“Hey, partner.” She crept up and startled me. “Looks like fun, doesn’t it?”
I couldn’t tell if she was being sarcastic or not.
“You know I have another class after this, right? I can’t give you a ride home today.”
Brushing past her, I made my way up the stairs of the large lecture hall. If I hurried, I’d have just enough time to grab something to eat first. I heard tiny feet working to keep up with me.
“Will you be around tonight? I’d love to get started on this if we could,” she said.
She struggled to keep time with my strides. As I was about to exit the building, she gripped my arm. Turning toward her, I wanted to be mad. I wanted to spew harsh words in her direction, because she still hadn’t once apologized for how she’s treated me since moving in.
But when I looked down, she had the slightest bit of fear in those sparkling green eyes. And I didn’t like that. I didn’t like that she’d grown to expect the worst of me in the short time we’d known each other. This wasn’t who I was.
I came here to prove that I’d changed.
Instead, to this girl, someone who had let me into her home, I’d been a total asshole.
She had to be more than a foot shorter than me. Looking down at her in a coat that engulfed her tiny frame and the pom-pom hat that covered most of her short dark locks, I noticed a few things I hadn’t before.
Like the fullness of her strawberry-pink lips. And how, even when she wasn’t talking, she kept them open the slightest bit. Sometimes her tongue slid out and licked her bottom lip while she listened to people she talked to.
It was sexier than I wanted it to be, her lip all glistening and shit.
Because she was doing it now as she waited for me to answer her.
“Yeah,” I said. “I’ll be around. I think it would be good to get a head start, too. Looks like this will be a kickass first project.”
I smiled down at her.
“How are you getting home?” I asked.
She looked dumbstruck. As if she couldn’t believe I’d strung several sentences together without calling her Tink.
I was stunned, too.
“I, uh…” she stammered. “I’m meeting Macie and we’re taking the bus. We decided that last night, once we knew we were all coming to campus together. Her and I are getting lunch first.”
Solid plan, neither of them would be alone.
“OK, good. See you at home.”
Spinning on my heels, I took off. Because I think both Ava and I knew we wouldn’t survive any more niceties.
Today was a lot.A lot of school was thrown at me. Aside from the marketing project, there’s an exam coming up in my business law class. Christ, an exam in the third week of the semester. And then there’s the amount of anxiety I dealt with this morning.
Let’s not forget the damn feelings that swarmed my insides about the tiny vixen I’m living with. That took me by surprise.
It warranted a trip to the gym. My workout was intense and long, but it helped. I wasn’t one to use the showers there, and I didn’t pack a bag, anyway. So I was a sweaty, smelly mess whenI finally arrived home, which was hours later than I anticipated. It was nearing eight o’clock already.
Downstairs was quiet, but I heard voices and footsteps from above. I wasn’t alone, which was good. I didn’t want to be alone. Torn between eating or showering first, my grumbling stomach won the fight. Regardless of the time, I needed to eat.
Grilled chicken, rosemary potatoes, and roasted carrots.
My diet would not suffer simply because I was away at school. Sliding open the back door, I headed out to light the grill. It took a few attempts, most likely since it was so cold out, but I finally saw the red and orange glow of flames.
Upon returning inside, I was stunned to find a strange guy digging around in our refrigerator.
“Can I help you?” I asked, more than ready to kick this intruder out if needed. I was fairly certain neither Macie nor Ava were seeing anyone, and it most certainly wasn’t Ty.
