Page 69 of Right Man, Right Time
I offer Winnie a smile and a wave and allow Silas to guide me out of the room and to the elevator, where we wait. When it dings, a few players come off, including Posey. They do a quick fist-bump, and then we’re on the elevator, headed down.
The entire time, Silas stays silent. I wish for the life of me I knew what he’s thinking because I know a lot is swirling through his head. I also want to know what Pacey said to him, but that’s none of my business and not something I’m going to pry into.
After we get off the elevator, we head down the hallway and out the door to the parking lot full of some of the most expensive cars I’ve ever seen. Row after row.
When we reach Silas’s car, he moves to the passenger side and opens the door for me. I take a seat, and he shuts the door before moving around to his side. His silence is deafening right now. I have no idea how to handle this or what to ask him to see if he’s okay. I’m not sure he even wants to talk at this point, so when he gets in the car, I don’t say anything.
I just let him drive.
And that’s what he does.
We drive in silence to my dorm, and the entire time, I replay the night. I think about how he so carefully helped me skate, how he was attentive and sweet when I was nervous and scared, but all of that vanished the moment he saw Sarah. And after that, it was almost as if I didn’t exist or I was just an accessory to his night.
And maybe I was.
I shouldn’t be offended by that. It’s a job after all. This is what I signed up for.
When we reach my dorm parking lot, he parks instead of pulling to the front and then gets out of the car. I wait for him to open my door, assuming he wants to talk, but when he just helps me out and walks me up to my dorm, I’m more confused than ever.
He follows me up the elevator, and when we reach my room, I expect him to say goodbye. Instead, when I open the door, he follows me right in and kicks off his shoes at the front.
Done with the silence, I turn toward him and say, “What’s going on?”
“I’m exhausted,” he says as he walks over to my bed, hops up on it, and lies down.
Uhhh . . .
I enter the main space, and with a hand on my hip, I say, “You realize you have a home, right?”
“I can’t fucking drive there right now,” he says as he closes his eyes and drapes his thick arm over his face. “Just give me an hour. Okay?”
“Just give you an hour? You want to sleep in my bed for an hour?”
“Please, Ollie,” he says, sounding more exhausted than I realized.
What can I really say? It’s not like I can force him out of my dorm, the man has major muscle, so I just step away and move toward my closet. I pull my sweater up and over my head, leaving me in my bra, and then I dig around for one of my comfortable shirts, but all I have are crop tops. That will have to do.
I glance over my shoulder and notice he’s already knocked out, so I keep my back toward him, remove my bra, and then slip my crop top over my head. I glance back at him again just to make sure he’s not looking and change out of my leggings and into a pair of sweats.
Comfortable, I slip on my slippers and turn to look at him again. His thick chest rises and falls as he curls into one of my pillows. The scruff on his face looks thicker as he lies there, his arm draped over his eyes. It’s no wonder Sarah was blatantly flirting with him tonight. He’s incredibly attractive, not to mention very fit. With his arm lifted, a small patch of skin on his flat, muscular stomach is exposed. And as I stare at him, I wonder if I would have flirted if I had randomly seen him at the bar that night rather than using him to prove a point.
Probably not.
I would have thought him out of my league for many reasons. One of the biggest ones being that he seems too complicated. Too complex. Just from the pinch in his brow and the tightness of his jaw, you can tell he’s dealing with things. Today was a good example of that.
One moment he was showing me off, being the attentive boyfriend every girl dreams of, and then the next, he was aloof, staring at another woman, and completely shut down. If that doesn’t scream red flag, I don’t know what does.
Good thing I’m not attached.
Good thing I can let the day roll off me even though it was embarrassing.
Phone in one hand and e-reader in the other, I head out of my dorm and to the community space, where I text Ross.
Ollie:I’m assuming you’re not home?
I open my e-reader and settle into my chair just as my phone buzzes next to me.
Ross:Out with Zachary getting dinner. Everything okay?
