The Pull of Destiny by Hotcheri Read Free Book Online Page B

today?”
    Joanna
snorted, kissing me on the cheek, her sweet smelling hair sliding across my
face. “Don’t listen to him, he’s hung-over,” she advised me, putting an arm
around my waist.
    “I
never listen to him. And he’s always hung-over.” I smiled down at Joanna as she
placed her head on my shoulder, breathing on my neck.
    Ahmed
grinned, shrugging casually. “Just because you decided to quit doesn’t mean I
should too. I love booze too much, he admitted.
    “If
your mama only knew,” Wendy said in a warning tone, tossing her blonde hair.
    “She
would straight up kill me,” he said cheerfully.
    Joanna
linked her arm in mine, looking up at me. “I’m having a pool party at my place
tonight.” She winked at me, managing to look deliciously sexy and evil all at
once. “Clothing optional.”
    “Is
your boyfriend invited?” I asked, bringing my lips closer to her ear so that I
could nibble it. She giggled naughtily.
    “No.
but what he doesn’t know can’t hurt him,” she said teasingly.
     
    Joanna
is my ex and even though we broke up about two months ago, we still hook up
whenever we feel like it. No strings attached. It works well for both of us,
but I didn’t see her boyfriend liking the fact that we were friends with
benefits. The guy already hated me, how much more would he hate me if he found
out that I occasionally hooked up with his girlfriend?
    I
looked up and groaned as I saw Timothy Wheeler striding towards us across the
quad.
    “Speak
of the devil,” I told Joanna, letting go of her. She straightened her dress and
turned to Timothy, who was flexing. Moron.
    “Hi,
baby,” she said before giving him a big kiss. I wasn’t jealous. It’s not like I
was in love with her or anything.
    I
turned to Ahmed, suddenly remembering my mission and also remembering that his
sister was friends with Celsi.
    “Hey,
dude, where does your sister have her lunch? I asked as casually as I could,
scratching my nose.
    Ahmed
gave me a quizzical stare. “Why? You planning to hit on her? Coz if you get her
pregnant, you two are tied for life,” he said in a mock threatening voice.
    “Dude.
No way would I hit on your sister. That’s sacred ground, man,” I protested
lightly. Even though, given the chance, I’d tap that. Shazia’s pretty hot.
    “Yeah
right. You’re still hitting that,” Ahmed said, cocking his thumb in Joanna’s
direction. “I don’t trust you with Shazia. No sale.”
    Thank
God for Wendy.
    Rolling
her eyes, Wendy punched him in the stomach and he doubled over, groaning.
    “He’s
all talk,” she said to me, grinning. She grabbed his arm and twisted it behind
his back. “Tell Luke where your sister is, or I’ll break it.”
    Never
cross Wendy. Ever. She’s a black belt in every martial art you can think of.
    “She’s
in the canteen, dude. Just tell Wendy to-ouch! Tell her to stop twisting my
arm!”
    I
grinned to myself as I turned my back on a yelling Ahmed and Wendy. It was easy
to tell who wore the pants in that relationship.
     
    ***
     
    Shazia
was in the canteen, sitting with Robyn Miller. I groaned in frustration. Celsi
was nowhere to be seen. Why was this so difficult?
    Smiling
friendlily, I slid into the seat next to Robyn.
    “Hey,
ladies,” I said, trying to muster up enough charm to win them over. Nothing was
feeling right anymore. I felt like a bit actor in someone else’s dream. I just
didn’t have the energy for anything.
     Robyn
was giving me a distrustful look, but Shazia was glaring at me like she wanted
to dip me in honey and feed me to fire ants. Obviously they stood by their
friend, which meant that Celsi wasn’t just a pity friend and Ahmed was just
being a dick, as usual.
    “What
do you want?” Shazia asked shortly, stabbing her fork into a French fry. I bet
you anything she was imagining that was my eye.
    “I
was actually looking for Celsi,” I said cautiously.
     
    The
instant I mentioned Celsi, both of the girls glared at me. I was beginning