Page 126 of His Reckless Freshman

“Let’s hit up Eat Your Faves. I’ll meet you there, and then we can go to my place if you want.”

“Yeah, sounds good.” I nod, smiling up at him before going up on my tiptoes for one final kiss.

His lips are soft and beautiful, and I love the way he brushes his nose against mine after pulling away. “See ya soon, Jo.”

“Have a good day, Ben.” I smile as he walks away, wondering what I could possibly shorten his name too.

It’s only three little letters. You can’t really get much shorter than that.

Digging out my phone, I start googling pet names for boyfriends. There are a lot to choose from, and I don’t like many of them, but “beau” is kind of cute. Beau and Jo. Little cheesy, but I’m wondering if he won’t mind me calling him that.

Sure, it’s old-fashioned, but I think it suits him.

I’m just gonna try it tonight and see how he reacts. Pet names are like the next stage in a relationship, right? He’s been using “baby”—which melts me every time—and he’s said Jo, which is sweet. The people closest to me call me JoJo or Joey, so Ben using Jo makes me all warm and loved-up.

My boyfriend.

I have a boyfriend!

A beau!

I basically float into class, sitting down with a dreamy smile and pulling out my laptop. I’m not sure how I’m going to concentrate with all of these love bubbles popping inside me… and the thought of having to tell Caroline about us, which keeps trying to needle into me and ruin this giddy joy.

Or it could be the fact that my ever-curious brain is tuning into the conversation behind me, and my blood is starting to boil with annoyance and a heathy dose of horror.

“And I think he recorded her.” The girl behind me sniffs. “Can you believe that?”

The one beside her gasps. “He recorded her having sex with him?”

“I think so.”

“That asshole. How did she find out?”

“It was just after they were done, and she was staring up at his ceiling, and she thought she saw a camera lens. Just a little one hidden up there between all the⁠—”

“That shithead!” her friend interrupts. “Did she call him on it?”

“She tried to, but then he got really shitty, telling her it was just a light. He told her to stop accusing him and then warned her that if he did record it, which he didn’t, but if he did and she tried to smear his name, any smart guy would post that shit online. Those were his exact words, apparently.” The girl sniffs again, her voice shaking. “What are we supposed to do with jerks like that roaming the campus? If anyone reports him or complains, he might post the video before someone can stop him. I so could not handle having myself online that way. She’s terrified.”

“I’m going to kill this asshole. Who he is?”

“I don’t know. Her friend wouldn’t give her a name. She just wants to forget this whole thing.”

“But he needs to go down.”

“I agree, but it’s a pretty big risk. She’s not willing to take it, and I wouldn’t be either.” The girl sucks in a shaky breath, and I spin without thinking about it, my face no doubt giving away the fact that I heard every word.

The girl bulges her eyes at me, and her friend gives me a scowl.

“I’m so sorry that happened to your friend,” I whisper. “And he should go down for it.”

The girls share a little side-eye, obviously annoyed I was listening in.

“I didn’t mean to. I just caught the comment about the recording, and then I couldn’t help myself.” I wince. “Your friend must be…” I shake my head.

“She’s not my direct friend. I’ve only met her, like, once, but she’s friends with one of my friends from high school and—” She suddenly stops, shaking her head like she’s surprised herself by saying that much. “I don’t think she wants people gossiping about this.”

I raise my eyebrows and force a nod, resisting the urge to tell her that she’s the one gossiping if she’s telling her other friend.