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“Zeke,” he replied. “I’m Liam’s assistant.”

“You poor thing,” I said, making him laugh.

“It’s not so bad,” Zeke replied, giving Liam a nudge. Liam was too busy staring at me to notice though. It was like he’d only just seen me for the first time, and I had to try really hard not to roll my eyes at him. Heknewwho I was. We’d been introduced in drama today, read lines together for over an hour, and I’d yelled at him in the corridor.

“Well, it was nice to meet you, Zeke,” I said. “I guess I’ll see you around.”

I walked away before Liam could open his mouth and start being an ass again. I’m not sure he was even trying to be rude when he talked; he just naturally had an obnoxious personality. It was lucky he was famous because I doubted he’d have any friends if he weren’t.

Once the two boys were out of sight, I rushed toward the cash register. I had no idea if I’d picked up everything I needed, but I didn’t want to risk bumping into that arrogant Hollywood idiot again. I had far more important things to do with my time than hang around and be insulted by Liam. For one thing, I needed to get home and start learning my lines.

“Who were those young men you were talking to?” Mrs. Maisey asked, as I placed my groceries in front of her.

I glanced over my shoulder and found Liam at the end of the aisle, watching me. It was almost like he was waiting to hear my response, and I already had the perfect reply. I tried not to smirk as I turned to face Mrs. Maisey once more.

“Just some guy from school and his friend, I guess.”

8

Liam

“Isee you’re already dazzling your peers with your vibrant personality,” Zeke murmured as I watched Teagan pay for her groceries.

I drew a hand down my face and huffed out a breath as I turned to him. “Gee, thanks.”

He laughed and shook his head at me. “Dude, that girl has you all kinds of irritated.”

“She doesn’t have me irritated.” But even as I said it, he gave me a knowing look, and I could tell he was right. I was a prickling ball of frustration right now.

“Uh, yeah, she does. I can see how twisted your panties are from here, and you’re taking it out on poor old me. Even Teagan felt sorry for me.”

“Please don’t mention her name.”

Zeke’s lips formed a wide grin. “You like her, don’t you?”

“I don’t even know her.”

Zeke shrugged. “Doesn’t mean she doesn’t intrigue you.”

My expression shut down at his suggestion. If I continued to object, he would only take it the wrong way, and I decided the best course of action was to say nothing on the subject at all.

“Did you find those protein bars?” I asked instead.

“Got them right here,” he said, waving them in front of my face. “Do you think we should offer one toTeagan?”

Apparently, Zeke wasn’t so easily put off the girl. I guess it was the first time he’d ever really seen me react this way before. Normally, I treated girls with indifference, and he’d never seen me act negatively toward one before. I wondered if he’d also noticed how I lost the ability to speak when she smiled at us. Her smile had been like a punch to the gut for me, and it had taken a few seconds for me to get control of my expression. Teagan was flawlessly beautiful, but when she smiled, she looked like some kind of angel. I still couldn’t get the image out of my mind.

“She’s certainly a looker,” Zeke continued, as we watched her walk out the door with her bags.

I shrugged. “I guess, if you’re into that sort of thing.”

Zeke snorted. “Yeah, because who would be into a girl who looks like she belongs on the cover of Vogue?”

“Beats me,” I replied before heading toward the checkout. The sooner we got out of the store, the better. I didn’t like how Zeke had fixated on Teagan and the way I’d acted around her. I was hoping that some fresh air and a change of scenery might help get her off my assistant’s mind.

“You two are new around here,” the lady behind the register said, as she scanned our protein bars. Her hair was white as snow, and she had these piercing blue eyes that made me feel like I’d just walked through a scanner at the airport. With one look, she seemed to be able to tell that I was carrying far too much baggage and, yes, it was chock full of undesirable items.

“Yes, ma’am, we are,” I agreed.