Page 45 of Wrong For Me

Rose

“Why are you grinning like that?”

I jerk my gaze away from my phone screen to see Will standing in the doorway to my room.

“I’m not grinning,” I say, automatically moving a hand to cover my mouth.

He points at me. “You totally are. And your eyes are all soft.”

Have I mentioned it’s annoying to live with someone who knows you so well? It’s impossible to hide anything from Will.

I direct my attention to the bag in his hands. “Did you bring me food, or what?”

I can tell he wants to press me some more, but the smell of fried food emanating from the takeout bag he’s holding must win out. “Burgers and onion rings from Ollie’s.”

I close my eyes and let out a whimper. Ollie’s is a burger joint right down the street from Will’s tattoo shop, and I swear to God, their onion rings are like crack. “You’re my favorite relative, have I ever told you that?”

“I heard that, sister dear!” River shouts from the hall, and Will smirks.

“I’ll be right out,” I tell him. “Grab me a beer?”

“On it.”

I close my laptop screen, intentionally averting my eyes from the sight of Leo’s name in my inbox. I need to stop thinking about him.

I’ve barely taken my seat on the couch when River clears his throat, expression grave. “Dad called this afternoon.”

That’s not unusual—Riv is just as close to our parents as I am. But from the look on his face, I have a feeling this wasn’t just a catch-up chat.

“What happened?”

“He met with Gibbs.” I immediately bristle at the mention of my dad’s lawyer. Daniel Gibbs and I spent a lot of time together a few years ago, when my ex decided to implode my entire personal life. I’m sure he’s very good at his job—he’s been working for the label for years—but he isn’t the warmest guy, particularly when I had to talk to him about some damn personal shit. Anytime I hear his name it’s impossible not to remember those awful days.

“Apparently a photographer got pictures of you on campus today.”

I wait for him to continue. “Is that it?”

He shrugs. “You’ll probably be on some gossip blogs tonight. They just wanted you to be aware.”

“Not exactly breaking news,” I mutter, piling my plate high with onion rings. To be honest, I’m more annoyed that my dad felt like he needed to talk to River about it, instead of coming straight to me. Did he think I wasn’t going to be able to handle it or something? Needed my little brother to break the news and protect me?

“The photographer didn’t bother you on campus, did they?”

I shake my head. “Didn’t even know they were there.” I’m not sure which option I prefer when it comes to the paparazzi. I hate it when they get in my face and harass me. On the other hand, it feels creepy to know someone was out there taking pictures of me without me even knowing it.

“Speaking of your first day back,” Will says, opening his beer. “What’s this about an advisor fiasco?”

I try not to grimace. I’d forgotten that I’d promised to fill him in. I definitely hadn’t planned to have this conversation in front of River, too.

“Caroline was put on bedrest yesterday,” I say. “Apparently she started having contractions really early. They stopped the labor, but the doctor wants her on maternity leave starting now.”

“Shit,” Will says. “The day before the semester started? Talk about bad timing for you.”

“Yeah. She didn’t even get a chance to email me. I heard about it from the department head when I got to campus this morning.”

“So, what does that mean for you?” River asks. “Can you just like, not have an advisor for a semester?”

“Not if I want to be a TA.”