Best Served Cold by Tawdra Kandle

opened my text messages.
    Okay. Yes. What time tomorrow night?
     

 

     
    Dr. Lamott, who taught my last class on Fridays, had a tendency to run late, and I was anxious to get to my car and head for work once he finally dismissed us. Focused on that goal, I almost didn’t see my ex-boyfriend as he stepped into my path.
    “Julia.”
    I careened to a halt, and the girl walking too close behind me smashed into my back. She favored me with a scowl and a muttered expletive.
    Glancing up at Liam’s face, I made to step around him, assuming he hadn’t actually meant to make me almost trip. But he shot out an arm and stopped me.
    “Julia, please. I just want to talk to you for a minute.”
    I blew out a breath. A cold front had moved in the night before, ending our one day of near-spring, and the last thing I wanted to do was linger in the frigid air and shoot the bull with Liam Bailey.
    “I’m late.” I blurted out and then cringed. I wanted to be smooth and scornful, but instead I sounded ridiculous.
    “For what? Your next class?” Liam dropped my arm and stuck his hands into the pockets of his coat.
    “No, for work. I need to be at Dr. Fleming’s house in twenty minutes. My last class ran long.” I sidestepped off the path. “So I’ll have to catch you later.”
    “Wait a second, I’ll walk with you.” He fell into step with me, and I rolled my eyes. All I had wanted out of this day was the chance to get through it and focus on my upcoming date with Jesse. I didn’t plan to think about Liam all day. But here he was.
    “What do you want, Liam?” This time I was able to affect disinterest and impatience, and I smiled a little in self-congratulation.
    “I just wanted to talk to you. I know I don’t have any right--”
    “No, you don’t. That’s one thing we’ll agree on.”
    His jaw tightened, and I recognized the expression of discomfort. Good.
    “Julia, I’m worried about you. I haven’t seen you around for a while, and then--”
    “Oh, geez, let me think, why haven’t you seen me around for a while? Seems like I used to see you quite a bit. Oh, that’s right. You were my boyfriend. And you broke up with me. And didn’t tell me. Until you had your arm down some slut’s shirt, groping her in front of all of our friends. Yeah, it’s coming back to me now.”
    Giff and I hadn’t ever discussed how I was supposed to act if I came face-to-face with Liam, but it turned out that didn’t matter. I was handling this fine on my own, and it was exhilarating.
    Liam grabbed my arm and stopped, pulling me off the walkway. “Can’t we get past this? I get it. I was a dick, you hate me.”
    I jerked my arm back. “First, don’t use the past tense. From my point of view, you’re still a dick. And get past it? Wow, Liam, I must have missed all your messages of apology. All the times you came by my room to explain? I guess I wasn’t home.”
    He looked at the ground. “Fine, let it all out. Tell me how much I suck.”
    I stamped my foot in frustration. “God, Liam! You don’t get it, and you never have. You’re trying to make me sound unreasonable, but guess what, buddy? This one’s all you. And yeah, you suck, but not even because you’re a dick. It’s because you’re a coward. You weren’t man enough to come to me and say what you wanted.”
    I turned and made it two steps before he caught my hand and pulled me back.
    I looked up with narrowed eyes.
    “Don’t touch me. Ever.” Anger boiled very near the surface.
    Liam ignored me and snaked an arm around my back, over my bulky coat. “As I remember, that’s not what you used to say. As a matter of fact, you used to beg me to--”
    I shoved my elbow deep into his side, and Liam bent over with an oomph of air. I leaned just close enough for him to hear me.
    “You’re a pig, Liam, and I don’t know what I ever saw in you.”
    I stalked up the rest of the path to the car, threw my bag into the passenger seat, climbed in and locked the doors,