Distracted By You: Book 1 in The Exeter Running Girls Series, стр. 17
“The difference between the two is usually whether the other party is interested or not.”
“I think there’s a greater difference.”
“Oh darling,” he smiled seductively, dropping his voice to a whisper so no one could overhear him. “Tell me when your break is, and I’ll lift up that skirt to show you there isn’t.”
“Ew, again.” I plonked the coffee heavily in front of him, not caring the cream sloshed everywhere. “You do remember I’m not Rosie. I don’t think she would have liked how creepy you’re being anyway.” Why couldn’t he just be the same sweet boy he used to be? Maybe he still was, beneath the creepiness.
“Sugar please?” He kept smiling as I turned away to get the sugar sachets. As I went to pass them to him, he took the opportunity to hold onto my hand with the sachets trapped between us. I tried to pull away, but it was no good. “I never said you were Rosie, but I can like what I see all the same, can’t I?” His eyes wandered over my extremely plain uniform and high-necked black t-shirt.
I snatched my hand away and gestured to the door.
“Go, now. Before I complain to my manager.” I turned away, feeling the hairs on the back of my neck stand up from discomfort as he reluctantly turned away.
A part of me thought it was because I looked like Rosie at all that he was doing this. He and Rosie were sixteen when they were a thing, just starting to… explore. Yet I know that they never actually slept together. He had never quite had her.
It made it all the more unsettling that he had turned his attention to me now. I shivered dramatically at the thought yet pushed the weird idea away again. He had to still be the kind boy he used to be. It was just harder to see.
Chapter 6
What exactly was this evening supposed to be? I wondered for what must have been the three hundred, and thirty third time. Were we just two friends hanging out? Or… was this a date? I didn’t want to give Tye a clear sign of just how much I was attracted to him as I was far too embarrassed at what he would do or say if he really knew. Despite our flirtation at the pub, it had kind of felt like more of a joke. Especially as he coupled everything that he said with a wink to break the ice. It was just what he did. I settled for wearing safe skinny jeans and a warm black jumper with a deep v neck.
By the time he turned up at my room door, I had chewed my bottom lip raw with the amount of overthinking I had done. I flung the door open, trying to affect a smile, but the greeting was certainly not what I had expected.
“Did you ask her?” These were the first words to cross Tye’s mouth.
“What? No hello?” I asked in surprise as he walked straight past me, shutting the door behind him. I had to focus my eyes on his face, but as well as seeing frustration lodged there, they lingered on his good looks again. I reprimanded myself and turned away to look elsewhere. All he was wearing was his customary long-sleeved grey t-shirt and jeans. He slung a coat on the end of the bed as he walked in.
“Hi,” his face softened into a smile briefly before it quickly vanished again. Like a bubble bursting – pop! “I mean Ellie. Did you ask her to stop?”
Did we really have to talk about Ellie? I issued a silent prayer for it to stop.
“No,” I opened the small fridge that was tucked under my desk. My stomach was sinking fast at this surprising conversation and I needed something else to think about. “Would you like a drink?”
“She’s texting me now!” His voice raised a notch on both the volume and fury scale, not abating in the slightest when he earned a heavy glare from me for it. “Did you give her my number?”
“No,” to say I was confused was not accurate. Disappointed was better. I had been sat here all evening trying to work and push away the thoughts of Kyle from the coffee shop, instead worrying over whether this was a date or not, and we were rapidly plummeting towards quite a heavy argument. I also didn’t appreciate the accusation.
“Then how did she get my number?”
“I don’t know, Mr Rude.” The cartoon of the red blob associated with the name from the children’s story book jumped into my mind, the waving hands and big mouth weren’t far off right now for a description of Tye. “I did not give it to her.” I took the one toffee apple cider I had left and opened it quickly.
“Ivy, how else could she have got my number?”
My dig had clearly made no indentation to his ire, nor done anything to calm him down.
“I’m probably not the only mutual friend you two have. Now, sit down before you burst a blood vessel or something,” at my suddenly harsh words, he sat in the desk chair and hung his head in his hands. “She does not even know I have your number and I’m not the kind of person who would give it to her.”
“She’s ridiculous. She has been texting me all afternoon.”
Excuse me, but when did I turn into the weird friend you could bitch to? Well, he certainly looked stressed and I had no wish to continue this argument any longer. Neither did I wish to keeping talking about Ellie. Any hope that had grown in me this afternoon had gone