Still not seeing her.”

I scoffed. Knowing he was lying to be cute about it didn’t stop the goosebumps from rising on my skin, though.

I started moving toward her. “Come on, then.”

He followed behind me, the room too crowded to allow for us to walk side-by-side, until we stopped where Aryn was standing. Sure enough, at least three guys were talking to her with dopey looks on their faces. Aryn wasn’t ever interested in any of the men who hit on her at gatherings. She was good at talking like a guy and had a lot of the same interests, so they all thought she was into them. Let’s just say, based on how well I knew her body language and vocal tones, none of them had a chance.

“Mer, you look stunning,” she said, reaching for me to pull me close and give me a hug. It wasn’t that unusual to greet each other with hugs, but it was still rare enough that I took it for what it was -- a cry for help. These guys were bugging her. “Looks like things with Brooks VanOrman have hit a new high,” Aryn whispered as we stood cheek to cheek. “If you can get rid of these guys, I will owe you for life.”

I pulled away with a sweet smile at Aryn and gestured to Brooks. “Aryn, this is my lawyer. I invited him along tonight because he’s doing a little investigating on harassment in social settings, and a New Year’s Eve party is a great way to do some research in a crowd.”

Brooks grunted as I elbowed him lightly. “Uh, yes. At what level would you say a line has been crossed and it qualifies as stalking?” I chanced a look at him, and his face was very serious. He looked around at the men who were listening in. They’d all lightly shifted away from Aryn. “What do you fellas think? Where is the line?”

They basically evaporated from sight, leaving their best wishes for a lovely evening. Aryn and I laughed, and Aryn gave Brooks a high-five.

“Brooks,” Aryn said warmly. “I can’t tell you how glad I am to have you here.”

“Meredith said you’d be surprised. So, on a scale of one to ten, where are you?” he smiled.

Aryn rubbed at her chin. “Honestly, I’m torn. Never thought I’d see the day you two made peace, but I’ve also been noticing a certain besotted look on Mer’s face when you’re mentioned, so . . .”

“Oh, we’re still at war,” I replied. “Brooks jumped in my car and tagged along in an effort to take things to the next level.”

“Excellent. Then tonight should be fun.” Aryn’s grin was smug and satisfied.

“Any idea where I can deposit these?” Brooks asked, lifting the arm where our coats were still hanging. “I do love spending time as a coat rack, but . . .”

Aryn pointed across the room where some sort of hanging rack was standing. He nodded and moved that way. Aryn grabbed my arm, watching him over my head as he walked away. She kept her eyes on him while she talked to me.

“He looks amazing; you look amazing. Please tell me this means you’ve decided to let something brew between you two, because the sparks are definitely there.”

I nodded. “We had the talk last night. You’re looking at a brand-new girlfriend. Even saying the word sounds strange.”

She looked down at me. “Thank goodness you decided to snap that man up.”

“How is it possible that I fell for a guy that’s in a good mood all the time? It’s unhealthy.”

“Maybe. But he is seriously into you.”

I shook my head and clucked playfully. “It’s the absolute worst that I feel the same about him.”

She rubbed one of my arms and said softly enough that I knew he was returning, “You’re one of my very best friends, and you deserve love. Please start believing that.”

Brooks reappeared, and we decided to go greet our hosts and then check out the food spread. We only had a few seconds to thank Hailey and Ford for the invite before more people took our place, but Hailey gave me a knowing look and squeezed my hand, a promise that we’d talk later.

At the buffet table we loaded up plates and moved to a section where some small, round tables were set up. We chose one that wasn’t already taken and sat down in the intimate space, digging in to the delectable catering that Hailey had provided. I people watched, and it seemed like Brooks did, too. But when I looked over to point someone out to him, he was watching me.

“Why are you looking at me?”

---