Trusting Tanner (The Collins Brothers)

by Lexi Lawton

  “Tanner. He’s a frat brother,” Devon said.

  Tanner. Even his name was sexy. “I thought he looked familiar.”

  “All right, I’m outta here. I expect to hear all about your new roommate at lunch. Fair warning.”

  She stuck out her tongue, and he laughed, the sound following him down the hall. Shaking her head, she walked into the room and made her way through the rows of lab tables, hoping to find an empty seat.

  There was one in front of the room and one next to Devon’s frat brother. She hesitated for the briefest of moments and then opted for the seat in the front. As much fun as it would be to sit next to the gorgeous guy, he was out of her league. And if she couldn’t keep a pathetic excuse for a guy like Zach happy, there was no way in hell she could keep a guy like Tanner happy.

  Dr. Shaw came through the door and cleared his throat. “We’re changing things up this year. Everyone on their feet and line up here at the front of the room.”

  Juliana groaned as she stood. Dr. Shaw was one of her favorite professors, but she hated when he decided to get creative. Last time, she’d ended up with a lab partner who didn’t know what deodorant was and thought he could breeze through the class with his sense of humor. Problem was, the only person who thought he was funny was him. His jokes were downright offensive.

  Dr. Shaw set his briefcase on the desk. “I’ve randomly assigned each of you a lab partner for the semester. When I call your name, find a table and sit.” He took a yellow legal pad from his briefcase and started reading off names.

  Jules held her breath as student after student left the line and took a seat. She shifted on her feet, waiting to hear her name. And then…

  “Juliana Shea and Tanner Collins.”

  Her ears rang, and she was frozen in place, even though Tanner had stepped forward. He glanced at what remained of the line. Slowly, she stepped forward. He smiled, his clean-shaven face showcasing his dimples. Her heart raced.

  God, this is not happening.

  Chapter Two

  Fuck. Yes.

  Tanner had been paired with the stunning brunette. Talk about winning the lab partner lottery; he was tempted to pump his fist in the air and whoop with joy.

  “Where do you want to sit?” he asked. If he had his way, they’d be all the way in the back, but he hadn’t missed how she’d gone straight for the front row when she’d arrived.

  She shrugged. “It doesn’t matter to me. I’ll follow you wherever you go.” Her eyes widened a fraction of an inch as if she realized the implication of her words. “I mean, I’ll sit wherever you want. I’m not picky.”

  His lips curved up, and he covered his chuckle by clearing his throat. “All right, then.” He led them to one of the last empty lab tables near the back of the room.

  She took the stool near the window, and he sat beside her. “We haven’t ever officially met. I’m Juliana.”

  “Yeah, I know.” He’d seen her around, but this was the first opportunity he’d ever had to speak to her. “I’m Tanner. It’s my pleasure to finally meet you.”

  She retrieved a notebook and pen from her backpack, and then let her bag drop to the floor beside the table. Her entire body was rigid, tense, and she kept her gaze forward.

  “You can call me Jules. Everyone does.”

  Tanner shifted closer, a whiff of her sweet, flowery perfume tickling his senses. She smelled as great as she looked. He suppressed a groan. “Do I have to?”

  “Do you have to what?” Slowly, she turned on her stool and faced him. Her big brown eyes were unreadable, but they were breathtaking. Damn, he never knew eyes could be so sexy.

  “Call you Jules? Maybe I want to call you Juliana.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I like the way it rolls off my tongue.” Hell, he’d bet his left nut that everything about her would roll nicely off, under, over, and around his tongue, and he’d give his right nut to find out. She’d captured his attention from the very first time he’d seen her, but now, being up close and personal, she was a million times prettier than he realized.

  She twisted back around to face the front, her long brown curls flipping over her shoulder. “You can call me whatever you’d like. Except bitch. You refer to me that way and we’re going to have problems.” A faint smile pulled at her lips, the only indication she was teasing.

  Tanner blew out a shaky breath. “Okay, fair enough. But I should warn you I don’t like to be called hot or sexy.”

  She whipped around to stare at him. “What?” She laughed.

  Good God, her laugh. It was like someone had shoved a hot, sharp poker down his throat and stirred his insides. Everything in him clenched and sizzled. Nerve endings he didn’t know existed sparked to life, creating a slow burn starting deep in his gut and quickly spreading to the rest of his body.

  “I see myself in the mirror every morning. I don’t need to be told how I look.” He grinned.

  She shook her head. “Well, I can promise that won’t be an issue.”

  “Ouch.” He chuckled. “So you don’t think I’m hot?”

  “You just got done telling me not to call you that, so I guess you’ll never know.” She propped her elbow on the table and dropped her chin into her hand.

  He’d walked right into that one. Before he could say anything else, Dr. Shaw cleared his throat, garnering the class’s attention. “Welcome back. Now that you’re all paired up…”

  Everyone in this class had had Dr. Shaw at least once before. He was one of the only doctors on staff who taught labs. Thankfully he wasn’t one of those professors everyone hated. His classes were tough but fair, and Tanner respected him.

  “This is the syllabus.” Dr. Shaw held up a stack of papers. “The last page is a quiz. It’s a review of what we learned last semester. For those of you who manage to answer all the questions correctly, you’ll be given a free pass on the first written lab. Feel free to work with your partner, and consider this an exercise in getting to know each other and how you’ll work together for the rest of the semester.”

  The girl sitting at the table in front of them turned and handed Juliana the papers. She took one, handed one to Tanner, and then passed the others back. Flipping to the last page, she skimmed the questions. He watched in awe as she breezed through the first few questions, never once hesitating.

  Clearly she was as smart as she was beautiful. A lethal combination in his mind. He tried to focus on the questions but… What if he sounded stupid to her? Would she think less of him because she was smarter than him? He shook the thoughts away as silly. Just because she was working through the questions faster didn’t mean she was necessarily smarter. It just meant she wasn’t nearly as bothered by his presence as he was by hers. He frowned.

  “Hey”—Tanner leaned over and glanced at her paper—“what did you get for number four?”

  She whispered, “C.”

  If she turned her face half an inch, their lips would almost be touching. It was wrong of him to hope she would, but she didn’t so much as flinch. Hell, he wasn’t sure she was even breathing. “Thanks.” He nudged her with his shoulder and then moved away.

  There was a long, slow exhale, and he smiled to himself. Maybe she wasn’t as immune to him as he’d originally thought. “What about number nine?” he asked.

  “A.”

  “When you’re finished, you can leave your quiz on my desk. Please get your lab books before our next class and read chapters one through four. You’re free to leave when you’re done,” Dr. Shaw said.

  Tanner hesitated and peeked at Juliana’s paper. She was finished and could leave. But she wasn’t moving. Maybe, if he went slow, he could prolong their time together. As crazy as it was, considering he’d just met her, he didn’t want to part ways yet. Maybe he should ask her to grab some coffee after class. Or maybe he could take her to lunch. He chewed on the tip of his pen, contemplating his options. From the corner of his eye, he saw her watching him, her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed. S
weet Jesus, those lips.

  “Done,” he announced a moment later, earning him a few dirty looks from students still trying to work. “What’s your next class?”

  “Medical Ethics.”

  “With Donaldson?”

  She nodded.

  “I took that last semester. Donaldson likes to take test questions from the critical thinking pages in the back of the book, so study up on those.”

  “Thanks.” She stood and carried her quiz to the front of the room.

  Tanner followed and set his paper on Dr. Shaw’s desk. Juliana was already out of the room, and he caught up with her in time to see Devon fling his arm around her shoulders, but she promptly shoved his arm away.

  “Hey, Tanner.” Devon nodded.

  “Hey.”

  “You take care of my girl during class?”

  Juliana elbowed Devon in the side, and he laughed, rubbing right below his rib cage. Tanner’s gaze settled on Juliana, who was doing a hell of a job avoiding looking at him. Again. Shit. Are they going out?

  “You gonna be at the party this weekend?” Devon asked.

  Nodding, Tanner said, “I plan on it. You?”

  “Of course, I live there, remember?”

  “Right.” Since Tanner had moved out of the frat house a year ago, he hadn’t paid much attention to who was living there anymore. “What about you, Juliana? Are you going to be there?”

  Finally, she lifted her head and met his gaze. “Maybe.”

  The possibility she’d be there, however small, was all the motivation he needed.

  Devon flung his arm around her again. “C’mon, I’m starving.”

  “You’re always starving. It’s amazing you don’t weigh a ton.” Juliana rolled her eyes but smiled.

  “Wouldn’t matter if I weighed ten tons, you’d still love me.” He leaned toward her like he was going to kiss her cheek, but she pushed his face away, laughing.

  “You’re a dork.”

  Tanner listened, watching the way they interacted effortlessly with each other. He’d seen them together a lot and had wondered if they were a couple. Based on the way Devon was acting right now, Tanner no longer had any doubts. Juliana was off-limits. That sucked some major ass. “Well, you two have fun. I’ll catch ya later.” He headed toward his next class, disappointment weighing him down.

  Tanner entered his Forensic Pathology class and sat in the back next to his friend and roommate, Jason. “Hey.” How long had Devon and Juliana been dating? Was it serious? Of course, the one girl he was interested in was already involved with someone else.

  “Did you hear me?” Jason nudged Tanner’s arm.

  “No. I wasn’t listening. Sorry.”

  “I asked if you’d seen Holly around this morning.”

  Tanner shook his head. Jason and Holly had been dating, on and off, for two years, but recently, they seemed to be off more than they were on.

  “She’s blowing me off again.” Jason frowned.

  “You don’t know that. It’s the first day of classes. She’s probably just busy.” He grabbed his pen from where he’d shoved it in his pocket.

  “Maybe.”

  Class passed slower than a snail stuck in tar, and Tanner’s eyes closed. Jason elbowed his arm. Tanner’s head fell forward, and he abruptly sat up, his eyes snapping wide open. Only then did he realize class was over. Yawning, he stretched his arms over his head. “What did I miss?”

  “Everything. You were out cold five minutes in.”

  Shit. This wasn’t going to be good for his GPA. “I don’t know why I let you talk me into taking this class. I want to deal with people who have a pulse, not corpses.”

  Jason laughed. “It’s not too bad. You’d know that if you stayed awake.”

  “Maybe next time.” Tanner slung his backpack over his shoulder. “I’m going to make a detour to the dining hall before my next class. You coming?”

  “Nah, I’m gonna see if I can find Holly.”

  Tanner clapped his friend on the back. “Good luck.” He left Fallon Hall and was headed across the quad when he noticed Juliana. She was leaning back on her hands beneath a tree, head tilted up, eyes closed. She appeared perfectly at ease. Devon was one lucky son of a bitch. Tanner made his way over, sidestepping the notebooks, pens, and papers scattered around her. “Want some company?”

  She glanced up at him with those alluring brown eyes. And then she smiled broadly, like she was genuinely happy to see him. “Sure.”

  Excitement swelled in his chest. He dropped his bag to the ground then sat next to her. “How was Medical Ethics?”

  “Not bad. You forgot to mention Donaldson talks in a monotone.”

  Tanner smirked. “Sorry. It has to be better than Forensic Pathology, though. I was out cold in five minutes flat.”

  She sliced him a disbelieving look. “Did you snore?”

  He laughed. “I never snore. And I would know. I’ve stayed awake to listen to myself.”

  She tilted her head as if contemplating whether he was being serious. “That’s probably the strangest thing anyone has ever said.”

  “That sounds an awful lot like a challenge.”

  “Maybe it is.” She shrugged, a faint smile lifting her lips. “Wait, why are you taking Forensic Pathology? Is that your end goal? Forensics?”

  “No. A friend talked me into taking the class with him. My end goal is to get into family practice. Someday I’d like to open my own low-cost or free clinic.”

  Her smile morphed into something warm and appreciative. “That’s great.”

  “What about you?” He picked at the grass, basking more in her proximity than the sun. “What’s your end goal?”

  “I’m still undecided. I really like pediatrics, but I’m fascinated by cardiology.”

  He nodded. “Have you taken cardio yet?”

  “No, but we’ve covered quite a bit of it in Anatomy and Physiology, and it’s always been my favorite topic. I have Cardiology tomorrow morning, and I can’t wait.”

  “Me, too.”

  “We’ve had a lot of classes together,” she mused aloud. Then she sat up and wiped the grass from her hands. She grabbed her backpack and started shoving things into it.

  “You rushed out of class earlier like the building was on fire, and now you’re racing off again. I’m starting to take it personally,” he teased, his heart seizing like it had earlier at the thought of her leaving.

  “It’s not you. Devon will be out of class soon. We’re going to brave the bookstore then go grab some lunch.” She stood and slipped the strap of her backpack over her shoulder.

  He stood, too, and wiped his palms on his jeans before scooping his bag off the ground. “How long have you and Devon been together?”

  “Oh. No.” She shook her head, a faint laugh accompanying her movement. “Devon and I aren’t together together. Not like that. We’re just friends.”

  “No shit,” he said before he could stop himself. “Seriously?”

  “Yeah.” She nodded. “Why do you seem so surprised?”

  “Because you two are together all the time. I assumed…” For once he was glad he’d been wrong, and he didn’t even care if that made him an ass. “You really do spend a lot of time with him for not being his girlfriend.”

  “Have you been watching me?” There was a teasing lilt to her voice and a challenging twinkle in her eyes despite her expression being serious.

  “I may have noticed you a time or two. At the frat house. In classes. On campus. Sitting under this very tree while you stared at me yesterday.” He winked.

  Her face turned several shades of pink, and her mouth parted as if she wanted to say something, but then she snapped her jaw shut.

  “Didn’t think I saw, did you?”

  “No. And I’m not sure if I should be flattered or creeped out.” She adjusted the strap on her shoulder, and her hair got stuck.

  He reached over, lifted the strap, and freed her hair. Then he tucked a few strands behind her e
ar, letting his fingers trace the line of her jaw. She had the softest skin. “You should be flattered,” he whispered.

  She stared up at him, and her tongue peeked out, wetting her lower lip. The crotch of his jeans became noticeably tighter. He shifted on his feet, attempting to ease the tightness and sudden ache between his legs. He let his hand fall back to his side before he did something crazy, like lean down and kiss her. “Want to grab some coffee before class tomorrow morning?”

  “No, thank you.” Her voice was tiny, almost like a whimper.

  He did a proverbial double take. No? What the hell? She wasn’t dating Devon, so that couldn’t be the reason she turned him down. Unless there was someone else… But that didn’t make sense considering he never saw her with anyone but Devon. Maybe she didn’t like coffee. He opened his mouth to suggest something else, but instead of hearing his own voice, he heard Devon’s.

  “Jules,” he said as he walked up and stood next to Juliana. “Sorry. Class ran late.” Devon narrowed his eyes. “Tanner.”

  What was with the sudden attitude? His gaze darted back and forth between Devon and her. Was it possible Devon wanted more than Juliana’s friendship? Is that why he was acting like he had some sort of claim over her?

  “Are you ready?” Juliana asked.

  “Yeah,” Devon said.

  She turned to Tanner, a warm smile brightening her already stunning features. “See you in class tomorrow.”

  “I wouldn’t dream of missing it.” He watched them walk away, loving the natural sway to her hips. Letting out a low whistle, he turned and headed for the dining hall.

  Chapter Three

  Devon took a seat at the two-person table located near the emergency exit, and Juliana slid into the seat across from him. They’d spent almost two hours at the bookstore downtown, incorrectly thinking they’d get in and out faster than if they’d gone to the campus bookstore.

  “I’m going to eat one of everything on the menu.”

  He’d been complaining nonstop about how hungry he was, which made the bookstore experience much worse. Finally, she’d bought him two candy bars to shut him up.