Page 20 of Unexpected Prejudice

“You like reading?” Levi asked, sounding interested for the first time. So far, every word he’d sent my way had been flat and forced.

“Yeah. I mean, when I have the time.”

“No fucking way! Levi also loves reading, like, a lot. He reads millions of books a year,” Jess said with enthusiasm written all over his face.

“Not a million, but I do like reading. I can recommend some stuff. I mean, if you want.”

It was nice hearing him talk to me. My first impression of him was rather cold, but maybe I was wrong. “Yeah, that would be cool.”

Levi pursed his lips before grabbing Jess’s arm. “We need to go to class now. Bye, Jordan.”

“Oh, Sayonara!” Jess called out while Levi urged him to go.

They were an odd, yet fun combination. With them gone, it was time for me to get moving, or I’d be late for class.

As soon as my ass hit my chair, Lin smacked the back of my head, making me turn around and look at him.

“What?” I asked, annoyed.

“Ty’s having a party this Friday after the game.”

“Cool,” I said and turned around when the teacher walked in.

I had an hour to spare until practice started, so I used it to study for Mr. Orlov’s next test. He was my math teacher, and let’s just say I wasn’t one of his favorite students.

The library was pretty quiet around this time of the day, so I had no trouble finding an empty table. I loved listening to music while studying, so I pulled out my phone and earbuds, and put on my favorite playlist. It wasn’t until the fifth song started playing that my concentration was broken by someone tapping my back. They rested their hands on my shoulders before sitting down beside me.

Shay-Lee. Ecstasy coursed through my body, and I pulled my buds out when I noticed his lips were moving.

“Sorry, didn’t catch that,” I said awkwardly.

Shay-Lee reached for one of several books spread in front of me and flipped through the pages. “I asked, what are you studying?”

“Oh, just some math. I’m not doing so great in Mr. Orlov’s class.”

Not doing so great was an understatement. Try failing.

“Really? Miles also has trouble with his class. I guess he’s a shitty teacher.”

I knew that already because today, after class ended, Mr. Orlov asked Miles and me to stay a bit longer so he could talk to us about our poor grades.

“Anyway…” Shay-Lee put the book down, placed his elbow on the table, and turned to face me. “I thought about you this weekend.”

I wanted to tell him I’d thought about him, too, but I was sure my thoughts of his ass and dick were different from his.

“You did?”

“Yeah, I wanted to know if everything went well with, well, you know…” He lowered his voice because there were still a few students hanging around.

“Yeah, it did.” I looked away from his concerned eyes and focused on my hands. “You really saved me, thank you.”

“Stop thanking me. It’s what friends are for.” He grabbed my shoulder like he did in the car and gave it a slight squeeze that messed with my head. I knew he was supportive, but how his palm lingered on my shoulder while his crystal eyes bore right into my soul made me hopeful.

“How’s Chloe?” I asked, reminding myself he had a girlfriend.

“She’s fine,” he said, moving his hand away from me. “Why?”

I shrugged because my sudden interest in him and Chloe must have appeared weird. “The twins told me you had a pretty good time in Santa Barbara… that’s all.”