Lalisa,Mine.

Chapter Eight

Lisa sat in class, eyelids drooping at her professor's low monotone. She looked over at Meg. Her friend was having a hard time paying attention too. She was doodling in the margin of her notebook, a vacant look in her eyes.

Lisa's bag vibrated on the floor beneath her. Trying to be discreet, she pulled her phone out and peeked at the screen. She grinned.

"A message from your lover?" Meg asked.

A student sitting in front of them turned to glare at them. Lisa shushed Meg.

"Is that a yes?" Meg asked, quieter this time.

"Maybe." Lisa unlocked her phone and read the message.

What time do you get out of class? J.

5 pm, Lisa sent. She thought for a moment and typed. Why? Her finger hovered over the send button. She erased the message.

"So are you going to tell me who she is?" Meg asked.

"Just someone from work."

"A coworker?"

Lisa hesitated. "She's a customer." It wasn't a lie. Although she trusted Meg, Lisa didn't feel right giving away Jennie's 'secret.'

"Wow. Isn't everyone who goes there a millionaire?" Meg asked. "I'm totally jealous. What's it like dating someone like that?"

"We're not dating." At least, Lisa didn't think they were.

"Then what is it? Are you her sugar baby?"

"Definitely not. It's purely physical." Lisa fiddled with her pen. "I doubt she's interested in anything more."

"Why not?"

By now they had both given up on the lecture. Luckily, their eighty-year-old professor had poor hearing.

"I can't imagine someone like Jennie being interested in someone like me," Lisa said. "She's from a completely different world than me. She drinks whiskey that costs more than my month's rent. And she's so successful, and sophisticated, and elegant."

"All of those things are superficial, Lis. Do you think she cares you don't have money? When it comes to love, none of that stuff matters."

"Love? Love isn't even a possibility. I'm not interested in her that way. I'm not even looking for a relationship."

"Come on, Lis. It's been ages since everything with Avery. Are you going to spend the rest of your life alone because of one bad relationship?"

'Bad' was an understatement. Lisa sighed. "I don't know. It doesn't matter. I don't need any distractions right now."

"You can't shut everyone out forever, Lis. Life is so much better when you have people to share it with."

Lisa shrugged. "I have plenty of people in my life. And I like my life the way it is."

"If you say so." Meg stretched out in her chair. "So, her name is Jennie?"

"Yeah."

"What's she like?"

"She's amazing. Gorgeous. A little older. And she's so confident and magnetic. She turns heads when she walks into a room."

"Look at you, all dreamy-eyed. The sex must be something else if she's making you act like this."

Lisa rolled her eyes. She looked down at her phone. Still nothing from Jennie. Meg was right. She was obsessing. Even though Lisa definitely didn't have feelings for Jennie, she would have to keep her guard up. The temptation was there.