I CLICKED Submit on my online quiz and watched the “calculate” symbol flash on the screen. First test down, only one million to go. At least that was what it felt like. Several students had already scrambled out of the class with matching looks of terror.
Couldn’t say I blamed them. Shit was hard.
I might be a jock, but I didn’t fuck around with school, and the quiz had tested my confidence. I cracked my knuckles as the results page loaded and smirked.
A.
Hell, yeah.
A distressed feminine sound drew my attention just in time to witness Sidney drop her head on the desk with a dull thump, making it vibrate below my arms.
She banged her head a few more times before laying it over her crossed arms. She flattened on the table like a giant weight pressed on her, so heavy she couldn’t lift her head.
I snuck a peek at her laptop and the B- marked on it.
From the looks of our classmates, it could’ve been worse.
I mimicked her posture, head laid on my arms, and faced her. “Hi.”
Her gaze met mine, and her eyes widened at how close I was. My elbow was only a hairsbreadth from hers.
“Hi.” Her voice was quiet. All her usual spark had faded away. Yeah, that had to change.
“Quizzes don’t count, remember?” I gestured with my chin toward her laptop.
She huffed and rolled her eyes. “Maybe not for you. You’re already drafted to the freakin’ NHL.”
“Passing this class matters to me. Could you fucking imagine if I made it to the end and didn’t graduate?” I scoffed, and a shudder ran down my spine. The newspapers would eat that shit up.
“Sorry… It’s just…” She took a deep breath, pausing for several beats before letting it out. “I need that referral to finalize my internship.”
My head snapped back. “Wait, really? The one you were celebrating at the club?”
“Really. Really.” She rubbed her temples, and her fingers slid through her hair, pushing it off her face. Goddammit, she looked like someone had kicked her puppy. I shouldn’t care. I barely knew this girl, but I fucking did.
“Hey, we can figure this out.”
A soft laugh escaped her, loosening the tension in my chest. “Oh, can we?”
I bumped my arm into hers. “Yeah, the fuck we can.”
A pale pink brightened her skin as the spark returned to her eyes. “And how do you expect us to do that? I didn’t just fail this quiz. I studied and failed.”
“First, a B- isn’t a fail. Second, somehow I’m not surprised that you’re as thorough at studying as you were at turning me down.”
Her eyes crinkled with her smile, and she gnawed on her bottom lip.
That was fucking better.
Her smile turned sheepish. “It’s not like I wanted to turn you down. It was the rule—”
“Rules, I know.” This girl had no idea how badly I wanted to break all of her carefully crafted rules. I turned my laptop so she could see my grade. “What if I told you I could guarantee you an A on your next quiz? All you have to do is study with me.”
“You can’t promise that. No one can.”
She was right, but that didn’t stop me from leaning forward on my forearms, cutting the distance between us. “Try me.”
“Just to make sure I understand. You’re saying all I have to do is study with you for one night and I’ll get an A?”
I pushed my tongue into my cheek. There was that one-night rule again, although I doubted it extended to studying. “That’s right.”
She laughed, shaking her head. “There’s no way.”
I waited until her eyes were on mine. “Bet.”
“What?” She practically squeaked the question but didn’t look away. The green had swallowed the brown of her irises, and her breaths came out in shallow pants as she waited for my response.
I gave her my cockiest smile. The one I’d honed after a lifetime on the ice antagonizing my opponents. “I bet you’ll earn an A on your next quiz if you study with me one time.”
Her head tilted to the side as she studied me. “And what’s in it for you?”
It was a fucking gamble but worth it. “You’ll break your rule and give me your number.”
“What?” she shot back so fast I had to grab onto the back of her chair to keep her from tipping over.
I didn’t answer. I knew better than to open my mouth and accidentally talk her out of it.
“I can’t break the rules. Like, I can’t.” The pupils in her eyes expanded, and she ran her tongue along her bottom lip. “Especially not with you.”
“Because you think I’m hot.”
“Fishing for compliments isn’t cute.”
“You sure about that?”
Her cheeks flushed, and she rolled her eyes. “What do you want instead of my number?”
“You’re telling me you never give out your number? Or just not to hockey players?”
“Of course guys have my number. Obviously, Anthony has it.”
I reminded myself Anthony was her roommate, who had a hot boyfriend, before continuing. “Okay, we’re just studying. Think of me as Anthony.”
“Like Anthony?” Her brows drew together, and I could practically see her mind working as she stared at the desk. “I get an A and you get my number?”
“You got it.”
“Okay.”
“That’s it? Okay?”
That earned me a smirk. “Yes, oh wonderful Jax. I’d be absolutely honored to study with you.” She put her hand across her heart dramatically, and her mouth stretched into a smile. There was the sass I expected from her.
“That’s better.” I dodged away from her smack. “Where can we—”
“We could grab a spot in the east wing library. The study rooms are already booked for the semester, but there are usually free tables.”
She was already looking over her scheduler app. It was full of categories and notes highlighted in different colors. The way she agreed to be partners sounded as if it physically pained her to say yes, but I was her best shot, and we both knew it.
“I’m free Saturday or Sunday afternoons.” That way, I could still sleep in from our game the night before.
“Nope, I work at the bookshop most weekends. How about Monday night?”
“I practice late every Monday through Wednesday. We get done early on Thursdays. Would 6:30 work?” Scheduling anything into my life was always tricky. It wasn’t that I didn’t want to make time for people; it was that I didn’t have any.
Sidney tucked her hair behind her ear while looking at her screen. “Yeah, that’ll work.”
She twisted to put her things into her bag, and her shirt shifted, revealing a long, thin silver scar running from her neck down her shoulder. I wanted to know how she got it. I wanted to know everything about this girl.
Her eyes scanned the empty room. “Well, this has been… interesting, but I’ve got to get to my next class. I’ll see you on Thursday,” she said, quickly grabbing her stuff and nearly running out the door.
I smirked. There was no way I would lose this bet.
