Shh! (2 page)

“Livie, Livie, likes to—”

I reached up, and fisting my hand in Dane’s shirt, reefed him down off his makeshift stage. Still co-ordinated, despite the drunken appearance, he landed square on his feet beside me and dropped his arm over my shoulders. The tang of his beer breath assaulted my sense of smell.

“You have exactly two seconds to remove that arm, Dane Beaumont.” I looked up at Christian. “Do something about him before I do.”

Christian just shrugged.

Dane laughed.

“Now!” I said, my hands clenching at my sides.

One of Dane’s hanger-ons giggled.

“We’re over, Olivia.” Christian finally looked my way for the first time all night. “I can’t do this anymore. You’re—”

My heart stopped beating then took up again way too fast.
Over?
This joke had gone way too far. I shoved Dane off me and my glare settled on Christian as I ground out, “Inside. Now.”

Christian shook his head and downed the rest of his beer. Then his gaze turned icy. “I can’t compete with your sex-ploits. Not. Doing …”—he flicked his hand between us—“this anymore.” 

“My … my … what?”

The ice was in me, curling through my veins and settling in my tummy while all sound disappeared into a dull hum. This breakup wasn’t happening right now. In public.

Dane made a disgusting gesture with his fingers and tongue.

Oh my god. This can’t be happening.
Why in heaven’s name was Christian doing this? He knew how important reputation was and now … well, now everyone was staring.

And laughing.

Tingles swept up the back of my neck and my chest tightened. Christian loved me. He’d said so a million times. Sure he’d been cold lately, but that was something we could talk through.

There was no way I was going to let this go down in the middle of a courtyard filled with all of our friends. “Not here,” I bit out.

“It’s done. There’s nothing more to say.”

I did the only thing I could. I ducked my head and like lightning, I shot out of there, not stopping until I reached my room where I slammed the door closed and slid down it, my mind reeling as I tried to make sense of what just happened.

CHAPTER TWO

Going to breakfast.

I waited for a few minutes after sending the text, but either Savvy wasn’t awake yet, or she was already down in the dining hall without her phone. Drawing in a deep breath, I set my hand on the door handle. This was the first time I’d ventured out of the dorm since Saturday night’s public break-up and my chest felt as if it were full of something unpleasant. Unfortunately my growling stomach held the upper hand, forcing me into the dining hall before I headed to classes. I grabbed my backpack, pulled my door open and swiftly jumped out of the way as a naked figure fell toward me.

My heart tried to jump right out of my chest and I braced for impact, but the body spun off me, landing on the floor half inside my room with a jolly bounce. Male laughter echoed from somewhere down the hall and the blow-up doll stared at me, its red lips open wider than a mouth should.

Again.

That stupid doll had made an appearance yesterday too. In all honesty, things had been weird since the public break-up. There had been quite a bit of knocking on my door yesterday as a direct result, but after the ‘joke’ visit from my friend lying on the floor here, I’d stopped answering.

I kicked Dolly out of the way and stepped over the threshold, pulling the door closed. I could do this. I would do this. I had to face them all, and better sooner than later. I marched down the stairs, through the courtyard and into the dining hall. Eight wasn’t overly early or late, but the place was packed. Guess I wasn’t the only one with a nine o’clock start. As I walked up to the servery, my back prickled so much my cheeks heated. It felt as if every pair of eyes in that room rested on me, burned into me, while people silently questioned Saturday night’s events.

My hand quivered. My stomach churned.

My feet turned me right around and I didn’t stop walking until twenty minutes later when I reached a vending machine up on campus. I fished enough coins from my purse to select the most substantial item inside the machine. It clattered to the tray and retrieving my measly breakfast, I decided to head right to class. It was a little early, but that was better than hanging out at Oxley—at least up here the people from my dorm were a minority, not the majority. I could blend into the crowd.

We were already three weeks into term and I loved Sociology; the first-year subject I chose as my elective was a nice break from all the heavy Law subjects, yet it was still relevant to my degree. I took a bite of the banana flavoured-muesli or whatever-it-was bar and picked up the pace, wanting to make sure I had plenty of time. The arts building was a little down the hill, and I strode off in that direction.

It felt good to be on campus and not floating around Oxley where all everyone was talking about were Christian and me. Just as I passed the library an ear-piercing wolf whistle sliced the cool end-of-summer morning. Not an uncommon noise, so I kept walking, but then it came.

“Olivia!”

I glanced across the perfectly mowed lawns to a group of people gathered under one of the huge gum trees.

A fresher I’d seen around college a few times beckoned me over. It looked like the whole group were all first years, so maybe they needed help with directions or something. Boy, I’d gotten lost up here during my first year. UNE was a small campus compared to the city universities, but it still felt mighty huge when you were adjusting from high school. I walked toward them, and the dude who’d called out jumped up and ambled over.

“Hey,” he said, walking toward me. “I hear you’re one hell of a vixen in the sack.”

Every muscle in my body went rigid and I tightened my grip on my bag as I shot him the best fake smile I could muster, and said, “Then it’s a pity you just blew your chances.”

The laugh I forced out was just as strained as the smile, because what I really wanted to say—no, yell—was,
what is wrong with you people?

This had to stem from my public break-up with Christian. The stares in the dining hall had been horrendous this morning, but this ... this was different.

I spun away, wishing I hadn’t stopped.

“C’mon, baby.” He grabbed my arm.

Heat raced to my face and I tugged myself free of his slimy grip. This wasn’t cool, by any stretch of the imagination. Guys didn’t throw themselves at me, ever. Sure there was the odd flirt before I’d started dating Christian, but nothing as brazen as this. I held my chin steady as I walked away. It took every ounce of my strength not to run. There was no way I’d let that idiot see that he’d affected me. Maybe this was some kind of awful joke.
Let’s see who can embarrass Olivia the most.
It was no secret that I was a little old-fashioned, and put too much stock in what other people thought. Maybe this was a stupid challenge for one of Oxley’s boys’ clubs. Whatever it was, I wasn’t hanging around to find out. The group continued whistling and cat calling, but I tuned them out and kept walking until I was safely inside the glass doors and steadily moving down the stairs to my lecture theatre. Thank gosh, I was the first to arrive.

I slid into a seat in the third row, and hung my head in my hands. What a nightmare. Stares, whispers ... if there was some sort of sexual rumour going around about me, that could be the end of my hopes of getting a job at Deakin Parry Associates in Law after graduation. Reputation was everything. Well, that and a perfect academic record, and I’d worked hard to maintain both. If there was a rumour my upcoming campaign for student council president may be the only saving grace.

But rumours spread and they were sure to reach Deakin Parry, since Ella Parry’s father was a senior partner. The Ella who told her mother everything, who in turn told every person who happened to cross her path. Cripes. This would surely be the beginning of the end. The end of my hope of becoming a top-tier lawyer, the end of achieving everything I’d spent my whole life chasing.

The theatre filled in around me while I tried to figure out what went wrong with Christian. He wasn’t always perfect, we weren’t perfect, but I’d thought we’d had something special. Yeah, things had been declining. It wasn’t the sex; that seemed all right. We’d spent the whole night together more than a few times. But thinking about it, he’d been avoiding sleepovers lately. Making excuses to leave before we fell asleep. Whatever his reasons, the way he’d behaved on Saturday night wasn’t him, and I really didn’t think he’d been that drunk. Not like Dane. I wasn’t all that upset. It was more like a puzzle I needed to solve.

“Mind if I join you?” A deep voice broke my thoughts and I looked up into the brightest blue eyes. They weren’t a steely blue-grey, nor were they a darker navy. They were like the azure of a tropical ocean pool and they were crinkled at the corners, matching the tiny amused smile curling one side of his full lips.

I’d been staring too long. Again.

“Logan Hays,” I said.

“Olivia ...”

“Wants to sit alone.”

“I won’t bite, promise.” Logan tipped his head to the side and made those gorgeous eyes of his round and pleading. Before I could answer, he slumped into the seat beside me.

This guy was in my class and I’d never noticed him? Boy, my Christian blinkers must have been firmly on. Either way, I wasn’t sure I was happy to have him sitting next to me. Nausea had been curling inside me since Saturday night and I felt kind of like a violin strung too tight.

“You studying human nature?” he asked.

“Arts, Law major. And I haven’t seen you in this class before.”

“I’ve seen you.” A knowing smile stretched across his full lips and the way he held my gaze made those strings tighten and warm. The warmth collected right in the pit of my belly.

Stop it, Olivia. You’re not going there.
I shuffled to the far side of my seat. I needed way more space than the tiny bit between us. Couldn’t he leave a spare spot like normal strangers did? I pulled out my tablet and attached the keyboard, but his gaze remained on me. I could feel it prickling my back as I set the device up on my table.

“Often.”

I flinched and pulled my bag into my lap to search for some imaginary item I really, really, needed right now. Anything to avoid looking at the sexy-as-hell guy who just owned up to watching me. Often. Oh my gosh, he was totally flirting. Heat rushed to my cheeks.

Logan chuckled, a deep throaty sound, and then it hit me. He was just doing the same thing as the fresher outside; coming onto me because of a dumb game, a stupid rumour, or whatever. He was a friend of Dane’s after all.

“You should go sit somewhere else. I’m not interested.”

Logan pulled a lecture pad out of his bag and slapped it onto his desk.

“Nope.”

“Excuse me?”

“I’m not moving.”

I scooped up my tablet and grabbed my bag. There was no way I’d sit there for his amusement. I stood up and took a step, but was tugged back into my seat by a firm hand on my waist.

I froze.

Tingles shot through my entire body like little earthquakes and the place his hand sat? That was the gosh darn epicentre. Or maybe it was centred somewhere south of the pit of my tummy. Our gazes remained locked and his blue eyes softened.

“If you really want to be alone, I’ll go.” Logan’s voice was dead serious—all traces of teasing gone. I dropped my gaze, ashamed of the right royal bitch inside me.

“Don’t bother,” I said. “I just ...”

The lecturer chose that moment to finally arrive, saving me as he bustled down the aisle and took his place at the lectern. I kept my eyes on the front of the room for the entire hour, not once glancing away from the balding man speaking in a boring monotone. Not even when I could practically feel the strange tension in the few centimetres of air that filled the space between me and Logan. Tension because I’d been mean, and now things were weird. Definitely not because he was attractive. No-freaking-way.

The professor must have wound up, because people began moving, yet I still sat there facing the front, watching the space where he no longer was. I had no idea what the lecture topic had even been. My mind was a blank haze.

“I usually sit up the back. Last to arrive, first to leave.”

I jumped at the sound of Logan’s low voice for the second time that day. “So you’re not a stalker then.”

What the heck, Olivia?
I had no idea where that stupid declaration had come from. A hot guy like him wouldn’t stalk me. Stalk anyone. Surely he wasn’t short on attention from girls. Logan seemed to think it was funny though; it scored another one of his delicious chuckles.

“Not a stalker,” he said.

“So it appears.” I packed up my tablet and shoved it into my bag which I then slung over my shoulder. I needed to get out of there before I embarrassed myself again. This guy sure brought out the stupid in me. “Bye, Logan.”

I strode up the aisle. I’d have to move fast to make it across to Business Law. I mapped out the long route in my mind—around the back of arts, through the carparks, all the way around the back of campus to the other carpark, then up through one of the other dorms. A bypass of the science faculty and I’d be there. I didn’t want to risk running into that loser fresher again.

“Olivia …”

I spun around. My hand landing on the door steadied me.

“What’s your last name?” Logan asked.

Strange question; why did it matter what my surname was? We were barely on a first-name basis.

“That’s the type of question a stalker would ask.”

And with that I slipped out of the lecture theatre.

****

At five p.m I was starving. After just the muesli bar for breakfast, I’d skipped lunch to avoid a potential repeat of this morning, which meant my stomach had jumped into full riot mode. Nervous about facing my fellow students, I pulled my big girl panties up and marched myself to the dining hall. It was early, so I wasn’t all that brave, if I were being totally honest with myself. The place should have been near empty.