Free Harvard Hottie by Annabelle Costa Page A

hamantaschen!”
    “Wow, you know what that is?”
    “Of course.” He grins at me. “I live in Newton. These things are like donuts over there.” He takes a bite and I see his brown eyes widen. He puts his hand over his mouth and I can tell he’s trying not to spit it out.
    “They’re a little hard,” I admit.
    “Jesus Christ,” Luke gasps. “Did you also tell your neighbor that you hate me and you want to kill me?
    Hmph . They’re not that bad.
    Luke hands me back my failed hamantaschen, then he pulls onto Harvard Street and I grab onto the edge of my seat as a guy practically leaps in front of the car and we come to a screeching halt. “Idiot,” he mumbles as he guns the engine again and we barely miss a woman with a baby carriage. This is why I hate driving in the Boston area. “Can you go slower?” I ask weakly.
    “Slower?” Luke makes a face. “How long have you lived here?  You gotta be aggressive, Ellie. Mow down the pedestrians. Kill or be killed.”
    “Have you ever been in a car accident?” I ask him.
    “Got rear-ended once in a traffic circle,” he says. “Total bullshit.”
    Twenty minutes later, Luke’s Mercedes pulls up in front of a smallish boutique. Even as I’m getting out of the car, I can see how expensive this place looks. I’m worried if I walk inside, the air will cost like $10 per breath. I wait as Luke grabs his wheelchair out of the back seat and pops the wheels back into place. As soon as he wheels up beside me, I lean over and whisper, “Are you sure about this place?”
    It’s not just that the place looks too expensive. It just looks too fancy. I’m worried that if I walk inside, they’ll ask me to leave now without making a scene. And although Luke does seem wealthy, I don’t know how the wheelchair will go over in a place like this.
    “Calm down, Ellie,” he says. “I buy all my suits here. If they can make me look marginally good, I think you’re in very capable hands.”
    Sure enough, the second we get inside, a pretty Asian girl in her late twenties rushes over to us with a warm expression on her face. “Luke!” she says. “You need a tux for the art gallery tonight?”
    Luke shakes his head. “No, thanks, Irene, I’m good. Ellie here needs a dress.”
    “Oh.” Irene looks me up and down with exactly the expression I’d expect to see from a person who worked in a swanky boutique like this. I know I shouldn’t let it get to me, but I feel my skin turning pink. On days like this, I’m glad I straighten my hair.
    “I told her you’d make sure she’ll look gorgeous for tonight,” Luke says.
    Irene turns back to Luke, who is obviously a favorite client, and nods enthusiastically. “Of course! What did you have in mind?”
    “I don’t know,” he says thoughtfully. “What would you like, Ellie?”
    “Um,” I say. Honestly, I’m not sure I’ve ever even been to an art gallery, much less been to an opening of some exhibit. I have no clue what I’m supposed to wear. “Whatever you think…”
    Irene rolls her eyes a bit, but I don’t think Luke catches it. “Why don’t you browse a bit and I’ll see what I’ve got in the back.”
    As Irene goes in the back, possibly to make fun of me while she pretends to search for clothes, I finger a simple white shirt that’s on display. I see the price tag hanging out and I gasp and jump back five feet.
    “What’s wrong?” Luke asks, alarmed.
    “That shirt is $350!”
    “Oh.” He shrugs. “So?”
    “So… it’s a white shirt! I could get that at Walmart for, like, $15. The exact same thing.”
    “Well, what are we doing here then?” Luke says. “ Lemme get the car and we’ll go to Walmart. We can pick up some donut holes for the party on the way.”
    I stick out my tongue at him and he laughs. I guess he’s right though. If you’re going to go someplace fancy, you gotta dress fancy. But I really kind of have to wonder what sort of world we’re living in where there are people who