Page 24

Chapter

Twenty-One

HADLEY

Hunter: Hey sis, how’s your summer going so far?

Hadley: Ugh, these classes are kicking my butt.

Hunter: That sucks, I’m sorry. Your roommates treating you okay?

Hadley: They are so sweet. It’s like I have a bunch of older brothers—that I actually like.

Hunter. Haha, you’re hilarious.

Hadley: I know!

I minimized how hard my classes are when I texted Hunter this morning. Theoretically, I knew it would be difficult to cram a semester’s worth of material into a summer class. But it’s one thing to know that. It’s another thing entirely to live it.

Sighing, I enter the apartment and drop my bag at the door. I need a couch to flop down on to properly convey my exhaustion, but instead, there’s a line of four fold-up camp chairs in the living room.

I sigh again. This is what I get, living with a bunch of dudes.

To be fair, I could go flop on my bed. But I’m lonely. I barely know anyone in my classes yet. I miss having Kendall, or Natalie, or Jasmine, or literally any other girl around. If I go hide out in my room, I won’t have anyone to talk to.

Is Jonas home? We’re not quite at the level where I let myself into his bedroom, although, god, I want to be. Because I’m pretty sure sex would solve my problems.

I scan the line of lawn furniture. Should I just go buy a couch? I try to flop in one of the camp chairs and almost knock it over, plus the arm rest stabs my thigh.

“Ow!”

At my outburst, Jonas pads down the hallway, his feet bare, and peers at me. At least he has a shirt on. I can barely hold it together when I see all that yummy skin. “You okay, Hads?”

Hads . I’ve never had a nickname before. I kind of love it.

I inhale, then exhale. “No. My classes are killing me, I miss my friends, I’m about to start my period, and this couch sucks.”

“It’s not a couch.” He gets bonus points for not batting an eye at the word period .

“Yeah, that’s the problem.”

He presses his lips together and nods, like he was having a silent conversation with himself. “I know what you need.”

“Is it ice cream?” I ask. Probably shouldn’t mention sex out loud when I don’t know who’s home. “Because I think that might help.”

“We could possibly incorporate it. But first, I have to know—do you have any allergies?”

I blink at his left-field question. “Um, no?”

“Good.” His slow, sexy smile spreads across his face and he holds out his hand to help me out of the chair. “Change into something you don’t mind getting dirty.”

I put my palm in his, a spark of awareness racing down my spine. I swallow. “What kind of dirty?”

“Not like that.” He blushes at the tone of my innuendo, dropping my fingers like I burned him. His shyness is adorable. Have I ever been with a guy who takes things slow? It’s sweet and novel. “Some mud, maybe. And tennis shoes.”

I’m intrigued. “Are we going running? Because normally I’d love that idea, but it’s really too hot outside right now. We should wait until later in the day.”

“Nope.” He gives me a smug look. “You’ll never guess, not in a million years. But it’s guaranteed to cheer you up.”

“Guaranteed, you say?” I raise a brow.

“And if not, I’ll take you out for ice cream.”

I hold out my hand for him to shake, relishing the contact. “Deal.”

“Puppies?!” I squeal, my spirits lifting instantly as I peer at the wriggling mass of furry puppies through the chain link door.

Jonas nods, his dark eyes twinkling. “Yep. Wanna pet them?”

“I absolutely do.” My heart pounds faster. Probably endorphins due to the cuteness overload. And okay, maybe his smile, too.

He opens the door and ushers me in. A small herd of fluffy puppies rush over to sniff us.

“How old are they?” I ask, squatting to pet them.

An adventurous one leaps up and licks my face. It surprises me and I lose my balance, landing on my butt. But I don’t care. Another one climbs into my lap, and I comb my fingers through their soft fur.

“The vet here thinks they are at least eight weeks. Old enough to leave their mom.”

I don’t know a lot about dog breeds, but based on their longish coats, I’d guess they are some kind of Golden Retriever mix. “And someone just dropped them off here?”

Jonas sits beside me and scoops a puppy to cuddle. “Sadly, no. Someone left them in a box on the side of the road.”

“Asshole.” I mutter the word, like I can’t swear in front of impressionable puppies.

Jonas frowns and nods. “Right?”

“But seriously, what kind of monster does that?”

“I don’t know, it’s not something I’ll ever understand.” He lifts a puppy to his face and nuzzles his nose against theirs. “But this is supposed to make you feel better. So how about you just focus on the adorableness?”

Jonas snuggling a puppy? Yeah, I can’t focus on anything else.

I shrug. “Okay. How did you know about this?”

Not meeting my gaze, he stares at the puppy in his lap. “I volunteer here sometimes.”

He volunteers at the animal shelter? My ovaries might explode.

“That’s really sweet,” is all I can manage.

“I don't like to make a big deal about it, though.” Setting the puppy down, he stands and brushes off his shorts. “So you don’t, like, need to bring it up in front of the guys or whatever.”

“You worried this will damage your street cred? Because I heard all about how you got everyone listening to princess music.”

Jonas laughs. “I suppose that’s true. My street cred is already shot to pieces. Now that you’ve had puppy time, you wanna take some dogs on a walk with me?”

“Sure.” Getting up, I say goodbye to my new best puppy friends and follow Jonas.

I watch him out of the corner of my eye as we get two dogs leashed up. He’s quietly competent without being cocky, gentle without being weak. It’s possibly the hottest thing I’ve ever seen.

He leads us outside, and I can’t help but smile when the sun hits my face. It’s so humid, it’s like swimming through an oven. But I don’t care, I love summer.

Jonas is right. This is exactly what I needed. In fact, this might be the most perfect moment I’ve had in a while.

The kiss he and I shared the other day flashes in my mind as I contemplate my happiest memories. That’s top of my list, too. And what’s the common denominator?

The dog tugs on the leash, pulling me back to reality. Which is good, because I’m in danger of jumping Jonas at the animal shelter and climbing him like a tree.

It was my idea to keep things quiet between us. That boundary will make it easier in the fall, when everything ends, and we go back to being just friends.

But the puppies won’t tell, right?

“Come’ere.” I say, fisting his shirt in my hand and tugging him close, bringing his lips to mine. I kiss him until we’re breathless, and he pulls away, panting. His eyes are glazed with lust, and my stomach flips. I put that look on his face.

God, this is going to be the best summer ever.