Impossibly Love (2 page)

     “
Please
,”
It was my time to interrupt him. I ignored Professor Durant’s motioning to take
back control of the class by clearing his throat repetitively. “If she hadn’t
piqued anyone’s interest, her boss wouldn’t have found out to begin with. Some
buyer probably saw the name of the company she worked for and wanted to learn
more about her. Trust me, Caroline has no case and should move on.”

     After
concluding, I stared at Branden long and hard. In return, he was trying to
charm me with a passionate look in his aquatic eyes. That smart ass sneer he
flashed me when Professor Durant said we both had a point made me shudder. I
knew the type of guy he was, though, the kind of games they liked to play. I
would not be fooled by his façade.

     Still, I was
somewhat bothered by Branden’s attractiveness. I even had trouble steering away
from his magnetic gaze until Durant’s voice zoomed in and filled the room. “I
look forward to reading your papers on a similar topic I’m about to pass out.
Nothing difficult or too overwhelming, simply state your opinion in 500 words.
No more, no less,” he explained, as he sent around the handouts.

     Professor Durant
quickly moved into the next topic for discussion, and I felt lucky he didn’t
call on me again for the remainder of class. I also managed to unchain myself
from whatever it was that made Branden get under my skin.

     The period
came to an end, and I exhaled an air of relief as I made my way out the door. I
never anticipated talking to Branden McCarthy before or after class, so I
couldn’t fathom why he was hurrying to catch up with me before I went up the
stairs to the next class.

     “Hey, Moya,”
he jerked my elbow slightly as he reached my side.

     Turning to
face him, I gave Branden an uninterested look. “Yes?”

     His jaw
twitched nervously. “Look, I hope you didn’t take any of that personally. I
mean, it was only a class discussion. Not everyone is going to agree with each
other, you know.”

     Branden eyed
me up-and-down strangely. Like, he had another motive for stopping me besides
to apologize, which he didn’t have to.

     “It’s no big
deal,” I said nicely, turning to leave.

     “Wait.” He
moved around and stood in front of me, his eyes lighting up like the stars. “I
was wondering
,
would you like to go out with me
sometime?”

     Branden
waited patiently for an answer.

     For a
fleeting second, I pondered on whether or not I should be polite in my
response. But I couldn’t help it. I let out a chuckle. His idea of me actually
going on a date with him was too funny. Not even his hotness could prevent me
from saying what I said next, “Not interested.”

     I brushed
past Branden. He gasped as I walked up the flight of stairs and turned the
corner. Several guys before him had reacted in the same way. Each one stood
stunned.

     How could
I’ve turned them down? Simple: I didn’t trust men. My hurtful past with one in
particular prevented me from doing so.

     Branden
McCarthy would be added to the list of guys who now knew the notorious Moya
Douglas was that kind of girl: one who wouldn’t give guys the chance to deceive
my heart with that silly emotion called love. It had already betrayed me
deeply, a long time ago.

CHAPTER TWO

Branden

     
Moya turned me down. I wasn’t
surprised
. It was
only my second week of seeing her around campus and I could already tell what
kind of girl she was. Not that I wanted to make any assumptions, but she didn’t
seem like the type to say yes even if she wanted to. Still, from the way Moya
glanced back at me in class, I knew I was starting to affect her somehow, which
fueled my hope that soon she’d agree to go out with me.

     Moya Douglas
was a challenge I had never taken on before, because I’d only dated one girl
throughout high school.

     There was
something alluring about her, not only her hourglass figure and hypnotizing
beauty, but there was definitely something that drew me in like a magnet.

     Back at the
dorm, relaxing in bed, I tucked my hand behind my head on the pillow as
thoughts of Moya consumed my mind. So far, I had discerned three things from
noticing her in class:

     One: Moya
was well-guarded.

     Two: She
questioned
everything
. Even if the facts were clear and concise.

     Three: There
was a part of her holding back, which contradicted the way Moya fought to prove
her point, especially when I debated her in class that morning.

     But in spite
of her hardness, her personality intrigued me. I was eager to learn more. I had
to find a way to break down her wall.

     The sound of
keys jingling as the door unlocked brought me back to earth. Warren poked his
head in halfway. I knew what that meant.

     “Hey, dude,”
he whispered, “you mind giving me and my girl some time alone?”

     “Sure.” I
hopped off the bed, grabbing my grey sweater from the small closet we shared,
along with my backpack off the floor.

     “Thanks,”
Warren grinned and gave me a fist pump as I opened the door to leave.

     Selene
sashayed past me behind Warren, closing the door quickly as I stepped outside.
She could hardly walk in her tight mini black dress and high heels. Her
flirtatious giggles reminded me of the other girl from last week. I could
already perceive the kind of guy my roommate was. Whatever the case, it was
none of my business.

     I headed
over to the library—which was less than two minutes from my dorm—to finish my
Statistics homework. Scoping out an empty spot in the lounge to chill, a
natural beauty caught me by surprise.

     There was
Moya, as captivating as ever, stopping me in my tracks. I struggled to recover
my cool. The rich, golden-honey tone of her skin glowed in the ceiling light.
Her thick black curls begged my fingers to twist every strand across my flesh.
Damn
,
she was the epitome of unearthly beauty.

     Swallowing
hard, I walked over to her table. Moya kept her eyes lowered as she took notes
from the humongous textbook in front of her. I cleared my throat to draw her
attention and nearly jumped out of my skin when she glared up at me with anger.

     Her
chocolate brown eyes bewitched me. Moya’s fierceness made me smile. That only
pissed her off more.

     “What?” she
asked, irritatingly.

     Settling my
backpack down on a chair at the table, I asked, “May I sit with you—”

     Right away
Moya said, “No,” her voice solid and without hesitation. There was something
exquisitely sexy about her deep and sultry tone. I would enjoy having her whisper
sweet words in my ear at nights.

     She went
back to writing. Instead of walking away, I pulled out a chair and sat down.

     Moya looked
up at me, surprised and annoyed. “What are you doing? I said
no
. Now go
away.” She even emphasized by pointing her pen in the direction of the exit.

     “Well, this
is not only a place shared by students it’s also my favorite spot to study.
Since it’s a large table and there aren’t any names written down, I think I’ll
stay.”

     My assertion
enraged her even more. Placing her pen down in the middle of one of the
textbooks, Moya sank back in her chair and folded her arms across her chest. Oh
yeah, she was definitely fuming and getting ready to light my ass on fire with
that biting tongue of hers.

     As she examined
me carefully with her enthralling eyes, I couldn’t help but do the same. I
glanced down to her mouth and envisioned kissing her lips intensely.

     Amidst my
admiring her sexiness, I noticed a gold necklace with a butterfly locket
pendant reminiscent of the one my Dad bought my Mom for Christmas last year.
The details seemed exact, right down to the ivory glaze. The owner said they
were unique to his jewelry store. Did that mean Moya was from Berlin Heights?
Baltimore wasn’t far from Harrington, so we could hang out on weekends easily
if she went home. Yeah, right. I was way ahead of myself. She hadn’t even given
me a shot yet.

     “Do you like
me or something?” Moya finally asked, disrupting my thoughts.

     As I carried
my eyes back up to meet hers, I nearly choked on my voice. “Well, I would like
to get to know you.”

     Moya
unfolded her arms, bending over the table on top of the books with a
questionable expression. I admired her full lips as she parted them and asked
sarcastically, “Why is that?”

     Honesty was
my best policy. “You seem so closed off,” I explained. “I’d like to get you to
open up a bit.”

     That didn’t
go well with her. Moya jumped up, slammed the books shut, and clutched them to
her chest as she struggled to carry them all back at once. I wasn’t trying to
upset her. Still, those flares of intensity surging through her shields only
made me want her more.

     I shot up to
help Moya gather her things. She brushed my hand away. “I don’t need any man’s
help. Give it a rest. We both know what you
really
want me to open.” She
lifted a brow and eyed me up and down suspiciously. Her body, on the other
hand, slanted with hesitation, as if she was finding it hard to walk away.

     “What?” I
held my hands in the air as defense and backed up a few steps.  “What’s
that supposed to mean?” 

     She rolled
her eyes and walked off, mumbling. That was another failed attempt at
communicating with Moya Douglas. Wow, I was turned down twice in one day. My
pride was wounded by her pre-judging me. I wasn’t like my roommate. Warren was
the type of guy who ditched girls once he got them out of their clothes and
into his bed.

     I was far
from being that guy. But even though Moya was so hard to get through to, I
became even more determined to prove to her I was different. I was adamant on
making her mine.

CHAPTER THREE

Moya

     
After classes ended on Thursday
, I stopped by Vanessa’s dorm to hang
out before going shopping. More precisely,
she
wanted to shop, I was tagging
along because I wanted to find a weekend job at Sheppard’s Plaza near school.

     While idling
in her room, I told Vanessa about Branden and his mission to torment me. 

     “It’s
because he can’t have you, all guys are like that. They love a good chase.”
Vanessa resolved.

     I exhaled,
falling onto her bed. “Yeah, you’re right. I don’t know why he’s pursuing me
though. Talking ‘bout how I seem so closed off. Who does he think he is to say
that to me? He doesn’t even know me.”

     Vanessa sat down
on the edge of the bed. “He kinda has a point, though.”

     “What?” I
got up fast. “You agree with him? Nessa, I’m not closed off.” My best friend
was taking a guy’s side over mine?

     She said,
“Girl, you haven’t had a boyfriend since like forever. You refuse to date and
you diss every opportunity. So, yes,
I
have to agree with this Branden.
You are closed off and somewhat angry, too. If only you could see the way you
stare at people sometimes. Like, the way you’re staring at me right now.”

     The way
Vanessa squinted and puckered her lips made me laugh. Her teasing was adorable.

     I poked her
in the side playfully, then hopped off the bed and walked over to the full body
mirror on the closet door to check my hair. “Where’s your roomie, anyway?” I
inquired to change the subject. “I swear
,
I never see
her whenever I come here. Not sure if I’ve seen her since the day you moved
in.”

     Vanessa
groaned before answering, “I don’t know. That girl’s on some serious power
trip. I can’t stand her.” She shot up from the bed and walked over to me,
throwing her arm over my shoulder. “After this semester, girl, I’m finding a
way for you and me to room together. Why didn’t you do that in the first
place?”

     I turned,
giving Vanessa a tap on the forehead, then joked, “Because I refuse to share a
room with someone who snores.”

     She puffed.
“Whatever.”

     I glided
over to the chair by her desk and collapsed into it, resting my chin on the
back. Vanessa remained in front of the mirror, admiring her impressively done
braids with burgundy highlights, transfixed in her thoughts.

     “Hmm…his
name does sound familiar, though. Branden McCarthy? Branden McCarthy?” she
repeated.

     “What the
hell! Stop saying his name,” I squealed.

     Vanessa spun
and blurted, “The
hockey
player?”

     My head
sprang up. “He’s on the hockey team? I didn’t know that.” I was surprised, yet
curious. Branden never gave me the impression he played sports. Well, his body
did seem somewhat athletic.

     “Oh, not
here at Easton U,” she clarified, turning back to the mirror to reapply
lip-gloss. “But he was pretty good from what I’ve heard. He played at
Harrington High School. What’s his major anyway, and how come he’s not playing
anymore?”

     So Branden
was from Harrington. I guessed he didn’t want to travel far from home to go off
to college. Like me, he stayed within the state of Maryland. Only I traveled
nearly fifty minutes from my home, while he probably lived five minutes away.

     Still, Vanessa
was asking questions I couldn’t answer and it seemed she knew a lot more about
him than I did.

     I shook my
head. “No idea. I didn’t know you cared for hockey much less kept tabs on
players.”

     Vanessa
strutted over and grabbed her red satchel off the desk. “Girl, my boyfriend’s
on the Easton U Tigers Basketball team. Most of the parties here are attended
by members from other sports teams.
Of course
I’m gonna hear about
Branden, especially if he was good.”

     She knelt
down and tapped my nose. “Plus, the last party I went to, which you failed to
attend, Branden was there and some chick wouldn’t stop going on about him. I
think his family’s loaded and she wants a piece of that. Whatever, let’s not
waste the rest of the day. It’s time to go
shopping
!”

     Vanessa
clutched my hand and hauled me off the chair, tugging me out the door as I left
my thoughts and all things Branden behind.

My intention was to find a job at
Sheppard’s Plaza. When that didn’t turn out so well, I decided to give it a
rest for the time being and enjoy the remainder of the day with Vanessa.

     While
browsing the new arrival rack at Donna lee’s clothing store, Vanessa sighed as
if something was bothering her.

     My head shot
up.  It was rare seeing anything but her liveliness. “You okay, girl?
What’s with the gloomy vibe all of a sudden?” I asked.

     Vanessa
continued checking out an embellished, blue sweater as she answered, “Hmm…just
thinking about Calvin and how Basketball takes up so much of his time.”

     I observed
her expression. Vanessa seemed awfully bothered, with her forehead cringed and
a worried look in her chocolate brown eyes.

     I moved
around the rack and squeezed her shoulder, comfortingly. “Don’t worry so much
about it, Nessa. He has to put in a lot of work to be part of the team.”

     She
shrugged, recovering her exuberance. “Yeah, I know. It’s just hard sometimes.
Like, we barely spend time together anymore. But,” she exhaled, taking the
sweater over to the fitting room, “I hear what you’re saying. I shouldn’t let
it bug me so much.”

     I nodded in
agreement as Vanessa stepped into the room to try on the sweater.

     Going back
to the new arrival rack, I let out a snort when she called out, “So, girl,
about this Branden,” I knew she still had him on her mind and wouldn’t simply
drop it. “Would you consider the possibility of dating him?”

     “Nessa, how
did we end up on Branden again?” I chuckled.

     She came out
of the fitting room then, fixing the sweater on her body as she asked, “What do
you think?”

     I bobbed my
head approvingly. “You look nice, girl. Are you getting it?”

     Vanessa
turned and stared into the mirror. “I haven’t made up my mind yet. Anyway, back
to Branden.”

      “Oh,
jeez,” I breathed, lowering my head in exasperation.

     She walked
over and lifted my chin. “I’m just saying, in a perfect world, would you
consider going out with Branden?”

     “No—” I made
to answer.

     Vanessa
pressed her finger to my lips and stopped me. “Hold that thought while I change.”

     She hustled
back into the fitting room. I waited outside to see if she was going to
purchase the sweater or not. Either way, I certainly wasn’t giving any thought
to what Vanessa said.

    
I
wouldn’t
.

     But
unwillingly, I did. Branden really was attractive, and even I could admit that.
It would be hard for anyone to forget those enchanting blue eyes of his.
Thinking about him now, how he sweetly annunciated my name in class and stole
glances at me every second, made me lean my head to the side and twine my
fingers around my curls.

     I shuddered
and put aside the silly feeling as Vanessa came out of the room. She shook her
head ‘no’ and went over to the new arrival rack, setting the blue sweater back
in its rightful place.

     Leaving the
clothing store to continue shopping around the plaza, Vanessa turned me around
to face her. Her eyes got bigger as she asked excitedly, “Well?”

     I blinked in
my astonishment. “Well, what?”

     She jerked me
slightly and I released a chortle. “Okay, yes, Branden is a good-looking guy.
But there’s no way I’d go out with him. I told you, I’m not interested—” I
stopped abruptly, realizing Vanessa wasn’t listening to me anymore.
                                            

     She narrowed
her eyes and cocked her head to the side. “Isn’t that Branden, girl?” she
asked, nodding in the direction behind me.

     I spun
swiftly. It really was Branden, walking rather hastily down the street. I found
myself admiring his behind—how perfect he appeared in his jeans. The thought
was short-lived as Vanessa strutted passed me, hollering his name.

     I cringed.
What
the hell?

     Branden
swiveled, eyes widened, brows raised. His undeniable good looks stirred me
inside.

     I had to
shake it off.
Whatever
it
was.