Chapter 80: Sadie: The Other Prick

TREY

I appreciate people who keep to time, so I’m pleased to find Sadie waiting on a bench in front of the Bioinformatics block instead of making me hunt her down.

Her eyes meet mine as I approach, and the way her expression softens takes some of Hargrove’s irritation with it. After three hours of him looking like he’d personally fund my transfer to another university, I’m in no hurry to get past the part where she is happy to see me.

She stands when I reach the bench and immediately shows me her phone. "You said an hour. You’re fourteen minutes late."

"My professor wouldn’t stop talking," I stop in front of her. "Believe me, I wanted to be out here more than you wanted me out here."

I look her over, from the ribbon tied in her brown curls to the fitted top hugging her chest and the jeans snug around her hips. I’d like a look at what they’re doing for her ass, too, but she’s still waiting for an apology.

"You look good," I tell her, watching the color rise in her cheeks while she tries to act like I haven’t pleased her.

She pushes her hair behind her ears and steps closer. "Where are we going?"

Before I can answer, a masculine scent reaches me, clinging to her clothes strongly enough to tighten my jaw. Trex growls as I move closer, trying to place it, but another scent underneath it makes the first one less important.

I draw in another breath, hoping I’m wrong about Ezra, although I’d recognize that bastard anywhere. If the Moon Goddess ever grants me a wish, she won’t need to ask twice who I want removed from existence. For now, though, he’s still breathing and has somehow been close enough to Sadie to leave his scent on her.

My attention returns to her face while I try to find an explanation that doesn’t involve her letting him put his hands on her again. After everything he did, I don’t want to believe she’d give him that chance, but I can smell him from where I’m standing.

"Who have you been talking to?" I ask, watching her.

Sadie hesitates as she takes in my expression, and my eyes drop to her arms. Did he hug her? Hold her? I’m breaking his arms the next time I see him.

"I talk to a lot of people," she says with a shrug, drawing my attention back to her face.

"You know who I mean, Sadie."

She breathes out before admitting, "I ran into Ezra."

"Ran into him?" I ask, waiting for her to explain how a chance encounter left her smelling this much like him.

"Okay, he barged into the Quiz Bowl meeting and followed me outside to talk."

That sounds more like my brother, although it does nothing to improve my mood. I keep looking at her, and she goes on before I have to ask what he wanted.

"He asked if we could get back together, but that’s obviously never happening." She waves away the possibility. "Don’t worry."

I tilt my head at her. "I’m not worried."

I’m pissed, which is different and involves more thoughts about tearing him limb from limb. I knew Ezra had the nerve to tell me he wanted her back, but I thought he’d keep that particular stupidity between us.

"Not worried at all?" Sadie asks, a small smile returning. "You sound pretty confident."

"My confidence depends on you not being stupid enough to go back to someone who treated you like crap for two years." I hold her gaze. "Don’t prove I overestimated you."

Her face tightens, and the glare she shoots at me has Trex vibrating inside my head.

[Idiot.]

"If you don’t have anything nice to say, stop opening your mouth," she snaps.

I keep my response to myself. Another breath brings the unfamiliar scent back, and I still want a name to go with it.

"Who’s the other prick?"

"Prick?" she repeats, leaning back to look at me.

"Unless you’d prefer to tell me his name."

A smirk starts at the corner of her mouth. "Are you jealous, Trey?"

"Why would I be?" I push my hands into my pockets. "I don’t even know him."

"His name is Adrian." She steps closer, her smile growing as she adds, "He’s the heir to Blackridge pack, and he wants to join Quiz Bowl."

Of course another Alpha’s son has found her, although the way she’s telling me about him helps. There’s no hesitation, no attempt to make her interest sound smaller than it is. She’s pleased about getting someone into Quiz Bowl and even more pleased that telling me about him might annoy me. If she were attracted to him, I doubt she’d be this comfortable rubbing him in my face.

I pull a hand out of my pocket and hitch my bag higher on my shoulder. "What is it with you and Alphas’ sons? Are you collecting us like stamps?"

She frowns at me. "Ezra, you, Adrian. That’s three."

"You’d be surprised how many people get through life without collecting three."

"I’m not collecting anything," she insists, but I’m already turning toward the parking lot.

Her footsteps follow, picking up until she catches me and settles beside me. When she leans forward to get a look at my face, I keep my attention on where we’re going. She’s had enough fun checking whether I’m jealous of her latest acquisition.

"Where are we going?" she asks.

"Somewhere fun." She waits for me to add something useful, and since I can feel her looking at me, I oblige. "Do you like old people?"

"Old people?" Her steps slow, but she catches up before I get far. "Why? Where are you taking me, Trey?"

I take my keys out as we approach the car. "That information gets released once we’re inside."

"You could just tell me now," she says, looking from the keys to my face.

"I could," I agree, unlocking the doors. "Get in."