Forget his father. He wasn’t going to let the old man ruin his time in Shanghai.
The great thing about being more than 7,000 miles from home? You can do whatever the hell you want.
Chapter Three
“We have to decide.” Olivia Tang fished a pen out of her purse and scribbled on a cocktail napkin. “I’ll make pro/con lists. The holiday is coming up, and if we don’t book soon, everything will be full.”
“The holiday is in more than a month,” Sammy Yu pointed out. “We have time.”
“This is China. Do you know how many people will be traveling then? A lot,” Olivia said before anyone could answer. “I’d prefer to get our ducks in a row before we’re stuck camping in the woods instead of sunbathing on a beach.”
“Camping sounds good to me,” Sammy said. Olivia frowned. “Or we could go sunbathing. Sunbathing sounds good too.”
Farrah, Courtney Taylor, and Kris Carrera exchanged amused glances. Despite Olivia’s denials, it was obvious Sammy had a thing for her. Farrah didn’t know why Olivia bothered denying it. Sammy was good-looking, sweet, funny, and a math major at Harvey Mudd, one of the most elite liberal arts colleges in the country. He was every girl’s (and every Asian mother’s) dream.
“No need for pro/con lists when we can just vote.” Courtney placed her hand on Olivia’s cocktail napkin, forcing the other girl to stop writing.
“I enjoy making lists.”
“I know, sweetie, but we’re at a bar.” Courtney swept her arm around Gino’s. “Let’s knock this out so we can enjoy it. Show of hands if you want to go to Thailand.”
Farrah, Sammy, and Leo Agnelli raised their hands. After a longing look at her lists, Olivia raised her hand too.
“Japan?”
Kris.
“Philippines?”
Courtney and Nardo Crescas.
Nardo looked at Kris. “You don’t want to go to the Philippines? Your family is from there.”
“Exactly. I go every year.” Kris yawned. “No, thanks.”
“Luke mentioned earlier he wants to go to the Philippines too, so we’ll chalk that up to three. Either way, Thailand wins. We’ll book our tickets tomorrow.” Courtney clapped. “Yay! Now let’s do something fun to celebrate.”
“Wait. We haven’t decided where in Thailand we want to go,” Olivia protested.
“Liv.” Farrah wrapped an arm around her friend’s shoulder. “We’ll figure it out tomorrow.”
Olivia sighed. “Fine. But if we end up in a roach motel because everything else sells out, don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“I won’t.” Farrah didn’t care if they ended up sleeping in a car on the side of the road. All that mattered was she going to visit Thailand.
Four days in FEA and the semester was already more interesting than her entire freshman year at California Coast University.
Farrah’s stomach fluttered with excitement. Between the trips, the people, and all the inspo she was going to get for this year’s national student interior design competition, Shanghai was shaping up to be the best decision she’d ever made.
Having a great group of friends helped. Farrah met Olivia at the airport while waiting for the FEA shuttle to campus. Olivia struck up a friendship with Kris and Courtney, who introduced them to the boys (Courtney collected friends the way Mardi Gras partygoers collect beads), and the rest was history.
“Speaking of Luke, where is he?” Leo looked around for their missing friend. “He went to get his wallet ages ago.”
Farrah tried to ignore the second, more worrying flutter in her stomach, the one that happened every time Leo spoke. And every time she looked at him. Or thought about him.
Unlike Blake, Leo was one hundred percent her type. Finally, a boy who made her heart jump when he entered the room! A boy with curly dark hair and a knowing smile, who spoke five languages and could quote classic authors at the drop of a hat.
Too bad said boy was taken.
“I’m sure he’ll be here soon.” Courtney snuggled into Leo’s side.
You can say a lot of things about Courtney, but you can’t say she didn’t move fast. Farrah didn’t even get a chance to introduce herself the first night before Leo and Courtney started making out in the corner of 808.
They weren’t dating, per se, but they were hooking up with each other exclusively. In college, that was basically the same as dating.
Farrah sipped her drink and scanned the bar to avoid looking at the couple. Gino’s was like an American college bar on steroids. Throngs of students, local and international, crowded around tables heaped high with burgers, fries, and alcohol. The latest Top 40 hits from the States blasted through ceiling-mounted speakers, muffling the cheers from the two beer pong tables in the back. Graffiti from past patrons covered every wall and crept onto the ceiling.
Farrah zeroed in on the messages closest to their table. Be nice to your cab driver, someone advised in black marker, or they’ll leave you in the middle of nowhere. Above that was a random phone number, and above that, a simple hashtag: #ballsballsballs.
Gotta love bar graffiti.
Olivia leaned toward Farrah. “You ok?” she whispered. She was the only one who knew about Farrah’s crush.
“Yes,” Farrah lied. Courtney was her friend, Leo was Courtney’s (sort of), and that was that. Besides, Farrah wasn’t a stranger to unrequited love. She had a habit of falling for guys she couldn’t have, even when she didn’t know they were taken yet. “I’m over it.”
Olivia appeared unconvinced.
“What are you talking about?” Sammy poked his head over Olivia’s shoulder. “Tell me.”
“The mind-your-business gene.” Olivia smiled despite her words. It was hard not to smile around Sammy.
“C’mon, I won’t tell. I can keep a secret.” Sammy wiggled his eyebrows. “Is it something naughty?”
“You wish.” Farrah threw a fry at him. “Is sex the only thing guys think about?”
“No. Sometimes we think about food.” Sammy caught the fry and tossed it in his mouth.
Olivia jabbed her elbow into his side. He tickled her in response, causing her to squeal and nearly fall off the bench from laughter.
Farrah hid her grin behind her glass.
“Oh, look. There’s the Uncouth One himself, bearing gifts.” Kris raised her eyebrows. “Including one Blake Ryan. How thoughtful.”
Farrah’s head whipped around.
Luke bore down on them with a fishbowl cocktail in each hand and Blake in tow.
“Talking shit again, Kris?” Luke set the drinks on the table.
“You couldn’t possibly have heard me over the noise.”
“I didn’t need to. You’re always talking shit.”
Courtney laughed. “He has a point.”
“Whose side are you on?” Kris harrumphed.
“Yours, of course.” Courtney patted Kris’s hand. “You are my sorority sister.”
Besides Sammy and Nardo, who were best friends and classmates at Harvey Mudd, Kris and Courtney were the only ones in FEA who’d known each other before the program started.