AllFreeNovel
Share Us
There’s a slight pause. “You remembered.”
I blink through my tears. “Of course I did.”
There are so many other things I want to say to him. I love you. I miss you. I hate your father. But I tamp down the urge and say nothing at all.
“How’s the dating going?” he asks cheerfully.
My stomach goes rigid. “Uh…it’s great.”
“Yeah? Doing lots of exploring? Conducting a thorough search for the meaning of love?”
There’s a mocking note there, but more than anything, he sounds amused. Smug, even.
“Yep,” I say lightly.
“How many guys have you dated?”
“A few.”
“Awesome. I hope they’re treating you right. You know, opening doors for you, laying their jackets on the ground so you can walk over puddles, that kind of stuff.”
God, he’s such a jackass. I love him.
“Don’t worry, they’re all very chivalrous,” I assure him. “I’m having a blast.”
“Good to hear.” He pauses. “I’ll see you in a few days. You can tell me all about it.”
He hangs up, and I curse under my breath.
Damn it. Why is he pushing this? Why can’t he just accept that it’s over between us and focus on his stupid hockey team?
And how the hell am I going to convince him I don’t want to be with him when I can’t even convince myself?
43
HANNAH
My second day back on campus, I embark on my own mission: Operation Believe It When You See It. Because clearly the only way I can convince Garrett to back off is to prove to him that I’m in the process of moving on, which means I need to find a guy to go out on a date with. Stat.
The first opportunity arises when I pop into the Coffee Hut to grab a hot chocolate. It’s snowing like a bitch outside, and I stomp the snow off my boots on the mat by the door before heading for the back of the line. That’s when I notice that the guy in front of me looks familiar. When he places his order and moves to the pick-up counter, I get a flash of his profile and realize it’s Jimmy. Jimmy…what’s his last name again? Pauley? No, Paulson. Jimmy Paulson from British Lit and the Sigma party. Perfect. We’ve got history. We’re practically in a relationship.
“Jimmy, hey,” I greet him after I order my drink and join him at the counter.
He visibly stiffens at the sound of my voice. “Oh. Hey.” His gaze darts around the coffee shop, as if he doesn’t want anyone to see us talking.
“So, listen,” I start, “I was just thinking, we haven’t really talked since that party back in October…”
The barista plops a foam cup in front of Jimmy, who snatches it up so fast I don’t even see his hand move.
I hurry on. “I thought it would be nice to catch up and…”
He’s already edging away from me. Jesus, why does he look so terrified? Does he think I’m going to shiv him or something?
“…I was wondering if maybe you want to grab a coffee sometime,” I finish.
“Oh.” He inches farther away. “Uh. Thanks for the offer, but…uh, yeah, I don’t drink coffee.”
I stare at the coffee cup in his hand.
