Champagne Toast by Melissa Brown Read Free Book Online Page B

front of anyone, let alone the man I ’ m quickly falling for.  I don ’ t want him to see my tears.
    “ We all have our demons. I have mine, too.  And one night, it ’ ll be my turn to tell you all about them. ”
    “ Promise? ” I ask, a tinge of hope in my voice.
    “ I promise.  Let ’ s get some rest.  I know that was really hard for you.  I get it.  But, that ’ s enough skeletons for tonight.  Just know I ’ m not going anywhere, okay? ”
    “ Okay, ” I reply as I lie down next to Evan.  He wraps his arms around me and sighs into my neck. A lone tear rolls down my cheek as I clutch his hands with all my might.
    He ’ s not leaving me.  Thank God.

 
Chapter 7
     
    Evan
     
    February 23, 2008
     
    “ Hey man, what ’ s up? ” I ask, wiping down the bar as Patrick takes a seat on a stool.
    “ I need a beer, maybe something stronger.” Patrick ’ s voice is gruff and he looks distracted.
    “ Shit, this sounds serious.  What ’ s going on, Patrick? ”
    “ I don ’ t know.  I can ’ t explain it.  I ’ m anxious as hell. ”
    “ A girl? ” I ask, raising an eyebrow.
    “ Yeah, I think so, ” Patrick replies, running his frustrated fingers through his hair.
    “ All right, what ’ s going on?  Who is she? ”
    “ My lab partner for Bio.  She ’ s driving me crazy.  She smells like coconut and the beach.  How does she do that?  It ’ s the middle of winter , and she smells like she just got off a surfboard. ”
    “ You like her, ” I observe, smiling.  I ’ ve known Patrick for two years and although he meets girls all the time, especially at the parties he throws at our apartment, I haven ’ t seen him like this before.  He ’ s frustrated and has an intensity about him .  This must be serious.
    “ Whatever, she ’s . . . ugh! Okay, yeah. I like her.  But, she ’ s driving me insane ,” h e says, gulping down his beer.
    “ Ask her out, ” I suggest, wondering why he hasn ’ t done it already.
    “ Not that simple, ” Patrick says , shaking his head. I wonder if this girl has a boyfriend like Kate did a few months ago. I still don ’ t feel right about how it all went down, but I ’ ve told myself I can ’ t have any regrets; not when it comes to Kate.  I furrow my brow and Patrick knows what I ’ m thinking. “ No, she doesn ’ t have a boyfriend or anything, dude. ”
    “ Then what exactly is the problem? ” I ask, totally confused.
    “ She ’ s nothing like me, and I mean nothing .  It ’ s freaking the shit out of me.  She ’ s super s mart—”
    “ You ’ re a fucking genius, Patrick, ” I point out, “ don ’ t even say she ’ s too smart for you. ”
    “Yo u didn ’ t let me finish, man.  She ’ s super smart, but she ’ s really outgoing and in some sorority where all the girls are really fucking intimidating.  I ’ m terrified to ask her out. ”
    “ Terrified?  Wow.  Okay, let ’ s break this down.  Does she flirt with you? ”
    “ I think so, ” Patrick says, his eyes seem to be in a daze. “ But, the thing is, if I do ask her out and she says no, then I have to sit with her for the rest of the semester, and it ’ s only February.  I can ’ t deal with that until May.  I ’ ll end up dropping the class and my father will kill me. ”
    Just then, my gorgeous girlfriend approaches us, carrying a tray full of empty glasses.
    “ What ’ s going on, boys? ” she asks with an expectant look on her face.  Her beautifully sculpted eyebrows draw me in as she pushes her bangs from her eyes and tightens her ponytail.  Even after months of being with her almost every day, simple movements like this still put me under a spell.  Kate knows this, she likes it, even seems to relish it.  She notices my staring and raises her eyebrows playfully to snap me out of it.  I chuckle to myself, shaking my head.  God, I ’ m in deep.
    “ Patrick ’ s got it bad for his lab partner, but she ’ s intimidating and he ’ s