Chapter 6

L ila left class and headed over to the west side of campus, to the building that housed the Bradley U business school. It was kind of an open secret that the small cafe on the ground floor served the best paninis, and it was definitely a panini kind of day. It had been two weeks since the makeout that had kind of rocked her world, and Lila still hadn't heard a peep from King Spencer.

She was not going to make the first move, nor was she going to bring it up to Jason, who had been badgering her about it at work. No, she was not going to send a text or a DM or anything of the sort, not when her already fragile ego was hanging on by a thread.

In her mind, she chalked his silence up to the fact that she'd probably been a little too open about her lack of experience and was overly assumptive that King would want to continue to hang out after that night. Or maybe she was just a terrible kisser. With embarrassingly small boobs. Her already keen propensity to overanalyze had escalated to a fever pitch, and old insecurities were brought to the fore with a force that was hard to combat.

As always, Wren brought her back down to reality. Wren had reminded her that two weeks in guy time wasn't really that long and that King was the one missing out if he chose to ghost.

While Lila appreciated the sentiment, she knew that her friend was more than a little biased. She was trying to be chill about the whole thing–more adult and realistic. But the truth of the matter was that she'd put herself out there and been open with King, and it seemed like it was coming back to bite her in the ass.

Adopting her "I don't want to chat with anybody" position, she put her headphones in and scrolled through her phone while she was waiting in line. A faint tap on her shoulder caused her to turn around, with an irritated look firmly in place, until she noticed that said shoulder tapper was Knight Patrick. Her annoyed frown turned into a grin that mirrored his as she took out her AirPods.

"Oh, Knight! Hey. Fancy meeting you here."

Knight laughed lightly. "It's nice to see that smile, Li. For a second, I thought you were going to rip my head off."

Lila winced playfully. "Sorry about that. Wasn't really in the mood to chat with randoms today. Or get hit on by someone who asks if I can spare some Chapstick."

Knight wrinkled his nose. "That's happened before?"

Lila nodded.

"Some dudes need lessons in the fine art of talking to someone without being completely creepy."

"Agreed. Thus the AirPods."

"Understandable. I guess it's a good thing we're like best buds now that we've bonded over our superior dance moves and overall awesomeness. I would also like to note that you are an excellent texter. It's becoming a lost art, really, and your wittiness-to-emoji ratio is second-to-none."

"Agreed about the best buds thing. And thank you," Lila replied with a smile as they moved up the line. Knight Patrick was rapidly becoming one of her favorite people. It was a shame that Wren wasn't typically into athletes, because Lila had a feeling that underneath the muscular exterior, Knight was just Wren's type. They made small talk as they waited in line, Knight filling her in on the business classes he was taking, how the football team was faring, and then Lila shared something funny that had happened in her last class, until it was time to order. Knight insisted on paying for her lunch.

"Seriously, Li, put your money away," Knight said, cutting off her protestations and giving the cashier his card.

"Well, thank you," Lila murmured, suddenly keenly aware that lots of eyes were focused on her and the star quarterback. It was kind of difficult not to notice the stunningly attractive Knight and his imposing frame. The contrast between his dark hair and grass-green eyes alone was positively drool-worthy.

"Honestly, it's just my selfish attempt to round up some company for lunch," Knight joked, oblivious to all of the attention as he motioned to a small table nearby with his head. "Shall we?"

"We shall."

They ate in companionable silence for a minute or two before Knight took a large swig of his bottled water and then asked the question that Lila was hoping he wouldn't ask. "So, how are things with you and King? Word on the street is that Jason interrupted a sexy moment." He brandished his strong brows like a weapon and his green eyes glittered with something in the neighborhood of mischief and delight.

Lila gulped down the bite of sandwich she had been chewing on and waited another beat or two before she answered. "Um, so yeah, that is a thing that kind of happened. Though I'm sure Jason has grossly over exaggerated the particulars."

"So things are going well?"

Lila had assumed that Knight and King were pretty close, so she was surprised that he seemed to be in the dark about the fact that King had gone radio silent.

"Um, he hasn't, like, texted me or whatever since that night. So I'm assuming…no?" She quickly corrected herself so her previous statement didn't sound so much like a question. "I mean, it's not a question. It's obviously a no. I think we're done hanging out." She cringed a bit as she shrugged. "Or whatever we were doing."

Knight made a sound in his throat that sounded a lot like irritation. "So you're telling me that he maybe more than kissed you and then ditched you?"

"Um. Given that fact that I haven't heard from him, I guess?" Lila felt uncomfortable, old insecurities creeping back in. "Look, I mean, I'm probably not the typical kind of girl he goes for, so I get it. I'm not wired to just hook up, I guess."

She shifted in her seat, crossing then uncrossing her legs. "Anyway, can we talk about something else? More football maybe? Whether or not you have a special lady in your life since we last spoke?"

Knight looked her over somberly for about half a second, and then his affable grin was firmly back in place. "Your wish is my command. How much do you know about fourth-down conversions?"

Later, after their lunch was finished and they exited the building together, Knight caught Lila by the elbow. "I consider you a friend now, Li. Almost like the sister I never had. And I've got your six, okay? King or no King."

"Thanks, Knight. Same." She leaned in and hugged him around his middle and said goodbye, heading to her next class with a smile on her face.

* * *

When Lila returned to her apartment later that afternoon, she inadvertently interrupted Becky's newly established meditation time, which apparently took up the entirety of the apartment's communal space, so she waded through the smell of burning incense to get to their bedroom. Vicky and Dani had wisely cleared out, and Lila luckily had a dinner shift. She made quick work of changing into her work clothes and pulled her hair back into a ponytail before slinking back out the front door with a quiet "Good-bye," while Becky was chanting with her eyes closed.

Wren was off that night and Jason was working in the section next to hers, so she had to continue to deflect any questions he posed about King. When there was a lull in the rush and they were both wrapping silverware in the wait station, Jason poked her with his elbow.

"C'mon Alexander, you've gotta give me some details about what's up with King. I mean, I was there to see all of that sexy energy happening in real time," he chuckled and gave a fairly decent shoulder shimmy. "He never says anything about anything, so it's up to you to give me all the dirty details."

Lila worried at her bottom lip for a minute so that she wouldn't break down and interrogate her coworker. She played it as cool as she could. "I haven't heard from him since that night you came home and we were watching the movie on your couch," she replied evenly with a slightly raised shoulder.

Jason's face lit up with confusion, which then settled into a knowing understanding, and it was almost disconcerting to see his expression when it wasn't filled with mischief or humor. "Ah" was all he said, his voice unsurprised but with a slight edge to it. Frustration, maybe? Based on Knight's and Jason's similar reactions to her response, Lila wondered if perhaps King was as inscrutable to his friends as he'd been to her.

Lila really, really wanted to ask him to elaborate, but she refrained. What King did or didn't do wasn't any of her business. Luckily, she didn't have to discuss it further because she got another table. Unfortunately, they were close personal friends of the restaurant manager, Bryan Blaine, and so she spent the next 45 minutes catering to every little whim they had.

But seriously, who orders a pizza with melted cheese on the side? Monsters, that's who.

She managed to control her eye rolls, even as Bryan made an appearance to try to flex in front of his friends. He put an unwanted hand on her shoulder and steered her toward the table. "I trust that Lila is taking care of you all tonight?" he simpered with an inordinate amount of simper.

One of the guests wrinkled her nose and said, "She did make me wait exactly 67 seconds for a Diet Coke refill, but I guess that other than that, she's been fine."

Lila loved it when they talked about her like she wasn't standing right there. Creepy Bryan still hadn't removed his damn hand from her shoulder, either.

She had to suppress yet another eye roll at the asinine response. Because she'd been hustling for that table all night. She also knew they'd use this arbitrary (and, she'd argue, totally reasonable) wait time as an excuse to tip like shit. Lila managed her best server smile and apologized once again and explained to them once again that she'd already added an additional discount on top of their friend discount.

That seemed to appease Bryan, though she knew she'd get a lecture at some random day in the future. The last time that had happened, he got upset with her about her poor service to a table that wasn't even in her section that night. So she hadn't even been their server. But the boss is always right and all that, at least where Bryan was concerned. Luckily, the kitchen managers and most of her co-workers were awesome, so that's why Lila stayed. Plus, the kitchen managers were cool if they took food home at the end of a shift. Usually just something from the salad bar or a mini pizza or something, but it helped Lila keep her food costs down and made up for the shifts where she made lower tips.

At last, the table from hell left, leaving her a ten percent tip on a discounted ticket, and Lila suppressed a groan of frustration. She went to the server station and snuck a look at her phone, trying to tamp down the waning hope that King had suddenly decided to text her. Yeah, she was aware of how pathetic it was. Kissing King Spencer had kind of messed with her head. And also maybe her lady parts.

No texts from King, but a text from Wren in response to Lila's earlier text about Becky and her "mediation station."

WREN: I can't believe she was using the whole room to burn incense and do headstands.

Lila looked over her shoulder to ensure nobody was watching and fired a text back.

LILA: Hey, at least she was fully clothed this time. Not that I'm opposed to nudity. I just prefer to not be bombarded with my roommate's naked backside doing downward dog in our bedroom. I will never be able to unsee that. Ever.

Wren's response was immediate.

WREN: Sounds like a sleepover is in order, especially since there's no class tomorrow.

LILA: Yes, please. I'm off in about 30.

WREN: See you soon. Bring DDP. Please and thank you.

LILA: I mean, it's the least I can do.

WREN: You are an angel among us mere mortals.

LILA: Tell that to Becky's ass.

WREN: Too far.

LILA: *insert maniacal laughter here*

Lila slid her phone back into her purse and stashed it back in the cupboard where employees' stuff lived during their shifts. Her last table had blessedly left her an amazing tip, so the night ended on a high note.

After a quick run to the local gas station that had the best fountain Diet Dr. Pepper, Lila was off to Wren's with the hope that when she returned to her apartment the next day, it would smell a hell of a lot less like burnt patchouli.