Now that she was walking home alone with Peter, with Jack out of the picture, Alice didn’t feel so bold anymore. What was she doing with a guy she knew nothing about? Was making Jack jealous really worth it? She doubted Peter could give her much more than that. If half the stories Jack had told her about him were true, Jack was practically a monk compared to Peter.
Alice wished she knew what his face looked like without all that blue paint. Not knowing was bothering her more than it should.
“You’ve gone all quiet on me,” Peter said.
“I can’t help but think I’ve no idea what your face looks like.”
“We can solve that tomorrow. For now, you can stare at my pretty eyes.” He batted his lashes at her.
Alice chuckled. “Is there going to be a tomorrow?”
“I hope so. I’ve promised to explain how to play basketball, remember?”
“You mean a practical lesson?”
“If you’d like. The coach has left me the keys to the Lavietes Pavilion; it’s really cool when it’s empty. We could take a couple shots.”
“You want me to actually play?”
He stopped and grabbed Alice by the waist, pulling her in front of him. She stiffened, worrying about the paint getting all over her jacket. Then she dismissed the concern; the waterproof fabric wouldn’t be hard to wash.
“I’d love to play with you,” he said, looking her straight in the eyes. The intensity of his stare dazzled her. “Can we call it a date?”
“Your eyes really are pretty,” Alice teased. “So I’m going to say yes.”
He leaned in to kiss her. Alice didn’t care if this was a mistake; having Peter kiss her was great, and Jack could go to hell for all she cared right now. This is not you, he’d told her. But this was exactly her! She was a woman who liked to be kissed by handsome—allegedly—men. She wasn’t a nun.
A cold blast of air blew in from behind her, making the hair on her nape stand up and sending a shiver down her spine.
“You’re trembling,” Peter said, pulling back and massaging her arms with his hands.
“It’s cold, and I’m not exactly covered up.”
House parties required bringing only the minimum wardrobe. So Alice was standing in the cold of November wearing a flimsy jumpsuit, an older, not-warm-enough jacket, and no gloves, hat, or scarf.
“Yeah, me neither.” Peter, with his bare legs, was even more poorly equipped for the chilly air. “Let’s get you home.”
They walked in silence for another ten minutes until Alice stopped in front of her building. Next to her, Peter kept hopping from one leg to the other. The exposed skin under his shorts sent a shiver down her back.
“This is me,” Alice said. “You want to come in? We have a coffeemaker in the hall,” she added, to make it clear this wasn’t an invitation to her room. “I could make you something hot before you have to walk home.”
“Yeah, that’d be great. I’m freezing.”
Inside, she made a pot of decaf, which they drank seated at one of the tables. Alice would have preferred the cozy armchairs by the fire, even if it wasn’t lit, but she was afraid Peter would stain them. Plastic chairs were easier to wipe clean.
They chatted, enjoying their hot drinks, and Alice soon lost track of the hour. It wasn’t until Madison staggered in the front door, barely standing, that Alice realized how much time had passed.
She threw Peter an apologetic look. “I think I’d better go take care of my roommate before she wrecks our apartment.”
“Yeah,” Peter agreed. “She looks pretty wasted.”
Madison was having a silent argument with the elevator. She kept pushing a button that wasn’t really a button and started to rage when the little lights signaling the elevator was on call wouldn’t light up. Madison increased her efforts, stabbing the plaque with her finger.
“Yep, she does.” Alice nodded.
“This dried-up paint is making it painful to talk, anyway,” Peter added.
“Is kissing painful too?”
Peter cupped her face with his hands. “I’ll take the pain like a man.” He kissed her goodnight. “I’ll pick you up here tomorrow at two-ish?”
“Sure. I’ll leave you my number just in case.”
They exchanged contact information, and Peter gave her a quick peck on the lips before jogging out into the night. Alice didn’t envy him the walk—or run—home one bit.
Alice joined Madison in front of the elevator. “Here.” She pushed the up arrow.
“Was that a Smurf?” Madison asked.
“Yeah.”
There was a ding, a swipe of metallic doors, and they stepped inside the elevator.
“I hate Smurfs,” Madison said.
“I thought you were with one.”
“No, I left for a second to get a drink and, poof, he disappeared with another girl.” Madison scoffed. “Story of my life.”
Madison had a lot of confidence issues and a huge inferiority complex.
“So, where were you all this time?”
“Haley and I party hopped, and I drank too much.”
“You don’t say. Where’s Haley?”
“She met a guy and left with him.”
Alice scoffed. “Another masked dude?”
Haley had been obsessing for months over a guy she’d met at a Venetian Masquerade Ball. After dancing with him most of the night, she’d lost him without ever learning his name, or even what his face looked like.
Madison shrugged. “If that does it for her.”
As they reached their floor, Alice helped Madison walk to her room and helped her out of her angel costume. Her friend’s beautiful blonde hair was all ruffled and impossibly tangled. It’d be a bitch to comb through the next morning.
“Did our plan work?” Madison asked as Alice tucked her into bed. “Was Jack jealous?”
“I think so.” Alice smirked. “The Smurf downstairs was his best friend and favorite wingman. Jack didn’t seem happy when I left with him.”
“Good for you.” Madison patted her on the arm. “Now I have to sleep. I’m really tired…” She closed her eyes and her head lolled to the side of the pillow.
Alice kissed Madison’s forehead and retreated to her room. Blue tried to sneak out, but she snatched him up and closed the door.
“Here.” She kissed him goodnight and dropped the bunny in his cage, leaving its door open so that if Blue wanted to take a night stroll, he could.
Alice quickly readied for bed, but it took her a while to drift off to sleep. She didn’t know what to expect from her date tomorrow. Regardless of what Jack said, Peter hadn’t tried anything with her tonight. He couldn’t be the bastard Jack had made him out to be. And what about Jack? Had he gone home with Becky? Was he with her right now?
As she tossed in bed, Alice tried to convince herself she didn’t care where Jack was or what he was doing. Or with whom.