Chapter 177

“Tell me, Cynthia,” Lamar demanded. “Break my heart.”

He wanted me to choose between him and Asher, but how could I? If it was a matter of trust, Asher won hands-down. But Asher didn’t want me romantically.

If I chose Asher over Lamar, Lamar would never forgive me. He wouldn’t want to be with me romantically either.

There was no right choice in this situation.

“Please don’t ask me this,” I said, a slight tremble in my voice. “Please don’t make me choose.”

My pleading gave Lamar pause. Slowly, the anger in eyes ebbed, making way for pity.

“It was unfair of me to ask, wasn’t it? You’ve made no secret how you feel about him. But it’s so damn sad, Cynthia, because someday you’ll learn the truth about him. One way or another, he’ll slip and you’ll finally see the real him.”

He reached out and touched my shoulder, gave it a friendly pat. His smile returned, though looked sad.

“The truth is going to hurt you so much. I’m sorry for it.”

“You’re wrong about him,” I whispered.

“For your sake, I wish that was true.” He pulled his hand away. “Believe what you want for now. I won’t keep pushing you.”

“Thank you.”

He shrugged. “Well, I came to have fun. Let’s have some fun. There’s a party tonight. I triple-checked to make sure your boy won’t be there. None of the hockey team is invited, actually, so we are in the clear.”

“Okay.” I quickly reapplied some makeup, then hurried for my shoes.

Lamar’s smile widened, and he seemed to be going back to his usual easy-going self. I was grateful for it, but also a bit surprised. He’d been so angry only a few moments before.

I briefly wondered which of his emotions were real.

Before I chastised myself. I was being unfair again.

Lamar wasn’t a bad person. If he was so determined that Asher was the one who attacked him, then he must have believed it to be true, even if it was impossible.

Maybe the hit to the head messed with his memory. Regardless, he was mistaking his real attacker for Asher. When he found out the truth, he’d probably feel bad for casting so much doubt.

Lamar’s good mood returned, and he became his typical chatterbox self. “I stopped by the catering table on my way out, and let me tell you, some of those foods liked so good. Wait until you see the spread.”

I grabbed a sweatshirt off the back of a chair. “That sounds delicious. I’m ready.”

Lamar led me across campus to the party. The food was delicious. Lamar and I both went back for seconds. When he went for thirds, I stole a few of my favorites off of his plate.

Lamar was an extrovert, and the life of the party. He traveled around the room, hopping from one group of people to the next. They each had a welcoming smile for Lamar, and Lamar had a story for them.

I followed along beside him, still feeling guilty over what happened at the last party we’d attended, when I hadn’t been the most supportive.

I tried to make up for it now, smiling whenever he looked at me, and laughing at the appropriate points of his stories, no matter how many times I’d heard the same story already.”

Lamar’s black eye was the talk of the evening. Curiously, every time he explained how it happened, the story became more and more elaborate.

“Someone sucker punched me, but I got him back…”

“I was jumped by a couple guys, but they underestimated me…”

“I got mobbed, but I got my hits in…”

“I was absolutely swarmed with guys. Ten of them at least. Yeah, they got this blow on me, but you should see what they look like…”

He was always the victor in the end.

Lamar never mentioned that the part about going to the hospital, or that he’d been knocked out.

He also never mentioned Asher, much to my relief.

His story received an abundance of sympathy each time, and Lamar preened under the attention.

After the final telling, when I was certain he’d told the story to everyone in the room, I asked him, “Why didn’t you tell anyone about Asher?”

He gave me a curious, sideways glance. “Did you want me to tell people Asher attacked me? I’m trying to be considerate of you.”

I wanted to believe that. It was very sweet if true. But a little voice inside me whispered, doubt. Viciously, I wondered if he kept it secret simply because no one would believe Lamar would win a fight against Asher.

I immediately felt bad for the thought. Just because Lamar believed his own deception about Asher being the attacker, did not make him a bad person who lied about everything.

People were complicated. They had many facets. Lamar could be wrong about Asher and still be a nice guy.

Toward the end of the evening, my feet hurt from standing so long, so I took a seat at one of the couches under the windows. Lamar continued talking to any and everyone who came near him.

I waited another forty-five minutes before deciding I would go tell him I wanted to go home. I wasn’t sure if he had anything else planned for the rest of our evening. I knew he liked to stay up late.

But I was tired and had enough of today.

Gathering my strength for the long, lonely walk home, I pushed myself upright and sought out Lamar to say goodnight.

I spotted him by the drink table and weaved my way over there.

“Twelve guys, and they only got in this one punch,” Lamar said.

He had the rapt attention of a small crowd, who I was fairly certain had already heard this story. Maybe they’d all had too much to drink.

“They were real amateurs. I’m usually a peace-loving guy, but I couldn’t let them get away with it.”

The small crowd cheered, and Lamar’s grin widened. It didn’t dim when he spotted me.

“Excuse me, fellas.” Lamar pushed through the crowd, approaching me. “There you are. I was about to send out a search party.”

I’d told him where I was going before I’d gone, but maybe he forgot.

“I’m going to head home now,” I said. “I’m pretty tired.”

“Hey, I understand. Let me say goodbye to some people and I’ll walk you home.”

I blinked, surprised. He actually… wanted to walk me home? Last time he had thanked me for coming and sent me on my way.

What had changed?

I couldn’t fathom it.

“Meet me by the door,” he said. “I’ll be right there.”

Obediently, I went toward the door and waited for him. After ten minutes, I sat down. After forty, I was ready to just leave.

At forty-five, he finally appeared. “Ready?” His smile was bright as ever. Maybe he had lost track of time.

I tried not to hold it against him.

He held out his hand and helped me stand up. He kept holding my hand as we left the lounge.

When we were outside, he walked with a bounce in his step, clearly excited from his evening.

“Wasn’t that a great time?” he asked. “I hated to leave.”

“You could have stayed,” I said. “I can walk myself home okay.”

“I know. But I’ve got big plans for tonight.”

Wasn’t the night over? “You… do?”

“Yeah. I’ve got a surprise for you. Can’t wait to give it to you.”

That… seemed strange. He hadn’t mentioned any gift before. He had brought me the tulip, but that couldn’t be what he was talking about now.

He continued talking the entire way back to my room, about how great the night was, about how many people were there, and all the nice things people said to him.

At first, I tried to contribute here and there, but it quickly became apparent that my feedback wasn’t necessary, as he continued on whether I said anything or not.

By the time we were in front of my door, I was exhausted and cranky, and ready to go straight to sleep.

I turned to face Lamar, ready to say goodnight, when suddenly he leaned into me.

He was trying to kiss me!