Total pages in book: 159
Estimated words: 149148 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 149148 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 746(@200wpm)___ 597(@250wpm)___ 497(@300wpm)
“Don’t bother looking,” Kellion told her.
But she had always been the stubborn type. Even as the three tried to drag her forward, she still looked over her shoulder, and a choking laugh escaped her. “Did someone just throw her panties at you?”
Not one of the guys answered her, and not one of them appeared surprised at what she said. She gasped again. “Does this happen to you all the time?”
No answer.
A thought occurred to her, and she asked uneasily, “Does this happen to...also?”
Kellion asked innocently, “Who is “Also”?”
MJ just glared at him in response.
Kellion threw his hands up. “I absolutely have no idea—”
She growled, “Helios.” Color flamed her cheeks the moment she said his name, feeling like she had betrayed herself by doing so. Where had her vow of living a Helios-free life gone?
“No one does it to Helios.” It was Yuri who answered. “You know how serious he is. Everyone knows he’s likely to sue them for sexual harassment if they’re stupid enough to do it to him.”
She was about to sigh in relief, secretly of course, when Kellion added, “But it’s different now.”
“Different? Why is it different now?” The words came out as a squeak, a result of the anxiety pangs that were suddenly constricting MJ’s chest.
Andreus rolled his eyes. “Because you wanted him to be normal, didn’t you?” By this time, they had reached the street of her dorm, and that was when MJ saw the huge crowd of students that had gathered in front of her place.
“A normal Helios is someone who knows how to smile, someone who’s not arrogant as hell, and someone who’d be forced to talk more than a few times.” Andreus nodded towards the street party that seemed to have spontaneously started. “You think that crowd of groupies will stop at throwing panties?”
“But I didn’t tell anyone about it...about what we talked about.”
Andreus snorted. “You dumped our President in public, MJ. Did you really think no one would care to eavesdrop while you guys were talking?”
“KNOCK, KNOCK,” A VOICE caroled outside MJ’s room before the door was opened and Katya came sashaying in. She smirked at the sight of her dorm mate trying to study on her desk, trying being the operative word.
“You’re hopeless.” Perching on the side of MJ’s table, she grabbed the textbook in front of her friend and tossed it to the bed.
“Katya!”
“There. I got your attention. Why are you hiding here when your man’s being eye-gang-banged by every girl in school?”
“He’s not my man.”
“See? You should have said ‘who’. Who’s being molested by the crowds of hungry women outside? But you didn’t so yeah, he’s your man, whether you admit it or not.”
MJ was tempted to cover her ears. Since she had come home, she had been tortured by the squeals and shrieks that had come from the crowd of girls, all of them ostensibly interested in checking out the one vacant room at the dorm. But of course, everyone knew that they only wanted more time spent with Helios.
And now here was Katya, torturing her even more. “Do I have to remind you he’s Greek?” she asked her friend. “You shouldn’t care about him.”
“I don’t,” Katya answered right away. “But I do care about you.” She jumped off the desk and walked to the window. Taking a peek, she saw that the lineup for girls queuing to see the room hadn’t gotten any shorter. News about Helios Andreadis’ newfound “friendliness” had definitely spread.
“Can you tell me one thing? Why did he decide to change?”
MJ mumbled the truth.
Katya’s eyebrows shot up. “Does that mean not being arrogant, too? Because trust me. That’s impossible for Greek men.”
MJ lifted her shoulders in an awkward shrug. “I wouldn’t know. It’s not like I can put it to a test—” Katya grabbed her hand and dragged her out of her seat. “Hey, what? What are you doing?”
“Let’s go put it to a test then.” Katya’s normally carefree smile became sober. “You were the first girl who didn’t care how bitchy I was. I felt terribly alone before you became my friend, you know. I’ve always wanted to return the favor, and now’s my chance.”
Thirty minutes later, MJ found herself saying ‘hi’ to a friend of Katya’s at the sidewalk. Jack was a good-looking junior with an almost obnoxious air around him. As Jack introduced himself, MJ threw Katya a panicky look. This is really your friend?
Trust me, Katya mouthed back and winked.
MJ had no energy to wink back.
Jack slung an arm around MJ’s shoulders. “So, Katya was telling me about a vacant room here in your dorm. Maybe we can check it out?”
Yuri, Kellion, and Andreus were still out in the small yard in front of the dorm, surrounded by women as usual. When MJ and Jack walked past them, she could feel the trio following them with cold looks. Jack said loudly, “Those three are Helios Andreadis’ watchdogs, aren’t they? Do they bark when he gives orders?”