Page 44 of Trust Me

Chapter 13

Oliver

While I secured the banner to our table in the courtyard, I glanced around. There were a lot of students milling about already, which was a good sign. We needed a fair number of surveys in order for our sociology project to be effective. Getting them to actually stop and talk to us might be the biggest hurdle, but I was confident we could manage it.

“Looks good,” a soft voice said from behind me.

Tilian appeared at my side, staring at the sign.qa

“Counting on you to start corralling people,” I joked.

His nose wrinkled. “I’ll . . . be over there.” After dropping his backpack beneath the table, he went to lean against the building.

Not caring if it made him uncomfortable—everything did—I studied him. His blue eyes were less bright than usual, and even his general air of simmering anxiety seemed muted. He was just flat. Soulless.

“You think the others will be on time?” I ventured.

Staring down at his phone, he tapped a finger on the side absently. “Not sure. I’m surprised you didn’t carpool.”

“Dean’s first class is later than mine. I thought I’d let him sleep in since he worked pretty late.”

“He got a job?”

“Yeah, at The Commons. You know it?”

For a second, there was the barest hint of a smile on his face, then he ducked his head. “Uh, yeah. Been there.”

“My buddy owns the place.”

“Remi? He seems like a cool dude.” He grimaced. “I might’ve accidentally compared him to the rat.”

I snorted a laugh. “Bet he thought it was funny.”

His gaze went behind me, and somehow, I knew it was Dean. When I smelled his cologne, like vanilla and musk, I turned around a little too fast, bumping the table with my hip. I put my hand out to stabilize it and myself, which made Dean raise a brow. As if he wanted to make it a million times worse, he put his hand on my upper arm.

“Careful there, hotshot.”

I laughed, but it came out more breathy than anything. “Yeah, that’s me. Just bumping into things and causing a scene.”

“Mm. You should’ve woken me up so you didn’t have to get all this together by yourself.”

Rubbing the back of my neck, I lazily shrugged one shoulder. “It wasn’t hard. You seen these beasts?” I rolled up my sleeve and flexed my bicep.

When he did the same, his eyes glinting with competition, I nearly started salivating. It was Tilian’s little chuckle that drew my attention. Clearing my throat, I pulled out my phone. Brooks was the only one we were waiting on, so I took it upon myself to make sure he didn’t forget. Not that he would, but he hadn’t been himself lately.

“Oh, Oli.” Dean’s use of my name, shortened like that, made me stare at my phone blankly. When I failed to respond, he punched me in the arm.

“Bro,” I said, rubbing the spot and trying not to pout.

“Thought you were having a stroke.”

“Why?”

“Probably cause your eyelashes were fluttering and you moaned,” Tilian pointed out.

The horror.

“Anyway,” Dean said, seemingly oblivious to the awkwardness. Tilian was definitely still aware of it, judging by the way he watched us. I narrowed my eyes a little, hoping he’d know that I was on to his meddling. “The Wi-Fi wasn’t working today.”