Chapter 152

If he’s on the soccer team, wouldn’t that make him friends with Joseph?

Aimee’s words made me pause. I hadn’t considered that Lamar would have a connection with Joseph. They were such different people, Lamar so kind and Joseph so deceitful. But then, what did I really know about Lamar?

Yet, what little I did know indicated to me that he wouldn’t be friends with Joseph. When Lamar and I had first talked, he said that Joseph needed to smarten up. That Joseph didn’t have the cleanest reputation and shouldn’t be trying to drag mine through the mud.

Would someone say that about their friend?

“I don’t know. I just can’t believe they’re friends,” I said. “Teammates, sure, and they’d have to be cordial for that, but… friends? Lamar talked about Joseph some and seemed clear headed. It didn’t feel like he was under Joseph’s spell.”

“I think I might have met him before, but I can’t remember,” Aimee said. “If you think he’s okay, you are probably right.”

“Teammates doesn’t always mean friends,” Nicole said. “Just think of Elena.”

I groaned, but she had a point. In this rare case, thinking of Elena actually helped me find some peace of mind.

“I’d feel better if we could meet him though,” Aimee said. “Do you think he’d be up for a group hangout?”

Nicole gasped in excitement. “Oh my gosh, yes. We have to meet him and see if he’s good enough for you.”

“We’re not dating,” I said again.

Admittedly, I’d been slowly warming to the idea. I did think about Asher a little less in his presence, and I couldn’t study every moment of every day. I needed something to do outside of study time or I’d lose myself in loneliness, missing Asher.

“Even so,” Nicole said.

“I agree,” Aimee added. “Even if you only stay friends, we can help make sure he is genuine.”

That sounded reasonable. Since I’d been so wrong about Asher, maybe I couldn’t trust my own judgement. If Aimee and Nicole liked Lamar, then I could let myself be more open with him without worrying.

I was so tired of being hurt.

“I’ll ask him,” I said.

Aimee was pleased and Nicole was excited. But not long after, we returned to studying.

Aimee and Nicole left the library an hour or so before I did. I was struggling with one topic and didn’t want to pack up until I could unravel the confusion in my brain.

Maybe I was tired. I’d learned a lot today.

Deciding I’d try again after I had some lunch, I packed up my textbooks and headed for the exit to the library. With a sigh, I pushed open the door and went outside.

My breath caught as I spotted Asher walking down the sidewalk on the other side of the road.

He looked exhausted. I could see the dark bags under his eyes even from this distance. He seemed a bit more disheveled than usual, with some wrinkles in his clothes that before would have been perfect. And… were those bandages wrapped around his hands?

I wondered what happened. Did he get in a fight? And to look so fatigued, was he getting enough sleep? Was he eating okay?

It couldn’t be that the mating bond was affecting him too. He’d been lying when he said he’d been forming a bond with me. Everything had been one-sided, with me as the lovesick fool.

Worry wedged into my insides, even though I had no reason to concern myself with him. We weren’t even friends anymore. What did it matter to me if he was taking care of himself?

But it did. Despite everything, I wanted him to be okay.

Not that I could tell him that. I couldn’t even do anything about it.

So I stood, frozen in the entrance of the library, watching and hiding both as he continued down the sidewalk, until he eventually disappeared from my sight.

I exhaled a shaky breath as new pain clawed into my heart. I clutched at my chest. Everything hurt.

Why was this happening? Why did it have to hurt so much?

And like Lilith had warned, it was getting worse.

I needed to move on, the sooner the better.

Lamar agreed to a hangout with me, Nicole, and Aimee, so later that night, after I had filled my brain to the brim again with knowledge, we all met up at the local arcade. This was a regular hangout spot for me and Nicole, so it felt like bringing Lamar onto our home turf.

It might be easier to judge him when we were in our home element.

Lamar didn’t seem to mind at all. In fact, as soon as he met us in the lobby, he said, “This is great! I haven’t been to an arcade since I was a kid.”

He introduced himself to Aimee and Nicole with a wide, open smile. As he shook Aimee’s hand, he told her, “It’s nice to see you, Aimee. I always hoped you’d be okay. Brent is such an asshole.”

The words startled Aimee, but then she blushed a little. “Thank you.”

Nicole immediately challenged him. “What’s your favorite game, Lamar? Should we start with something easy?”

Lamar answered immediately. “Pinball.”

Nicole seemed impressed. “They’ve got a few machines.”

“What are we waiting for?”

Lamar winked at me, then hurried to follow Nicole toward the pinball machines. Aimee and I made our way over, much slower.

“So far so good?” I said to Aimee.

She still seemed shaken by Lamar’s words. I couldn’t tell if it was a good kind of shaken or a bad one, even when she said, “Yes.”

We watched Nicole and Lamar compete on who could get the highest pinball score. Lamar won, further impressing Nicole. Then we made our way through the machines. Aimee had some fun on a fighting game, though I suspected Lamar might have gone easy on her.

Whenever we came near my favorite, the dance game, Aimee and Nicole turned me around the other way. We all knew I couldn’t play it. It was too strenuous for my pregnancy.

At one point, I had a craving for cheese fries and went alone to buy some. When I returned to the others, I overheard the end of a conversation.

“You know she’s pregnant,” Aimee said.

“I do,” Lamar replied.

They were at the fighting game again, their backs to me.

“And that doesn’t bother you,” Aimee said.

“Should it?”

“It would bother other guys.”

Lamar shrugged. “Yeah, but other guys are jerks.”

Aimee side-eyed him. “And you’re not?”

“If you are asking me if I’ll hurt your friend, I’ll try my best not to. If you are asking me not to use my ultimate attack on you right now, think again.”

The game made a series of dings and numbers flashed across the screen. Aimee smashed the buttons, but it didn’t seem to change anything. Lamar cheered, clearly the victor.

Aimee backed away from the machine and crossed her arms. “You got lucky.”

“You better believe it,” Lamar said.

They both noticed me then.

“Having fun?” I asked them. I held out my fries for them.

Lamar took a handful. “Having a great time.”

Aimee seemed less certain. “Yeah, I guess.”

Nicole was back on the pinball machines, practicing for a rematch. Lamar excused himself to join her. I moved into the space he’d left, closer to Aimee.

“What do you think?” I asked her.

“About Lamar?” she said. At my nod, she continued, “He seems nice.”

“Tell me the truth.” I sensed she was holding something back from me.

She grabbed a fry and dipped it into the cheese sauce, stalling. “Go slow with him.”

“You don’t like him.”

“I do, but…” She sighed. “Oh, don’t listen to me, Cynthia. He’s fine.”

I wondered if Aimee, like me, preferred Asher. Or at least, the person we had thought Asher to be. I didn’t want to hear her say it. I didn’t want to think about Asher at all.

So I didn’t say anything. Instead, we made our way back to the pinball machines in silence.

In a quiet moment, when Aimee was in the food line and Nicole was in the bathroom, Lamar stood beside me against the wall.

“I’ve had fun today,” he said, “But I admit this felt like something of a test from your friends.”

I didn’t see the point in lying. “It was.”

“Oh.” Lamar laughed. “Well, what’s the verdict? Did I pass?”

It was obvious with the way Nicole enjoyed his company on the games that she approved, and Aimee, though reserved, had voiced her approval.

“Yes, you passed.”

“Great!” He turned into the wall, leaning his shoulder against it, and faced me fully. “So…”

I glanced up at him and the brightness of his gaze. “So?”

“Does this mean you will go on a date with me?”