Page 4 of Making Over Maris

“Yeah. You MST3Ked the hell out of that one.”

She laughed at the memory. “Yeah. Okay. Maybe this weekend.”

“Perfect. And Sara?”

She took a drink of her soda and crushed the can. “Yeah?”

“Thanks for the other thing. You know. Thanks for thinking about it.”

“Sure.”

But God. She hated that he appeared so hopeful.

Because she wasn’t going to do it.

The blood pounded in Jack’s veins, making him lightheaded.

Holy crap.

She’d said she’d think about it.

Barely able to contain his excitement, he made his way back to the lab, through to his office and settled in his task chair. He entered his encrypted password and stared blankly at the screen as his machine ran through its security reboot. Like a zombie, he tapped in the responses to all the cues. His mind was elsewhere entirely.

She’d said she’d think about it.

She hadn’t said yes. But she hadn’t said no.

Anticipation trickled through him.

Imagine if this worked. Imagine what might happen. What could happen.

He could have Sara. In his arms. In his bed.

He shivered.

She’d been his fantasy, his walking wet dream, for years. Forever.

He still remembered the first time he’d seen her, there in the hallway at Midway High School, with her heart-shaped face, crystalline-blue eyes and mop of black curls. He’d set eyes on her and something inside him had blossomed.

He’d known he hadn’t had a chance in hell of winning her. She was so cute and bubbly and outgoing. And all the guys flocked around her like nerds to a Star Trek convention—and he’d been a “red shirt”. Super Dork.

So he’d initiated Operation Friend Zone. If he couldn’t have her as a girlfriend, he would have her as a friend. He could have her in his life. A piece of her at least.

He’d joined all the clubs she joined—even drama, which had been miserable. Then he’d enrolled in two science classes way below his level, solely so he could invite her to be his lab partner. He’d helped her get into the same university that accepted him. He’d browbeaten his partners to hire her as marketing manager for their fledgling company…

All so he could be around her.

And it had been enough—almost enough—until lately.

Lately it’d become unbearable.

It probably had nothing to do with his envy of Adam and Tristan—his best friends—who had found their mates. Nothing to do with the agony of watching them stumble around, besotted and blissful. Going home every night with females. Females who loved them.

They were probably even getting laid.

Surely that wasn’t jealousy skirling in his gut.

Tristan was going to be a father for Christ’s sake.