Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 72990 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 72990 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 365(@200wpm)___ 292(@250wpm)___ 243(@300wpm)
And Blake? He has an edginess to him. He’s all smiles, but there’s a darkness behind his eyes that tips him into devilish territory. Tattoos have always done it for me, and since Blake started work, he’s slowly covering more of his gorgeous, ripped body with ink.
“You’re thinking about them, aren’t you?” Ellie says, grinning and shaking her head.
“I might be,” I admit, pressing my lips together to stifle my smile.
“You know, there’s a saying that I’ve always really liked,” Ellie says.
“Oh yeah, and what is that?”
“While the cat’s away, the mouse will play, except in your case, Travis is the cat and you are the mouse. You have nothing to lose.”
She’s right, of course. I don’t really have anything to lose. Since we all traipsed through the awkward years of puberty, I haven’t hung out with the Nowak brothers much. They’ve always been there, as Travis’s buddies, though.
Now Travis is adulting in Germany, maybe it would be possible to find out if my brother’s best friends are everything I’ve fantasized they are. Travis never has to find out. When he returns home, things can go back to the way they were.
We could go back to being neighbors who nod at each other as we cross paths. And whatever we do could just be relegated to memories we recall in the future when we’re old and gray and feel better for reminiscing on the stupid things we did in our youth.
3
KAIN
When somebody touches my shoulder while I’m in the line in the cafeteria, I expect it to be one of my teammates, ready to ask me to grab them lunch too. When I whirl around to find Gabriella behind me, I’m momentarily lost for words.
She looks like a vision, with the sunlight streaming through the windows behind her and her golden hair hanging straight over her shoulders. She also looks way more amused than I’d have expected with our last encounter still fresh in both our minds.
“Is standing around with your mouth hanging open a new thing for you?” she asks, then uses her index finger to gently push my chin up until my lips are closed. “Better.” She blinks her black-rimmed, almond-shaped eyes and folds in her lips to hide her smile.
My brain has seized up, realizing she’s casually referencing yesterday’s incident without anger or malice. In fact, Gabriella Cross seems positively amused.
Interesting.
“Well, to be fair to me, I had a good reason yesterday.”
“Yeah, you did.” Her cheeks pink, making her appear a little more human. Even so, I’m still a little in awe of her from this close. All the years of thinking she’s pretty are coiled up in my belly, ready to unsettle me.
“So, I should probably apologize profusely and explain why we burst into your room unannounced like three Neanderthals.”
“It’s okay,” she says, raising her hands. “Mom told me that you were helpfully clearing Travis’s room, and I wasn’t the quietest. I guess you were coming to my aid.”
I snort, taking two paces to the left to catch up with the others in the line. “Not the kind of aid you needed, though.” The words come out before my brain has computed how they sound, and now it’s my turn to blush. Well, I’m not sure it’s even possible for me to blush. Too much beard and the tan I carry year-round from all the outdoor training I do.
“Yeah,” she says, and if I’m not mistaken, her voice has taken a breathy turn.
Blake’s suggestion barrels through my mind as I’m asked what I want by the server. “Burger and fries,” I say. “And whatever she’s having.”
“Same,” Gabriella says, and we both watch as our lunch is heaped messily together.
My stomach rumbles noisily at the sight of cooked food. It’s not going to be that delicious. I know from experience. The bun is powdery and the patty too smooth. The fries have been sitting under warming lights so have lost their crisp. But it’s better than anything we make at home.
I recall Dalton’s ridiculous suggestion that we ask Gabby to cook for us with embarrassment. I’m embarrassed that I would love it to happen. How pathetic is that?
Taking both plates, I rest them together on my tray. It’s presumptuous to assume she’ll sit with me because I pay for her lunch, but I’m hopeful. It suddenly seems ridiculous that I’ve known this girl since she wore onesies that sagged with her diapers, and we go to the same university and never hang out.
Maybe that’s about to change.
“So, Blake and Dalton send apologies too,” I say, wanting to turn the conversation back to yesterday.
“That’s sweet,” she says. “I don’t need apologies, though. Just don’t tell my brother.”
Shooting her a serious look, I shake my head. “We would never mention it to anyone.”
“Okay. Good.”
I pay for the food and head to an empty table by the windows, and Gabriella trails behind me. When I take a seat, she does too, and I say an internal prayer of thanks to whichever deity has shined a lucky light on me today.