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bad feeling there was more.”
    I pulled the sticker Aaron gave me from out of my text book and handed it to Olivia. Lucas looked over Olivia’s shoulder and they both stared at it.
    “He even had it personalized. Who does that?”
    Lucas grabbed the sticker from his sister’s hand and inspected it more closely. “It’s definitely custom made and he paid to have it done. He didn’t create it on his own computer.”
    He handed the sticker back to me and I carefully placed it back in my text book.
    “You know his father is one of the wealthiest people in the country. He’s one of the founders of Donovan Brothers. They rival companies like Halliburton. Aaron has enough money to buy a print shop just to make you a sticker like that. I wouldn’t take his gesture too seriously. Everything is a game to him. And I think he’d do anything to win.”
    I sighed. Lucas was probably right and I was most likely nothing more than a way to earn points in The Clubhouse tournament.
    “I’m going to have to see him in class every week and work with him on the project,” I complained. “He wants to meet every week after class to work on it.”
    “And to work on you,” Olivia sneered. “You can’t fall for any of his bullshit.”
    “I know,” I admitted. But deep down I knew it was going to be difficult. He had an ability to completely eliminate all of my carefully placed defenses with one smile.
    “Your virginity is something sacred and special,” Olivia affirmed.
    I was suddenly embarrassed to be having this conversation in front of Lucas. When I looked over at him, he looked as unco mfortable as I felt.
    “And I don’t want to see my roommate get hurt. And, truth be told, I don’t want to live with someone in the throes of a bad romance filled with heartache and pain, which is all you’ll get from someone like Aaron. Did that sound like the lyrics of several songs tied together?”
    Lucas and I nodded in unison.
    “Just a coincidence,” Olivia continued. “Anyway, I couldn’t take the constant crying and wailing night and day that would surely be the result of allowing Aaron to seduce you. Not to mention all the extra tissues we’d have to buy.”
    I knew she was right. I had to keep my emotional and phys ical distance from Aaron. Project partners were all we would ever be.
    “I have some suggestions,” Lucas offered. “First, always meet him in a public place with lots of people around. Second, be sure to set strict boundaries with him and let him know upfront that your only interest in him is getting the final project for class completed. Third, I would recommend not accepting anymore gifts from him, no matter how cute or clever they are.”
    Did Lucas really think the sticker was cute and clever? I thought so, too.
    Wait! What was I thinking? I had to get every potentially positive thing about Aaron out of my head.
    “Boundaries are not a problem for me . I have very strong ones and I’m quite good at setting and sticking to them.”
    “Good,” Lucas said. He gave me a genuine smile that warmed my heart a bit. I really liked Lucas but unfortunately not in any romantic way. Lucas was more like a good friend, or even what I imaged it would feel like to have a brother.
    “Now that that’s settled,” Lucas continued. “Maybe we can think about getting something to eat.”   

 
    Four
    In Contention
     
    A fter art history class the following week, I met Aaron at the library. I did just as Olivia and Lucas had strongly recommended and set up our meeting at a very public place. I planned on setting boundaries right away and making sure Aaron realized that nothing romantic would ever happen between us. However, the moment I saw him standing outside the library, my breath caught. Ugh. How did the mere sight of him manage to do that every time? When he noticed me, he smiled and his face immediately brightened. Maybe he wasn’t crazy for calling me sunshine. I did seem to have some kind of effect on him.