Page 32 of Attractive Forces

“You know smell is just particles in the air, right?” I say with a smile.

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“So I’m really just inhaling small bits of pizza into my lungs right now?”

“Technically, that’s correct.”

Logan gives me a grin. “I love how I learn so much hanging out with you. All the bonus knowledge.”

“Maybe that can be your reward for your frequent flier miles,” I say without thinking.

His grin widens, and before I know it, we have another one of those intense staring matches until the waitress sticks her head between us and asks for our order.

It’s a girl I vaguely recognize from school. Watching her flirt with Logan, with all the hair twirling and coy looks as she asks him about the next rugby game, causes something inside me to tighten.

I actually sometimes forget that this is who Logan is. He’s the rugby captain, the chosen one.

When the waitress retreats after taking our order of pizza and fries, I make myself remember this fact by talking to him about rugby. They’ve just had a bye, but they’ve got another big game coming up that their coach is riding them hard about. Logan’s face lights up as he talks about rugby, and I continue to ask more questions after our food is delivered. I actually love seeing this side of Logan, love seeing how passionate he is about the game.

Okay, so I haven’t yet found a side of Logan I don’t like, but that’s beside the point.

A few jocks walk in, obvious in their rugby jerseys. The uniform of the popular guys.

Logan’s shoulders stiffen.

“Madison!” Mazza bellows, bouncing across the restaurant to slide into our booth in one easy motion.

Brewer and Jayden follow along behind him.

“Didn’t expect to see you here.” Mazza pinches a fry from Logan’s plate and shovels it in his mouth.

Brewer and Jayden follow along at a more sedate pace but join us too. Logan and I both obligingly shift over to give them room.

“I was just buying Jake dinner as payment for me acing my chemistry quiz,” Logan says.

I flick a glance at him. He hasn’t actually done his quiz yet. His face remains impassive.

“Man, I so should have gone with you as my calculus tutor,” Brewer says to me. “I’ve been getting tutoring for weeks now, and my grade hasn’t improved.”

“Isn’t that because you got Janelle Anderson as your tutor? Despite knowing she has a thing for you,” Logan says.

He shrugs. “I thought I could get some bonus biology tutoring along with calculus. But she’s agreed to come to the ball with me, so it hasn’t been a complete waste.”

Logan rolls his eyes. “Given she would’ve agreed to go before she started tutoring you, it doesn’t sound like a good use of money to me.”

“So, Jake, do you have a date for the ball?” Brewer leans toward me.

“Nah, I don’t really have a date. A whole bunch of us are going together in a group.”

Brewer shoots Logan a look.

“Did Madison tell you he’s got himself a date with the ever-so-mighty Jennifer Hayward?” he asks.

Logan gives a stiff smile, playing with the napkin holder.

My mouth is suddenly dry. “Uh…no. He didn’t tell me that.”