Page 51 of Ruthless Court
“You leaving?”
“Suddenly, yes.”
Then she turns and walks toward the bonfires like I announced I’m carrying something contagious.
I stare after her.
“What was that?”
I breathe into my palm and check.
Beer. Mint gum. Fine.
Maybe it’s sweat. I lift one arm and sniff.
Not great, but nowhere near bad enough to trigger an evacuation.
Eli appears beside me carrying two fresh brews. His gaze follows Sandy as she disappears into the crowd.
“Did that chick just dust you?”
“No.”
“She moved pretty fast.”
“She’s weird.”
“Sure.”
He hands me a beer.
I take it.
“Cat-lady librarian crashes an athlete mixer, then acts offended when she finds out who I am.”
Eli grins. “Maybe she didn’t like what she found out.”
“Everybody likes point guards.”
“Vale plays point too.”
My jaw tightens. “Not anymore. That was high school.”
He glances toward the dark stretch of beach where Stella disappeared with Tristan, then back toward the bonfires.
“Rough night, Haverhill. Vale’s closer to locking down Stella than you ever were, and Granny Glasses just rejected you on sight.”
“She didn’t reject me.”
“What would you call it?”
I take a long drink.
“Bad eyesight.”
Eli laughs.
I don’t.
