Total pages in book: 139
Estimated words: 130380 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 522(@250wpm)___ 435(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 130380 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 652(@200wpm)___ 522(@250wpm)___ 435(@300wpm)
I pushed through the crowd, muttering excuse me as I did. I could have just waited and saw Mary at home later. She knew we were having a party tonight — was looking forward to it, it seemed. But the truth was I hadn’t had the chance to be alone with her since that night I cooked for her.
And something had shifted between us that night.
I didn’t know exactly what it was, but she no longer seemed like she hated breathing the same air as me. Actually, it was worse — because she was avoiding me.
Any time I’d walk in on her doing yoga with Braden or gaming on the couch with Kyle, she’d maybe utter two words to me before making an excuse to leave the room altogether. She wouldn’t meet my eyes, wouldn’t take the bait when I teased her.
Maybe that’s why I picked up my speed when I spotted her red shirt again, her long hair swept up in a messy ponytail that swung as she walked.
She slowed at a vendor selling candles, picking one up and inhaling deeply. I slowed my gait as I approached the tent.
“Getting that to cover up the stench of The Pit?”
Mary didn’t seem surprised by my entrance. In fact, she smiled a little as if she’d known I was coming before setting the candle down and turning to face me.
She about knocked me on my ass when she did.
Her eyes were kohl-lined and smoky, her plump lips painted the same red as her tank top. It set the green of her eyes off even more, the way her dark lashes fanned above and below them, and she offered me an easy smile like we were friends.
“Figured the party tonight would undo all the pleasant scents I’ve managed to bring in over the last month.”
“You’re not wrong. There’s a very specific odor that hangs around the next day. We could bottle it as Bud Light & Debauchery.”
“So four candles, then,” she said, piling them into her arms. But she only held them long enough to make the joke before she was putting them back down.
I noted that the bag on her arm was large, but mostly empty — like she was being very careful with what she purchased. After our conversation about her family the other night, I understood why. I didn’t imagine she made much as a tattoo apprentice.
It was hard for me to wrap my head around, already working and having the responsibility of bills the way she did. My tuition was covered from my football scholarship, and Mom and Dad easily picked up the rest — including giving me an allowance every month for food, shopping, going out, or whatever else I could want.
I didn’t know what it was like to struggle, to have to think twice before I bought something at the grocery store.
I made a mental note of the scents she had picked up before falling into step with her as she thanked the vendor and stepped out of the booth.
“So, you’re not ignoring me anymore, I see.”
Her brow arched, but she didn’t bother looking at me as she said, “To ignore you, I’d have to actually think about you.”
“Ouch,” I said, covering my heart with a palm. The little smile that found her lips brought me more relief than it should have.
“You smell, by the way,” she added with a wrinkled nose, assessing the sweat making my shirt stick to my chest. “I thought you didn’t have practice today.”
“Pee Wee.”
She blinked. “What?”
“I coach Little League,” I said with a laugh. “Well, I help coach — kind of like an assistant.”
Mary frowned a bit, like she didn’t quite believe me. “So, you just voluntarily give up more of your summer time to coach football to little kids?”
“I see I’ve surprised you again.”
She wouldn’t admit it, but I saw that I had in how she pressed her lips together against a smile. She turned away from me and toward a booth we were passing, and I tried not to care that she couldn’t possibly believe I’d do something like volunteer.
“How many people do you think will come tonight?” she asked.
I shrugged. “Hard to say. It’s summer semester, so not as many people as we have in the fall, that’s for sure. But with it being the holiday, and given that we have a rager every year… it’ll probably be a good turnout.”
She nodded, pausing for a moment to look at a booth selling custom cutting boards.
“We don’t have to have the party tonight,” I said when we started walking again. “If it would make you uncomfortable to have all those people in your space.”
“It’s your house,” she reminded me. “I’m shocked you haven’t had a party before this.”
“We usually would have, but…”
“Ugh, that makes me feel worse.”
I nudged her elbow. “Don’t. The truth is probably more that Kyle and Braden like to hang out with you and don’t want to share with the rest of the team or anyone else.”