Page 29 of Bang


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I sank lower in my seat. "That doesn't prove anything, you know."

"It provessomething," he said.

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

"That you know a good thing when you see it."

I studied him from the corner of my eye. Ididknow a good thing when I saw it, but not the way he meant.

His hand was draped loose over the steering wheel, and he was leaning back in the driver's seat. Even so, the muscles in his forearms were a sight to behold as he navigated the next curve of the highway.

And now I was all distracted.

Desperate for a change of topic, I said, "So you stayed in town last night?"

"Well, I didn't drive back to Bayside if that's your other guess."

His sarcasm grated. Still, I pressed on. "I know. I talked to Arden. And I’m just curious. Why didn't you tell her – or even Brody – that you were coming to Petoskey to see me?"

"Because I didn't want you to know."

"Oh," I laughed. "So you didn't want her to warn me? Is that it?"

"Pretty much."

"But why?"

With a half shrug, he replied, "Call it the element of surprise."

"Or," I said, "wecouldcall it an ambush."

"Call it whatever you want," he said. "You're here, aren't you?"

Terrific.Now hissmugnessgrated. It was definitely time to turn the tables. "Oh, I'm here, alright, which means you owe me. Remember?"

"If you mean the bonus," he said, "it's already done."

I blinked. "You mean the tuition money?"

He flicked his head toward the passenger's side dashboard. "The check's in the glove compartment."

I glanced at the nearby compartment. "Seriously?"

"Look for yourself."

Feeling only slightly foolish, I did what he suggested. Sure enough, inside the glove compartment, I found a business check made out to me from Mason Blastoviak.

On the check, he'd used my full name – Camille Josephine O'Neal. But as far as the dollar amount, it wasn't quite accurate. I'd charged my tuition to my credit card. The amount had put me scarily close to my limit – so I knew the exact total by heart.

The check from Mason exceeded that amount by nearly two hundred dollars.But why?And then it hit me. Unless I was mistaken, the extra money was the precise amount I'd spent on books for both classes.

As I stared at the check, I asked, "How'd you know the amount?"

"Two classes, four credits each. I did the math."

I was still looking down. "But this includes money for books, too."

"Yeah, so?"