Page 126 of Legally Mine

"Uh, no," I said, trying and failing to stifle the flush racing up my neck and cheeks. "No, no, no. I was just trying to one-up you. I get kind of competitive like that sometimes."

I gave him a sheepish, probably useless smile. Jared was too busy calculating the months to notice.

"Was it Sterling's?" He tapped his chin, trying to process the news. "Does he know?"

I shook my head furiously, terror rising in my belly. Fuck, fuck, FUCK.

"Jared, it was a joke," I insisted, shifting around in my stool to try to catch his bleary, yet searching brown eyes. Do not look away, do not look away. "Look into my eyes. I. was. never. pregnant."

Did those words sound as vacant as they felt? I couldn't tell. Jared stared at me for a few more seconds, then gave a half-hearted shrug.

"All right," he said. "I hope not. That's a heck of a joke to make, Skylar."

"What's a heck of a joke?"

I turned to find Brandon elbowing his way through the crowd, standing out in his tailored suit among a crowd full of drunken, casually dressed exam-takers.

"Um, nothing," I said as I accepted his hearty kiss. "Just a dumb joke."

I pushed my glasses up my nose and shook my head infinitesimally at Jared while Brandon sat on the stool behind me. He scooted forward to straddle my seat and ordered himself an IPA. If Jared didn't think the joke was funny, Brandon definitely wouldn't like it. And, considering how well Brandon could read my face, he would probably know it wasn't a joke at all.

Jared pressed his mouth shut and took a long drink of his beer while Brandon looked him over.

"Okay, then," Brandon said. "Looks like I'm a few behind you, babe."

He pulled my frozen form against his chest. His familiar almond scent reminded me just how little I'd been able to see him in the last weeks.

"You smell good, " he murmured into my ear as he brushed my braid over one shoulder to kiss me on the neck, just under my earlobe. "Like jasmine and...tequila, is it? Not usually your drink, but I'll take it."

Jared watched us with hooded eyes, then started studying the rim of his beer glass. I didn't know why he hadn't disappeared yet; considering what had happened at the gala, this wasn't going to be anything but awkward.

Brandon paid for his drink, the arm wrapped around my waist tightened. I recognized it as the territorial move it was.

"So, Jared, right?" Brandon said over my shoulder "You think you passed?"

Jared cleared his throat. "Yeah, I think so. It's a tough test, as you know, but our class was a good one. Plus, Skylar's a great study partner."

The forearm around my midsection flexed, but Brandon's smile didn't waver. He glanced down at me and pressed a kiss to my forehead.

"I bet she is," he said. "After all, my Skylar's wicked smart."

His accent was out in full, making "Skylar" sounds like "Sky-lah" and "smart" sound like "smaht". It was either an indication of his raised anxiety or a play to intimidate Jared. Considering that Jared was a rich kid from the suburbs who would be very familiar with the class tensions in Boston, I was guessing the latter.

"Thanks," I said, finally finding my voice again. "She's also sitting right here, so you guys can stop talking about her like she's not."

Brandon squeezed my waist again while Jared looked mildly contrite.

"So, do you have any plans for the break, Jared?" Brandon asked, affecting a kinder voice. "I'm assuming your grandfather is giving you one, right?"

I tried to elbow him, but only hit the bar. The contact sent an arrow of pain up my arm. I winced and grasped my elbow. Brandon immediately cupped the spot with his hand and started to massage like he had been planning to do that the entire time. I would have brushed him off, but it felt really, really good. Damn it.

Jared took a sip of his beer and cleared his throat as he took in Brandon's familiarity with my body. "Um, yeah," he said. "Two weeks off, like everyone else. I'm heading to St. Bart's with friends to blow off some steam. What about you, Skylar?" He looked at me as if Brandon wasn't there.

I shrugged. "Not much. I'll probably go down to visit my family in New York, take it easy for a bit."

"Actually, I had a surprise planned," Brandon said quietly enough that I wasn't sure that Jared could even hear him.

He set an envelope down in front of me. I picked it up. This wasn't grandstanding anymore; Brandon had come prepared with a gift.