Chapter 2

Austen

If one more person tries to interrupt me to ask about —

"Hey Austen! I was wondering if you have the notes for Professor Brown's talk on Tuesday?"

I open my eyes to find some random girl I've never seen standing by my desk in the library. She's the fourth to approach me today. A new record, it seems.

"I don't have them. Goodbye." I'm curt to ensure she understands I want to be left alone.

That's all I want. For people to leave me alone.

Easier to think about than to actually vocalize though. Not to anyone other than my brother, Tennyson. He's the master of getting on my nerves and always has been. In fact, my first word was ‘no' because he kept trying to steal my cookie for a snack.

"Are you sure? I thought we had the same —"

Her rambling is cut off by my phone buzzing across the desk. I see my brother's name and send a huge thanks to the universe for his intervention.

I give the girl an obvious shrug to let her know I can't chat, then answer the phone like my ass is on fire. "Tell me something good."

Tennyson is quick with an answer, though I don't know if "good" is what I'd consider it.

"Corrin is coming to stay with us."

My head falls to the table with a thud. Thankfully, the unknown girl left before she could see me like this. She'd probably try to nurse me back to health or something. Not that I need it.

The issue with Corrin is… strange. I can't pinpoint what it is about the man that makes me feel different. It's so frustrating.

I've never faced a problem I couldn't figure out. Never came to a challenge that didn't have an answer to it.

Yet, Corrin Ray, my brother's best friend, lead singer of the rock band Loveless, and all-around nice guy, makes my life a living hell just by existing.

Not that he knows.

I don't exist where Corrin is concerned. He acknowledges me for Tennyson"s sake, but otherwise, I'm no one to him.

Which is precisely how I'd like to stay.

Being anything more would be confusing. Could you imagine me and him as friends? It's a laughable idea. Completely impossible. Never in a million years.

"Why?" I groan into the call.

"I don't really know." The sound of a bag of chips comes over the line. Ten-to-one bet they're cool ranch Doritos. My brother has a real addiction to the things. I swear I'll end up burying him in a pile of the multi-colored chip dust.

"How can you not know? He's your best friend, and he's just randomly coming here."

"Because he needs us, brother. Something isn't right."

That notion perks me up. "What do you mean? What's wrong with him?"

Curiosity rushes through my veins, making my hair stand on end. Something isn't right, indeed.

Corrin Ray has never needed us. Not in the way Tennyson is making it sound. Like we're somehow pivotal to his life.

And besides, I can't imagine him wanting to come stay with us both. He's not my biggest fan. If he's in our space, he can't ignore me like he enjoys doing. This can't be the only solution for the rockstar.

"I can't say what it is. Just a feeling I have. You know, he's supposed to be working on new music. We didn't talk about it at Christmas because — duh, holidays — but he hasn't been able to get a single song finished."

"It's not uncommon for a creative individual to suffer from burnout after a time. He's been pushing for years. Maybe he needs a break." I rise from the slouched position on the desk and begin packing my bag.

There's no reason to stay in the library now that I have this news. Between the women stopping by constantly and now Corrin's imminent visit, my focus is shot. Not necessarily the best thing given I'm in my last semester of a double major. This is my busiest season.

And if I play my cards right, I'll also have a job offer from one of the biggest businesses in the country: Stryker Global.

I'm only an intern right now, though I have high hopes they'll give me something more permanent come May. Based on my research, there are two positions set to come up around that time. With my foot in the door, I can hopefully either fill the newly opened positions or gain a chance at the spot someone vacates when they get promoted. I'm not all that picky about which I get.

"You're thinking with your business brain. Corrin isn't like that, bro. He's suffering from writer's block, I'd bet. Dude needs a change of scenery and to get away from his meddling parents."

"Meddling parents?"

I toss my bag over my shoulder, then book it out of the library. Ignoring the smiling faces and head tosses my way is easy. People assume I'm an ass for it, but I don't care. It's better than the years of pretending I did.

As a kid, I picked up soccer while playing at the park with some other kids. Those kids recommended I join their league. One audition to their super elite group later, and I was a soccer prodigy.

At least, that's what they called me.

I played because I enjoyed it. When my brain would shut down on me or social situations would be awkward, I still had the game to talk about. It was a win-win.

Until it really wasn't.

Too much pressure. Pressure to play. Pressure to date. Pressure to be ‘one of the guys' when all I wanted to do was study, get my degree, work, and spend time with family.

It's all I've ever needed.

Tennyson brings me back to the current issue with his next words. "Meddling as in they're trying to play matchmaker. They've been researching dates for Corrin like this is the 1800s or some shit. Poor guy can't hide out as well there as he can here. And he doesn't want to interrupt Zach and Smith's lovefest."

"I'm sure taking Star off their hands could help them," I suggest. Star, Smith's daughter, is Corrin's niece too. There was some story about a drunk night and all this other stuff as to how Star came along. I don't remember the details really.

What I do remember is how sad Corrin's face was as he talked about his sister. His late sister, since she died years ago.

"You really think Star is going to give up the two most important men in her life for longer than a night? I think she likes Zach more than her uncle now anyway."

"How do you have so much intel? I doubt Star is telling her uncle all of this."

I make my way across campus to where I parked my car. As much as I don't want to head to my internship this early, I figure I could get some studying done in the back office before clocking in. It"ll be more secluded there than anywhere else.

"Actually, she might if she was feeling extra sassy. I'm basing it off something Corrin said before about her reaction to seeing Zach over him. It's not all that important. The real reason I called was to see if you could grab him from the airport when he gets in."

Shit.

That's absolutely not something I want to agree to. But it's not like I can really say no though.

"What time is he getting in?"

"I'm not sure yet. I just figured it would be around the time you wrapped up your day. Plus, there's no reason for both of us to be out in the cold." He tries to muffle his laughter.

"You are so lazy! It's not too cold today. Besides, what if he shows up while I'm working? Are you going to make your friend wait?"

He snorts. "Of course not. If he gets here earlier, then I'll grab him. But I'm telling you, the timing will be perfect. Just wait and see. I know what I'm talking about."

My brother is a character, I swear it. He's acting like he can predict the weather and flight patterns between here and where Corrin is.

"I've got to go. I'm heading to the office early. Studying didn't go as planned."

"Oh, yeah? What happened?" I can tell he's genuinely curious.

While my brother can get in his own head sometimes, he's really a great sibling. If I needed anything at all, he'd drop whatever he was doing to get to me. I know I can depend on him.

That logic, plus my frustration, leads me to explaining my predicament. I exit campus as I tell him about the encounters, down to the details of each girl's facial expressions.

As soon as I'm done, Tennyson lets out the loudest bark of laughter I've ever heard from him. It leads into a fit of giggles, then he's gasping for breath.

"Glad I could amuse you today. Want to share what's so funny?" I grumble as I make the turn that will lead me straight to Stryker Global's office. Located at the northwest edge of Downtown Boston, the office takes up four floors of one of the nicest high-rises the city has to offer.

Only the best for SG, of course.

"Those girls are flirting with you, Austen. They bat their lashes your way and hope you'll come calling."

My jaw drops. "But that's — it's ridiculous. I don't date. Everyone knows that."

Surely, everyone knows that. I've never given them any indication otherwise. I'm positive about that much.

"They knew this, yes, but that was when you were playing. Has this all picked up since you stopped playing, or was it something soccer distracted you from?"

I think hard about his words. Did more girls approach once I stepped down from the team? Well, yes. And soccer probably did actually distract me from anything before that. I might have been a star player, but I never enjoyed the fame that came with it.

The life-sized posters. The hours of interviews. The pressure to go pro.

Not anything I particularly liked.

Since I quit, most of the things that bothered me went away. I no longer had a schedule that kept me from my studies. I'm able to spend more time with my brother and our uncle. I've never felt better.

Yet now I'm wondering how someone could possibly think me quitting the team meant I was suddenly interested in dating. If anything, it's even less on my mind. The guys on the team always had questions back when I played. They'd discuss women like it was a buffet, and they were eager to get as many as they could.

While I'm not here to judge, I can wholeheartedly say that it's never interested me. Sex is a thing. It happens, and it's how life continues through generations.

It"s not the be all, end all people make it out to be.

"They got worse after I quit," I admit after taking the time to really analyze Tennyson's question.

"Exactly! Proving my point right there."

"Your point may be proven, but it doesn't help me much. I would really like to have some peace and quiet to myself without someone trying to approach me when I'm out."

"Sorry, bro. Not going to happen. At least not while you're single. You could always pick one to date."

I park in the garage for Stryker Global, then yank my badge out of my bag to head inside. There are stringent security protocols in place, all of which I had to learn on my first day here. Since that very intimidating introduction, I've learned to keep my badge on me and visible at all times when I'm on property.

"I don't want to date any of them," I say honestly. "What's the alternative? I need something to keep them away and make them think I'm taken, but it also leaves me free to do what I need to."

"Ah, yes. The studying and being boring. Got it."

Scanning my badge at the door, I wait for the green light to appear, then I push through to the lobby. I nod to some of the security people I've gotten to meet, then get on the elevator to head to the tenth floor.

"Just because you didn't enjoy school, doesn't make it less than."

He sighs. "I actually did enjoy it some. Learned a lot, but I'm also grateful it's over. My point is that you're going to have a hard time doing anything less than dating someone."

I watch the numbers tick up the elevator as I listen to his point. The truth of the matter isn't all that helpful.

"I don't want to have to date someone. They expect things like dinner dates and movies." And sex.

The last part is kept as a thought only. I don't need another talk from him about exactly how to find a woman's g-spot. He described it as solving the greatest mystery of the earth or some shit.

I'm sure with proper time and attention, it's not as difficult as he made it out to be. Then again, my brother isn't all that patient. To him, it might remain a mystery.

"Maybe you need to hire a girlfriend or something? Like find a chick who just wants the title and popularity from when you used to play. She could be chill and not expect you to do much past that," Tenn says unhelpfully.

"That's a fantastic idea. Why didn't I think of that?" I pause as the elevator opens. "Oh, right. Because it's not going to help me one bit. I would still have to fake the part with them enough to get people to believe. I'm not a fan of doing that with a stranger."

Or anyone, really.

I turn the corner to see my intern supervisor, Evan, waiting with wide eyes. "Thank heavens you're here early!"

"Ummm, I've got to go, Tenn. My boss needs me." I hang up without listening for whatever he's going to say to convince me of his dumb plan.

Me fake dating a girl to fool everyone is way too convoluted a plan to work. No one would actually believe it.

"What's going on?" I ask Evan once I tuck my phone away.

He rubs his hands together. "The boss is coming tomorrow. Like, he'll be here in the office. We're not ready. We need to be ready."

I take in his shaking limbs and watery eyes. For some reason I haven't figured out yet, Evan does not do well with stress or authority figures despite being a manager himself. I have no idea how he got promoted to the position he's in now, other than maybe the fact that people do what he says so he doesn't break into tears.

I heard whispers of nepotism once, but he's an only child and his parents are Canadians who live, breathe, and sleep fishing and hockey. They have no clue about the business world and would know nothing about expensive cars or stock options like other nepo babies I've been around at school.

"It's going to be ok, Evan." He made it clear I should always call him by his first name. Still weird as hell to do, but I appreciate the gift in this moment. "We're ready for this. It may not be exactly how you've envisioned it, but we're going to give it our best. Let's go over what needs to be done. I'm sure splitting it up between people will make it go faster, right?"

He nods quickly. "Yes. Yeah. Definitely. I'm so glad you're here. Did I already say that?"

Laughing at my boss's confusion, I steer us towards his office. "You did, though I'm not opposed to hearing it twice. Three times might be too much though."

"Three times. Good. Yes, then. Won't say it again. Got it. Here's the list."

I review the notes, then begin marking the page with who I think would work best where. My skills in people watching are unmatched, which means I can tell where everyone's strengths lie. It's a gift that I plan to use for good with this sudden visit. Bonus is that it keeps Evan from falling apart with worry.

"These are only suggestions. You can change whatever you want," I tell Evan as I hand him the list.

As I wait for him to review it, I contemplate what event is going to hit me next. First, the dating problem. Now, a work issue. Is the universe testing me? And if so, how much more complicated can it get?