Page 21 of All of You

“I was supposed to be out at four-thirty. So, that’s when she’ll be here.” Her eyes drop to my abs as she pulls her hair into a ponytail.

“Call your mom, tell her I’ll bring you home. I insist.”

She narrows her eyes at me. “Youinsist?”

“Is that weird? If you’d rather wait in the heat, be my guest, I was trying to be nice,” I say, eyeing the door behind her as Vivianna’s silver hair passes by.

“Take the ride Ms. Dukes!” Viv’s voice sings out.

Delia pinches the bridge of her nose and squints her eyes. “Fine.”

“Fine,” I echo. “Anything else?”

Confusion wrinkles her face as she asks, “What? No. Why?”

I smirk at her. “You’re staring.”

Her face goes red and she rolls her eyes.

“Am not.” She pivots in place and stomps out of sight. She is so damn adorable when she’s mad.

Eleven

Delia

Langdon is infuriating. Thehot-and-he-knows-it, kind of infuriating. I call mom’s phone but she doesn’t answer so I leave her a message telling her that I have a ride home because I’m out early and not to come get me.

At three, Vivianna comes out of the back room to chit-chat with me and tells me I did great for my first day. It makes me feel like I did not do great. I mean great is great…. great for your first day is… mediocre. But I try not to let it get to me. I hit the bathroom quickly before Langdon comes inside.

The mirror reflects a soggy mess. I look completely wrecked by the heat. My hair is slicked back into a ponytail, my shirt is dirt smeared and stuck to me in unflattering ways and my arms are streaked with soil marks even though I quickly tried to wash them before coming in to work the register. Ugh.

I wet my hands and wipe under my eyes, hoping to cool down a bit and wash some of the soil away. Heath, I meanGramps, is going to take one look at me and make me shower outside because one shower and his tub will be a brown mess. I push out of the bathroom and stride into the shop. What was I thinking, taking Langdon up on his offer to drive me home? He’s leaning against the register counter, shirt on.Damn.He looks good without it. Who am I kidding, he looks good in it too. I cringe internally.You do not need a crush, you do not need a crush.

“Ready?” he asks.

“Yup. Let’s go.”

I follow up out the back door and down to his car. A beat-up pickup truck, only slightly older than the one Gramps drives.

Langdon hops in his side and I walk around the bed to my side, mildly disappointed that he didn’t get my door for me. But why would he? This isn’t a date.

“How long have you worked at RootBound?” I ask buckling.

“Four days.” He glances at me and laughs.

“Wait what? Now who’s stalking who?” I ask.

“You’re still stalking me. I’m still the senior employee in this scenario. My first day was the Sunday we met.”

He twists the key and the engine roars to life along with the radio. XX blares before he turns it down. Of course, he listens to XX. Basic.

“I didn’t peg you for a plant guy,” I say.

Langdon shrugs. “I’m not. It wasn’t exactly my choice of employment.”

Okay, well whatever. I guess most teenage jobs aren’t exactly dream gigs. “Got it.”

Langdon peels out of the lot and onto Main Street.