Page 54 of Make You Mine

Oh my God. She’s actually doing it.

Except she doesn’t stay with Joseph. Very soon, the blond, bearded guy pulls out the empty seat next to him and Hannah accepts. The blond guy passes her a drink and takes the note from Joseph.

I can’t hear what he’s saying, but if I squint my eyes enough, I swear he’s mouthing he’s got great handwriting, too. The note is in his hands as well as the pen, and he’s scribbling something on it, and Hannah’s smiling. Joseph smiles from the far corner but remains chill.

Did he even write on the note?

Now, the blond guy passes the note to Hannah, who giggles as she sips from her drink.

The knit-sweater guy with the curly hair is on Hannah’s other side, but he’s talking to another girl.

Seems that Band T-shirt Guy and Joseph are the only ones without a date.

If Joseph is my stalker, he sure as hell is good at pretending to ignore me.

He’s staring at his phone now.

Maybe I should text my stalker again, see if Joseph reacts.

I grab my phone off the corner of the table and open the exchange of messages.

Are you here yet?

I don’t know if Joseph’s phone vibrates. All I know is that as soon as I look at him, his eyes are on mine.

A chill runs down my spine.

This could be a coincidence. Maybe he just looked up and saw me, and we happened to stare at the same time.

But it’s cutting it close.

I’ve got my phone in my hand, and it’s not buzzing back. No reply.

“Hey, mind if I take a seat?” I’m caught mid-typing, my eyes looking up to the stranger in front of me.

Band T-shirt Guy, the emo-looking one from Joseph’s group is pointing at the empty seat at my table.

When did he come up here?

Up close, he’s way better looking than I gave him credit for. His eyes are brown and deep, really deep. He’s buff too, which I can see now that he’s taken his jacket off. He’s leaner than Joseph and the blond guy, but not as lean as the knit-sweater guy.

He’s got a pretty tattoo covering his hand, and his fingers are long and decorated with thick silver rings.

I bite my bottom lip. I’m a sucker for guys with tattoos and nice hands. And the psycho isn’t replying.

I may as well have a little fun. I doubt I’ll get much else done tonight.

“Go ahead.”

Band T-shirt Guy smiles awkwardly, taking a seat in front of me. It’s only now that I notice on his other hand is a drink, as he hands it to me.

“Heard you’re a teacher. Thought you may like this.”

I tilt my head. Is this Hannah’s doing?

“It’s an Espresso Martini.”

“Oh.” Of course it is, because I’m a teacher. And I need caffeine. My shoulders relax, and I giggle. “Thanks.”