Page 24 of The Lies We Steal

“Briar, right?” I catch to my right, I unconsciously wince before meeting a pair of delicate blue eyes.

My brows furrow because I’m not sure what he is doing talking to me or how he knows my name.

“I’m Easton, Lizzy mentioned you were new in town.” He sticks his hand out to shake mine like it’s some lawful business conference. The smile he had when he arrived hasn’t dropped one inch.

I timidly return the gesture, grasping his warm hand in mine and following his movement of up and down. I’d showered this morning, but something about touching him made me feel dirty. He looks so clean, so poised and perfectly put together that I feel like sewer water next to him. Worried that I’ll look down and see mud smeared on his unstained palm from my fingers.

“Uh, nice to meet you?” The way I say it, full of nerves, makes it sound more of a question than a statement.

He laughs effortlessly, his blonde locks sway with the force, his large chest shaking a little.

“My father might kill me if I didn’t give a formal welcome to a non-local. He’s been trying to get out-of-state students here for years now. You a math major?”

Talking to people is a skill he’d mastered over the years. You can tell. In the way he holds himself. The confidence in his shoulders and the natural energy he’s giving off make him seem easy to chat with. I’m just not sure why he’s chosen to talk to me. Considering I’m pretty sure I’m at the bottom of the metaphoric food chain compared to him.

“Statistics actually.”

“Intelligent and pretty. Quite a combination you have going on there.” His smile becomes more flirtatious.

I could’ve sworn Lyra said he had a girlfriend.

Maybe she was wrong?

“Hardly.” I mock, the tension in my joints easing up a bit, “What about you? Are you a math major?”

“Computer Science.” He wiggles his fingers like he’s typing, “I’m quite good with my fingers.”

I know he’s talking about his fingers on a keyboard, but I can’t help the strawberry blush that begins to heat my cheeks. Even thinking about him with a pair of glasses on, white button-up rolled up to his sleeves, typing away on a computer, the glow of the screen illuminating the delicate points of his face.

It’s enough to make any girl blush.

I notice the seat next to me is empty at this moment, chewing the inside of my cheek I decided what the heck? The worst he can say is no.

I motion to the chair next to me, “Do you want to take this se—”

“Easton! Babe, I got our seats up front!” A sugary, sweet voice echoes in the room, both of our heads peering in the direction it came from.

Molly? No, Mary!

That’s his girlfriend, I warn myself. Knowing from what Lyra told me that I do not want to make an enemy out of her, even if she looks harmless with her Blair Waldorf-inspired wardrobe.

“You should probably grab your seat. I think it’s about to start.” I hurry out, not wanting any conflict between him and her. I do not need to be in the middle of an IT couple. Not on my list of things to do.

“Yeah, it was good meeting you, here,” He grabs my pen out of my hands, tugging my open notebook towards him and scribbling something down quickly, “Call me if you ever need anything or want to hit the library to study.”

He’s just being nice, Briar.

Guys are allowed to have friends who are girls. He’s just being courteous, don’t read into it too much. His girlfriend is probably fine with it.

“Thanks, will do.” I grab my stuff from him, pulling it back in front of me as he walks towards the front, sliding into his seat next to Mary. I’m assuming she’s asking about me, because her eyes swiftly dart to me, before she begins whispering in his ear.

He plants a quick kiss on her cheek that acknowledges whatever question she was asking because she smiles and settles into her spot next to him.

I don’t have much time to think about it because our professor walks in, his voice loud and controlling the room. Following close behind him, is a younger guy who takes a seat in the corner of the room at his own desk.

“Welcome to Applied mathematics. I’m Professor Sheridan and this is my TA, Mr. Crawford. Assuming everyone in here is studying some field involving math it’s safe to say this should be a very straightforward course for you. Any questions before we begin?” He clasps his hands behind his back pacing in front of the long green chalkboard allowing students time to raise their hands.

When silence follows, he nods, “Great, let's get started shall we?”