Chapter 19

It wasn't exactly the freshman fifteen, more like the sophomore five, but James was unhappy with the weight he'd put on. He wasn't eating more, but he was eating more on the fly, which meant junkier food. And if he was being really honest with himself, he could date his weight gain to almost a year ago when he'd broken up with his girlfriend, Jayla. She wasn't the greatest cook, but at least she'd tried to prepare healthy meals.

Or, James mused, as he pulled hard on his weights, maybe that's why her food tasted so nasty. Regardless, he ate less when Jayla was cooking.

He also wasn't going to the gym nearly as often as he wanted to, which was why he'd decided to get up early and get in a workout before class. Jayla's wedding was tomorrow, and he was damned if he was going to show up looking anything less than his best. He grunted as he extended the pulley down in front of himself again and turned his head slightly, catching a glimpse of his arms in the mirror. His bi- and triceps were pretty well molded. He needed to cut himself a little slack as he adjusted to student life again. Perfection was a siren call he was still learning to ignore.

"Admiring the view?"

He had been so focused on his upper arms that he hadn't noticed Lily's appearance in the mirror behind him. As he registered her, he released his weights. They hit the metal joist at the top of the pulley with a clang that was only slightly more jarring than the sight of the shadow he thought he'd successfully shaken.

"Just checking my form," he said, wiping his brow with the crimson towel draped around his neck.

"I don't mean to bother you," Lily began.

"That's a refreshing change," he retorted.

"Could you stop being a dick for two minutes? I have to tell you something."

"Yeah?" He crossed the room to the barbells. She followed like a dutiful puppy, as he knew she would.

"I saw Isobel and Hugh last night. They were together. Like together together."

"So what?"

James threw his towel on a bench and examined the weights, but he couldn't focus on their numbers long enough to choose his starting load.

"Don't you want to know how I happened to be with them?" she asked.

"What do you mean 'be with them'? I thought you saw them."

She moved in front of him, blocking the barbells. "That's why it pays to listen. So I'm friends with this freshman named Percival - "

"Isobel's brother?"

"Yeah. Not too many people around named Percival, I guess. Anyway, he invited me to go hear some jazz with his sister, and Hugh was playing with the band."

"I don't see what this has to do with me," James said, grabbing a pair of twenty-pound barbells, far lighter than what he normally used. "Unless you want to warn me off because you're dating Percival."

"I told you, we're friends," she said, giving him an odd look.

"Because I can kind of see you two together. Scrawny, brainy - "

"James! I have a reason for telling you this."

He set the weights on the bench and folded his arms. "Then get to the point."

Lily sighed. "Isobel was flirting with this other guy, Jack. She seemed more interested in him than Hugh, and Hugh was kind of resigned to it."

"So...what? Are you telling me I should be glad I'm rid of her?"

Lily had the decency to blush. "Something like that. And also, she seemed really annoyed to see me."

"She and I have a lot in common."

Lily ignored him. "I think it was because I was with Percival. You know how she thought there was something going on between us? I think she was being kind of protective and didn't want me cheating on you with her brother."

James threw his head back in frustration. "You said you and Percival are just friends. And you and I are just - "

"Friends?" Lily's face lit up.

"Talking! No, stopping talking, because I'm going back to my workout, and you're going back to yours."

He bent down and grabbed the weights with more force than necessary, and he lost his balance, stumbling backward into the bench.

"Whatever. Over and out." Lily saluted with her fingers in a peace sign and stalked off toward the stationary bikes.

James closed his eyes, and counted to ten. When he could breathe more easily again, he fastened his weights to the bar, lay down, and hefted it over his chest. He was glad he'd taken a lighter load than usual. He didn't want to count; he didn't want to think. He just wanted to look busy so Lily wouldn't know she'd gotten to him.

Isobel had moved on. That wasn't really news. But he was surprised to hear that she was flirting with someone else in front of Hugh.

I've moved on, too, thought James, thrusting the barbell in the air again.

Except that he hadn't, really. After he broke up with Jayla, he convinced himself that he didn't want to date anybody, that he needed to be alone for a while to figure out who James Cooke was sober. But then he'd kissed Isobel. It had been pure impulse - his body leading him before his brain could object - and then he found out about Hugh. He'd opened the door the tiniest crack, only to have it slam shut with full force right in his face.

He realized his arms were aching. He must have done thirty presses. He rested the barbell on his chest and gazed at the ceiling. A thought was forming in his mind. An absolutely ridiculous thought, but one that would serve his purposes nicely - and serve all the irritating women in his life right.

He pulled himself off the bench, set down the weights, and surveyed the room. Lily was on an upright stationary bike, her earbuds in, bopping to a private beat.

Well, he thought, turnabout is fair play.

He crossed the room and stood in front of her, his hands on her handlebars. She looked up, surprised, then shook her head, refusing to be interrupted. He was ready for that and plucked out one of her earbuds.

"Hey!"

"Sucks to have your workout interrupted, doesn't it?" he said, but he was grinning.

He could tell he'd thrown her, but she kept the pedals whirring. It irked him that she was able to continue exercising while he distracted her.

"Here's the deal. I've got this wedding to go to tomorrow night, and..." He paused, not wanting to sound too pathetic. "My date is sick. You wanna come with me?"

That stopped her. She stood up in the seat, balancing herself in the stirrups as the wheels rolled to a stop. "You're messing with me, right?"

"No, I'm serious."

She shook her head in astonishment. "A minute ago, we weren't even friends. We were only stopping talking. Now you're asking me on a date?"

"It's not a date any more than going to hear jazz with Percival."

She stared at him. "It's a wedding. Everyone knows that whoever you bring to a wedding is significant."

Of course, she was right. He'd responded "and guest" automatically, although he'd done nothing about acquiring one. But he really didn't want to show up alone. He had caught Jayla sharing a close encounter on the kitchen counter with his best friend, Michael, and now they were getting married. But James knew Jayla would throw over two hundred guests and Michael in a heartbeat if she thought she could have him back. Bringing a date would ensure no dramatic weirdness at the altar. And if he brought Lily, she would tell Percival, and it would get back to Isobel. Then Isobel would think he'd moved on - and with Lily, whom he knew she couldn't stand.

"Significance is in the eye of the beholder," he said. "Sorry I was being a dick before. We are friends." It was important that Lily understand the ground rules. "I just think we'd have a good time. So, what do you think?"

She hesitated. "Is it black tie?"

James knew Lily came from a poor family and was attending Barnard on scholarship. The other women were likely to be dressed to the nines. He hedged.

"Festive dress. I'm sure you can throw something together."

She regarded him shrewdly. "Does this have anything to do with what I told you about Isobel?"

"Kind of," he admitted. "I realize now that I'm totally done with her. So it's time to make some new female friends."

"You're totally done with her?" Lily asked.

James nodded. "Totally."

Lily smiled. "Then I'll totally go with you."