A Field Guide for Heartbreakers by Kristen Tracy Read Free Book Online Page B

sharing room B,” Kite said. “Here’s your keys for that door.”Veronica gasped. “We’re sharing? I thought Dessy and I had our own room.”“You do,” Mrs. Knox said. “But you have suitemates. Two girls in room C and one in room A.” “What if they have atrocious hygiene? Or are pathologically immature?” Veronica asked.“You’ll deal with it,” Mrs. Knox said. The guys backed into the hallway to wait for Mrs. Knox. I thought I heard them doing an impression of Frank.“I’m hungry,” Veronica said.“I’ve got a protein bar in my bag,” Mrs. Knox said.“That sounds terrible,” Veronica said.“Here’s some money for the vending machines,” her mother replied. “Good night, girls.”In our small kitchen a large window opened up into the hallway. Through it, I watched Mrs. Knox follow Kite and Waller to an elevator.Veronica threw her big suitcase onto a bed and began unzipping it. I rolled mine over to the corner and figured I’d hold off on unpacking until tomorrow. Everything I needed for a good night’s sleep was in my overnight bag. Clean socks, a T-shirt, and boxer shorts. “Are you really hungry?” I asked. “I’ve got crackers from the plane.”“No, I just wanted money. Do you want to go check out the vending machines?”“I’d like some water.” I reached toward my throat.“I feel parched too. Let’s go.” The hallway was silent. “Those college guys were so cute,” Veronica whispered. “I hadn’t expected to run into them first thing like that.” She peered over her shoulder, then turned to me. “So which one did you like the most? And you can’t penalize the one who passed out in the tree.”“Why not?” I asked.“Because that kind of crap happens to everybody at least once. For guys, usually a couple of times a year until they turn twenty-seven.”“It’s not going to happen to me,” I said.“Don’t get all judgmental. I’m trying to talk to you about men.” Veronica giggled again. “It doesn’t matter. I already know who you like.” “No you don’t,” I said.“I sure do. You like Waller. He looks a lot like Hamilton, except Waller has better hair.”“That’s not true,” I whispered. I worried that our voices might carry through our neighbors’ doors.“You cannot be serious. Hamilton Stacks’s hair looked like an eagle’s nest. I’m surprised he didn’t have a major large-bird-attempting-to-roost-on-his-head-every-other-day issue.”“Here’s the vending machine,” I said. “Where are you going?”Veronica kept plodding down the hallway. “I’m going to check things out.”“We need to get to bed or jet lag will smack us like a truck. Remember?” I clapped my hands. “Whammo!”“I believe the correct sound effect was ‘Blammo,’” Veronica said.“Either way, we don’t want to get jet lag,” I said.“Yeah, I don’t really care.” I watched Veronica turn a corner and disappear. As I stood in front of the vending machine, I realized that I didn’t have any useful money. Why hadn’t Mrs. Knox suggested that I pull out some money at the airport too? I thought about calling for Veronica, but I didn’t want to wake anybody up. Nor did I want to chase after her.“Do you need something?” I turned and saw Waller standing next to me. Had he heard what Veronica said? The part about my possibly liking him? The part about Hamilton’s wacked-out hair? This was terrible. Where had Waller come from? And why was he so sneaky? Why hadn’t he made his presence known to me immediately? By clearing his throat. Or saying, “Hi, Dessy.” Luckily, I didn’t have to admit that I was crownless and somewhat desperate. “I wanted water,” I told him. “But the machine only has soda.”“You can drink the tap water here,” Waller said. “It’s totally safe.”“Really?” “Yeah. Me and my friends have been drinking it for two days. If you’re worried about diarrhea, you shouldn’t be. It’s fine.”My eyes widened. I couldn’t