Never in my life had I been kissed like that; it was possessive and rough, and I desperately wanted a repeat. Shaking my head, I screamed at myself mentally—what on earth was I doing? A stranger kissed me without permission, declared himself to be my keeper, then vanished?
At least he had given my taser back.
I didn’t bother to stick around. Bolting upstairs, I grabbed my belongings and hightailed it out of the library. With my eyes on the floor, I didn’t even look at my surroundings as I rushed back to my dorm.
Thewalk flew by, my mind unable to stop replaying how his lips felt against mine.
Once inside, I locked the door, took my desk chair, and shoved it under the handle for extra security. When I was happy it was secure, I padded over to my fridge to grab a soda.
Only, when the fridge door swung open, instead of finding my delicious Chinese takeout leftovers, everything wasgreen.
All my food was gone, replaced by leafy veggies and chicken. My cans of soda had been replaced by bottles of water. Stuck to one of the bottles was a note:
You need to eat better.
There was no mistaking the scent that clung to the fridge.
“You fucking peppery bastard!” I snarled.
I was going to murder Spencer Whatever-His-Last-Name-Was.
Chapter 11
Flora
Glowering at my fridge full of ridiculously healthy produce, I picked up my phone and dialed a familiar number. A rage unlike any I was used to was rippling through my skin—and I needed to do something to rebel.
“This is late for you to be calling,” Summer answered, her voice quiet and holding that hint of exhaustion I was used to hearing.
“Well, you have a baby, so you never sleep,” I said, leaning against the counter and crossing an arm over me so I could balance my elbow on it. It was taking a lot of effort to keep the rage out of my voice. I wanted to wring Spencer’s neck.
“Well, you’re not wrong.” Summer laughed, thick with sarcasm. “He’s been in a sleep regression and waking up every two hours lately. I swear there isn’t enough iced coffee in the world.”
Chuckling, I raised my eyebrows. “Better you than me.”
“Gee, thanks. So, what’s this call for?” she asked, her tone dry, tinged with playful annoyance. “Even though I’m happy tochat, it’s unusual for you to call so late. She whose days are child-free and easy.”
“Ha, ha. Is that offer to go out still on the table?” I spun around, leaning both elbows on the counter, restlessness itching at me. “I appreciate you might not have time to get a sitter. But…”
Summer was silent for a moment.
“Wait… you want to go out, like to anactualbar, and meet people?” There was obvious shock in her voice, and I scrunched up my nose.
I cast a stern glance at my fridge once again before my resolve hardened, and I nodded to no one in particular.
“Hell yes, I do.”
A high-pitched squeal escaped Summer, and I had to yank the phone away before putting it to my ear again once she’d calmed down. “That is amazing! I’ll call a sitter right now. I’m sure she can be here—she said she had nothing on tonight. I’ll call you back in twenty minutes. Ugh, this is amazing. I need some baby-free time.”
Thirty minutes later, Summer was at my apartment, rifling through my wardrobe in a furious attempt to find me something decent to wear.
“There’s got to be something in here that works,” she muttered to herself, tossing things she didn’t approve of onto the floor.
Choosing my outfit for the night was her idea, yet I lacked bar-worthy clothes. She, on the other hand, was wearing a sparkly mini dress that made her legs look ten miles long and her boobs enormous.
She wasn’t going to be lacking attention, that was for sure.
I, however, didn’t own anything like that. I wasn’t one tostand out. Too much attention made my nerves prickle like I was having an allergic reaction.
