Page 81 - The Love Hypothesis

“Hey. If I have to choose between you and pumpkin spice latte, maybe

we should rethink our arrangement.”
He eyed her cup like it contained radioactive waste. “Maybe we should.”
He held the door open for her as they exited the coffee shop, taking care

not to come too close to her drink. Outside it was starting to drizzle.
Students were hastily packing up their laptops and notebooks from the patio

tables to head to class or move to the library. Olive had been in love with
the rain since as far back as she could remember. She inhaled deeply and

filled her lungs with petrichor, stopping with Adam under the canopy. He
took a sip of his chamomile tea, and it made her smile.

“Hey,” she said, “I have an idea. Are you going to the fall biosciences
picnic?”
He nodded. “I have to. I’m on the biology department’s social-and-

networking committee.”
She laughed out loud. “No way.”

“Yep.”
“Did you actually sign up for it?”

“It’s service. I was forced to rotate into the position.”
“Ah. That sounds . . . fun.” She winced sympathetically, almost laughing

again at his appalled expression. “Well, I’m going, too. Dr. Aslan makes us
all go, says it promotes bonding among lab mates. Do you make your grads
go?”

“No. I have other, more productive ways of making my grads
miserable.”

She chuckled. He was funny, in that weird, dark way of his. “I bet you
do. Well, here’s my idea: we should hang when we’re there. In front of the

department chair—since he’s ‘monitoring.’ I’ll bat my eyelashes at you;
he’ll see that we’re basically one step away from marriage. Then he’ll make

a quick phone call and a truck will drive up and unload your research funds
in cash right there in front of—”
“Hey, man!”

A blond man approached Adam. Olive fell silent as Adam turned to
smile at him and exchanged a handshake—a close bros handshake. She