Page 69

The next morning, a friend of Noah’s from school called and invited him to come over and play Roblox. He thought I was the best sister ever for saying yes and promptly driving him across town, but really, it was totally selfish of me.

I love my brother with all my heart, but I also want to spend time with Mitch. Which is going to be difficult between our schedules and Noah’s. Noah is pretty much going to have a front-row seat to me and Mitch’s courtship, or whatever you wanna call it.

I barely make it through the front door after dropping Noah off before I’m calling Mitch to see if he’s free today. The other end of the line rings and rings. Remembering he had practice this morning, I leave a message.

“Hey Big Man. I’m surprisingly free today, sans brother. I thought you might like to squeeze in a sporadic date? Call me back when you can!”

On the off chance he’s free after practice, I run upstairs to take a quick shower. I even do the long routine I never take the time to do these days. Shaving, exfoliating, polishing, deep conditioning the hair. All the things Mitch won’t notice, but will make me feel like a goddess.

When I step out of the steamy shower, I wrap my body in one towel and my hair in another, then go to the closet. I find my favorite jeans quickly, but remember I put the rest of my clothes in the dryer this morning. They should be done by now. Making sure my towel is secure, I run down the stairs to the utility room where the washer and dryer are located. The dryer is still spinning round and round and I can hear a few hard items in there clunking around.

I roll my eyes. When you live with a boy under the age of thirteen, your dryer is essentially just a rock tumbler. The dryer comes to a stop and dings. I open it and grab the top I want to wear. It's a long-sleeved bodysuit in a caramel brown color, it makes my eyes stand out and I think Mitch will love it.

Running back up the stairs, I’m out of breath by the time I check my phone again. One missed call and a voicemail from Mitch. I press play while I dry my hair.

“Blondie,” his deep voice oozes over the phone. My spine tingles just from his voice. I’ll never delete this message. I will play it right before I fall asleep every night. “It’s your lucky day. I’m free after practice. Call me back so I know what time to pick you up.”

I walk back inside the bathroom, phone in hand, hang my towel up, and grab a comb for my hair. I call Mitch back and put the phone on speaker, then start combing through the tangles in my hair.

“Hey,” his voice rumbles through the phone and under my skin. I shiver, and not because I’m cold. “We finally caught each other.”

“Hey,” I say back. This game of phone tag is a reminder of how opposite our schedules, and lives, are.

“Can I pick you up in twenty minutes?” he asks and I nearly gasp. I look in the mirror and see my wet hair that’s only half combed out and my still towel-clad, dripping wet body.

“Have you ever known a woman to get ready in twenty minutes?”

A breathy laugh comes through the other line. “Okay, so how much time do you need?”

“Forty-five minutes?”

He sighs. “Alright, see you in forty-five.”

“Okay, and Mitch?”

“Yeah?”

“This is our first date.”

“The penthouse was our first date,” he argues.

I shake my head and make a nu-uh sound. “That was to schedule something for my brother. Doesn’t count.”

“You and I both know that’s not why I had you over.”

“Sorry, no time to argue. Gotta get ready for our first date.”

“Fine. See you in forty.” I can practically hear the eye roll in his voice.

“Forty-five,” I argue.

“Nope, you wasted five minutes arguing with me.”

I groan. “Fine, okay bye!” I hang up so I don’t lose any more time, and quickly finish combing and then blow drying my hair.

Forty minutes, exactly, later… my doorbell rings. Thankfully, I had a feeling Mitch Anderson would be punctual, and I’m ready to go. And I smell great.

Grabbing my coat off the peg in the entryway, I throw it over my shoulders and open the door. Mitch is standing there looking like a snack in dark-wash jeans, a green sweater, and a black leather jacket.