Read Dallas (Time for Tammy #1) for Free Online

dorms,” she said, her voice lowering an octave as they walked by. Two didn’t even glance our way, but I made eye contact with the roommate. Although he had a confused look on his face, he had the brightest blue eyes I’d ever seen.
    I drained the rest of my diet pop and glanced down at my empty tray. Nerves made me hungry and I realized I could perhaps swallow down a few more fries. “Should we get more food?”
    “Not now,” Jane hissed.
    “But won’t it look weird if we’re not eating anymore?”
    “Shhhh,” Jane said. Two was walking near us, holding a tray and looking slightly lost. The Dadian walked over, setting his tray down loudly at the table next to us and glaring at Two. The Dadian motioned to his table, and Two ambled over and sat down, blocking my view of the Dadian. A few minutes later, the Roommate joined them. The three of them glanced around the cafeteria as I looked down at my tray. Jane had her back to all of them, but she casually turned her head to glance in their direction. She looked back at me, eyebrows raised. I got up to get more Diet Coke, wishing I had never agreed to this meeting. It started to feel less like a date, more like an ambush.
    As I sat back down, she angled her head toward them. I shook my head slightly. Not yet. I’m not ready yet. Jane shrugged and started in on her second desert. I glanced over at them again. Their faces seemed to grow more and more disappointed with each passing minute their dates didn’t show.
    The boys at the table next to us ate their meal quickly, too quickly for me to work up enough nerve to go over there. Before I knew it, they were putting away their trays and leaving. Their letdown at the mysterious admirer’s lack of attendance was clear by their lagging gait as we watched them walk back to their dorm room.
     
    “What was that all about?” Jane asked on our own walk back to the dorm.
    “I don’t know,” I said honestly. It hadn’t been my bravest moment.
    “Did you have a boyfriend in high school?” she asked suddenly.
    “Not exactly,” I told her.
    The closest I’d ever come to making out with someone had been Kellen. Not that I’m a boyfriend stealer. He’d been my best friend for half a decade before he and Corrie started going out. We’d gone to our junior year prom together, only as friends, but I could have sworn there had been a moment when we might have kissed. But then he and Corrie spent the next day together and became an item. After that, things had changed, obviously. At first Kellen had tried to keep things impartial. Sometimes he’d call and ask for me or come over and hang in my room, but always at the risk of Corrie giving me dirty looks at the dinner table. After a while it became easier to just let both of them do their thing. I occupied the time I normally would have spent with Kellen—analyzing films or listening to John Williams’ music—by joining various scholastic activities. While Kellen and Corrie made Prom Queen and King our senior year, I occupied every picture in the yearbook spread of academic teams: Mathletes, Quiz Bowl, Science Olympiad, etc., resulting in Corrie giving me the nickname, “Queen of the Nerds.”
    Kellen and Corrie ended up going to the University of Michigan, like half of our graduating class. I chose tiny Eckhart, not only for its marine biology program, but also because it was practically on the other side of the country from my twin and her boyfriend.
    “Where are you going?” I asked. Instead of heading back to the dorm, Jane strolled toward the center of the complex.
    “The computer lab. I’m going to settle this thing once and for all.”
    I meekly followed her. She sat down and logged on. I didn’t even bother to ask what she was writing, but stood behind her so I could see the screen.
    HEY.
    I’M REALLY SORRY THAT WE DIDN’T MEET UP AT DINNER. I WAS ACTUALLY THERE BUT
    Here she paused and looked over at me.
    I DIDN’T GET A CHANCE TO TALK TO YOU. WE MET