Page 86 of Pucking Bad Boys

“So,” I pull out my laptop and the surface level research I’ve done so far. “Garumwas a condiment. It was sometimes used as a seasoning or as a sauce. From what I understood, it was fermented. Kinda something in between our modern fish sauce and anchovy paste. The Romans loved it and put it on pretty much everything. Sometimes even on baked goods.”

Gen’s face gets more disgusted with every word I say. “Ew.”

For once I can’t blame her. “It doesn’t sound very appetizing to me either, but I guess the Ancient Romans had different taste than us when it came to food.”

“Sounds like it,” Becks agrees. “So where do we find a recipe for this garum?”

“That’s going to be the hardest part of our project. I think we should divide our project into different categories, and we could each take one or work in pairs. We should look at our literary sources, sources in paintings, mosaics, crockery, pottery and china. If two of us look at the sources in literature and the other two look at figurative art, we could then split the work into individual parts if there is too much material. When it’s time to prepare the garum, we could all work together. What do you think?”

Macklin immediately agrees. “Sounds like an excellent plan.”

I smile, grateful for his support. “I was thinking about doing the literary sources since I took Latin and advanced Latin.”

“I’m not trying to insult you, Talia,” Gen says with a glare in Macklin’s direction. “But see why I called you a nerd earlier? Imean, seriously, why would anyone take Latin? What use does it have in today’s world?”

She isn’t the only one who feels this way. I’ve heard this argument before. “I’m a history major, Gen. Ancient history is my favorite, and Latin is very useful since Rome was such a huge part of that world. My dream was to go do a year or at least a semester in Italy, but I had to work to help pay my way through college, so it wasn’t financially possible. The next best thing was to study Latin here. Maybe one day I’ll get to go to Rome post graduation. So, is it ok if I take the literary source research?”

“Fine,” Gen agrees. “I’d rather do the art part. It makes more sense with my major, anyway.”

I turn to look at Macklin and Becks, but they’re both looking at me. “What about you, guys? Who wants to work with me?”

“I’ll be your research buddy.” They say at the same time.

Macklin shakes his head. “I’m going to work with Talia, and you can work with Gen.”

“Why do you get to decide?” Becks argues.

“First off, because Talia is my girlfriend. And I’m also a very fast reader, remember? So it makes sense I do this with Talia and you help Gen with the art part.”

Macklin’s lips curl into a winning smile, but there’s a tick in Beck’s jaw as he bites out a curt agreement. “Fine.”

Chapter 25

In The Stacks

MACKLIN

The head librarian helps us compile a list of some books we can refer to for an initial consultation.

Twenty minutes after we split from Becks and Gen, Talia and I push an empty book cart past our table on our way to the section where we should find most of the books we’re going to need.

My brother and my ex are sitting close to each other this time, paging through a few hardback art books.

“Back so soon?” Becks calls out, with a scowl that’s directed mostly at me.

“Not quite.” I can’t help but grin. “The books we need are all in the very back over there. That’s where we’re headed. See you in a few.”

That grin is still lingering on my face when I follow Talia to the back of the room.

She stops at the end of the section we’re in. “Ok so the first book is by Pliny the Elder,Natural History. There it is. Up there. Always on the top shelf.”

“Let me get it,” I offer. “For now, you can be the brain and I can be the brawn. Call ‘em out and I’ll grab them.”

“That’s one of the advantages of having a tall boyfriend.” She giggles. “If I had been alone, I would have needed a ladder.”

“Happy to serve.” I wink. “Did you see how pissed Becks was when I argued with him about who should help you?”

Talia looks unsure. “I did. I wonder if that was because he wanted to work with me or rather because he didn’t want to work with Gen.”