I sigh in contentment. Everything’s perfect. I’m graduating in the spring and real life is about to start, exactly like I always planned it.

The lock in the door turns and I blow out a breath as the door swings open, then plaster a sexy smile on my face.

Finn walks in and he can’t miss me. His step falters for a minute, and I think he must be blown away by all the effort I’ve put into this and my smile widens.

Then he closes the door behind him and sags against it.

“Everly, how in the hell did you get in my apartment?”

Twelve

Present

“Do you enjoy cooking, Everly?”

“I live in a dorm room. I enjoy making microwave popcorn.” This guy and his getting-to-know-me agenda has no end in sight. “And just so you know, asking a woman you’re trying to seduce if she likes to cook is stupid.”

“I love a good homemade lasagna myself,” he says. “I can’t remember the last time anyone made me lasagna though. It’s a lot of work.”

Oh. My. God. I feel my face flush with humiliation and I drop my head into my hand. “He told you about that?” I ask from behind my hand.

“Of course,” he replies. “Called me the second he kicked you out.”

I groan.

“That was a bold move on your part.”

“It was crazy.”

“Spirited.”

I sigh and look out the passenger window. Breaking into Finn’s apartment and making dinner did not go as I planned. Oh, I planned on him kicking me out, and he did. But he didn’t even keep Steve. I mean, who can’t keep a goldfish?

This entire fall has been a disaster, really. Starting with the car ride home from my brother’s wedding. I tried to sex-talk Finn in the car and he turned on the radio. But I’m an aggressive girl and Finn’s shy so I didn’t let it phase me. Nope. Instead I placed my hand on his thigh, and as I started to slide it up his leg, Finn finally spoke.

He said no.

No, Everly. I deflate just thinking of it. No, Everly, just no.

I snatched my hand back, mortified. I’d never been turned down before. In my experience guys have enjoyed being pursued. Appreciated it, even. Maybe it would be nice to let the guy make the first move, but there’s a lot of competition for the good ones. If you don’t get aggressive and make things happen, some other girl snaps him up while you’re sitting around waiting for an invitation. It’s exhausting. And sure, it would be nice to be wooed, but it’s not realistic. Especially in college. These boys are lazy.

So Finn shocked me speechless when he rejected me in the car. But then he glanced at me and smiled. “You’re like a sister to me, Everly.”

“I’m not your sister,” I quickly interjected, and he just shook his head, saying it was against university policy. “You’re not my teacher,” I argued, desperate for a lifeline. But he just said it was a bad idea and ended the conversation.

Any other girl would have given up then. But not me. I’m not a quitter. I was prepared to wait until the spring semester to make my next move, but then I stopped by his office to find his trampy teaching assistant perched on his desk and I had to restrategize. There’s no way I’m letting her sink her troll claws into him. Not on my watch.

So I used one of the keys I’d had made during my brother’s wedding weekend to break into his apartment a few weeks ago. I’d made three copies of his house key when he’d asked me to move his car during the rehearsal dinner. I mean, who wouldn’t? There was a hardware store right across the street. It seemed like fate, don’t you think? And I swear Finn winked at me when he asked me to move his car. I swear it. So I moved the car and made three copies of his house key. Because I assumed he’d know I’d made multiple copies. What kind of an idiot steals someone’s keys and only makes one copy?