Page 4

Chapter four

Evie

The second the door closes behind Rhett, my body relaxes, my shoulders drop away from my ears, and my pulse slows to a normal rhythm.

If I thought I had a handle on the annoying crush I’ve harboured for far too long, all it took was him opening the door with no shirt on, and deliciously rumpled hair, to tell me I was very wrong.

“I am in so much trouble,” I mumble under my breath. The puppy wanders over and sits down at my feet after abandoning the mess she was making drinking water from a clear plastic container Rhett must have put out for her.

I smile down at her and bend over to ruffle her floppy ears. If I had to guess, she’s at least part Great Dane, but definitely not purebred. There’s a few other things mixed in, giving her the sweetest face, floppy ears, and big gangly body. She looks like her parts don’t quite fit together, yet they do, and wow, do I ever empathize with that feeling. The difference is, she’s got a good chance of growing into herself. Whereas I’m meant to be fully grown, if you will, and still don’t feel like I fit.

I missed a lot of school as a kid, thanks to frequent hospital admissions. Not that I struggled to catch up, school came easy to me. But being absent so much made it hard to form friendships. To say nothing of the years when mean, ignorant kids thought asthma was contagious, so I was often avoided altogether.

But it’s all over now. I’m finished with school, master’s degree in hand. There’s nothing between me and the real world.

And that real world is already knocking me sideways with my current housing and employment situation. While special education is a field with a desperate need for qualified teachers, finding a job that lets me stay near the city, near Kai, doesn’t seem to be as simple as I hoped it would be. And over the last two years, I’ve come to love it here, the combination of mountains on one side and ocean on the other, the vibrancy of the city, and the easy access to quieter areas to explore outside the city limits. Everything is here, including my brother and my friends. And I don’t want to leave.

Scooping up the puppy, I move to the pile of my belongings Rhett helped me move in this morning. I hate clutter, and a quick look around Rhett’s apartment makes it clear he’s a tidy person as well. Which means I need to get all of this moved into the bedroom he pointed out before he left.

It doesn’t take long, a benefit to not having a lot of stuff, and I’ve got my clothes put away, my stack of books I want to read on the nightstand, and my few photos set up on the dresser. One is of my grandmother and me, one of my entire family, Kai in his college baseball uniform the year he got scouted to his first major league team, and one of Lina, Carlee, and me from three years ago when I let them drag me out to celebrate my twenty-first birthday. I smile at the photo, remembering how I tried to argue that with the legal drinking age being nineteen in Canada, turning twenty-one was no big deal. But they teamed up against me, and treated me to a lovely dinner, then dancing at a salsa club. We had an amazing time, and our happiness is captured perfectly in the photo the dance instructor at the club took of the three of us.

That was also the night I lost my virginity, to a man I had been dancing with at the club. That part was less than amazing. Fine, I guess, but not enough to make me desperate to do it again. The next couple of times were just as lackluster.

Carlee likes to tease me that I’ve got everything in my life figured out except my social life. And she’s not wrong, it just hasn’t been a priority for me.

And it won’t be until I have a job and am out of Rhett’s apartment. That’s for certain.

I wander back out into the main living area, now free of my boxes and bags, and take another look around.

Rhett’s apartment is immaculate. Everything is tasteful, yet simple, clean lines and sparse decorations. There’s something missing, but I can’t quite put my finger on it as I move slowly around the room, pausing at the fireplace mantle lined with photos. Most are of him and his mom, but there’s a few of him with Kai and some other Tridents players. One, in the largest frame, front and center, is a much older photograph of a young Rhett with who I’m guessing is his father. Rhett’s in a baseball uniform, his dad beaming with pride, as they stand side by side with their arms slung across each other’s shoulders.

Kai’s mentioned before that Rhett’s father is no longer around, but it’s clear that at some point, he was an important person in his life. My heart aches for his loss. I can’t imagine what it would feel like to lose a parent so young.

I move on from the photographs, my gaze landing on a pair of headphones on a side table. Then it hits me. What’s missing are books.

There’s not a single book in the apartment. No bookshelf filled half with knickknacks and half with books, no coffee-table books, nothing. Odd, because I swear I can remember Kai saying something to my dad the last time our parents were out visiting about a book he read that Rhett recommended. It stayed in my mind because the book, a historical science fiction, sounded fascinating and I wanted to check the university library for a copy.

But if Rhett’s a reader, then where are the books? Or an e-reader or tablet? Anything?

It’s hardly a question I need an answer for, but my curiosity gets the better of me, and before I know it, I find myself standing outside his bedroom, my hand on the doorknob.

It would be rude of me to snoop in his bedroom. I know this. Still… My hand turns the knob, and I push the door open just a little. Just enough to look around, taking in the large bed, covered in a deep forest green blanket. The walls are a deep grey, so dark they almost look black. The only thing that seems out of place is a pair of pajama pants — the very ones he answered the door in earlier — dropped on the end of the bed.

And not a book in sight.

I close the door quietly, which is stupid, seeing as there’s no one here except me and the puppy.

Crap, the puppy. Hurrying back to the living room, I find her sprawled out on the floor, eyes closed, her little belly lifting up and down slowly.

I look around but don’t see any messes I need to clean up. Good. As soon as she wakes, we’ll go outside for a potty break, then I had better get to the pet store and grab a few supplies.

Which means she’ll need a name, I suppose. I sit sideways in a comfortable-looking chair, draping my legs over the arm so I can watch her sleep.

“What should I call you? Something elegant, I think. Classy, ladylike,” I murmur quietly over the light sounds of puppy snores. “Hmm, how about Maeve? No, that’s too fussy. Jasmine? Nope, definitely not right.” I study her for a few more seconds before it comes to me. “Ruth. Your name is Ruth. Or maybe Ruthie.”

As if she hears me, she yawns, stretches, and her little eyes slowly blink open. I get off the chair and pick up the leash from the kitchen counter. “Come on, Ruthie girl. Let’s go shopping.”

I’m on the floor, Ruth in front of me, as we attempt to work on some obedience commands when the front door opens. Instantly breaking the sit I finally got her into, Ruth bounds over to Rhett.

There’s no denying how appealing it is to watch a big handsome baseball player squat down and kiss the top of a puppy’s head. And when he straightens with her in his arms, smiling at her excited wriggles, something in my chest flip-flops .

No matter how much I want to pretend I’m not attracted to him, no matter how much I want to insist that my focus is on my future career and not on men, being this close to Rhett without the buffer of my brother or my family around is challenging my self-control.

But I won’t break. I won’t give in to temptation and put myself out there again. One round of mortification at the hands of Rhett Darlington is enough, thank you very much.

“Aw, c’mon, little lady, did you have to do that?” Rhett grumbles, holding Ruth away from his chest with a frown. A wet spot is evident on his shirt, and I jump up to stand and go to take her from him.

“Sorry, I swear I took her out for a potty break not that long ago.” I’m clipping on her leash to take her out again when Rhett puts his hand out and ruffles Ruth’s ears.

“It’s fine, Evangeline. She’s a puppy, they often lose control of things when they get excited. No harm, no foul.”

He flashes us a quick grin before pulling off his baseball hat, and then his shirt. My mouth goes dry as all of those muscles covered in golden, tan skin come into view, far closer to me than is comfortable. Gah, it’s not fair he looks like that and makes me shiver when he says my full name.

“Right. Yeah. Well, I’ll take her out again anyway before bed. And I got some pee pads for overnight so we should be good.” I whirl around, shove my feet into the sandals I left at the front door, and leave before I do something stupid, like drool.

Ruth yips excitedly in my arms, and I turn a half-hearted scowl down at her as we wait for the elevator. “Really, Ruthie? Peeing on the man nice enough to give us somewhere to stay for the next couple of months? Not cool. Not at all. He thinks you’re cute now, but if you pee on him, or eat his shoes, or whatever other things puppies do that they shouldn’t, we’re going to be out on our butts.”

My lecture only earns me another yip, and I sigh. Stepping into the elevator, I slowly lower her to the floor once the doors close. When she doesn’t whine, just plops her cute butt down, I praise her and pull out one of the little treats I have stashed in my pockets with a smile.

We’re making progress on conquering her elevator fear. Now to conquer my fear of Rhett somehow discovering my crush is alive and well.

When Ruthie and I get back upstairs after a quick walk, Rhett’s changed into a black shirt and his pajama pants. He’s in the kitchen, pouring a glass of water.

“I see you went shoppin’ for the pup. Does she have a name yet?” he asks, his tone perfectly friendly and nothing more.

I nod, moving to one of the kitchen stools. “Ruth. Or Ruthie. I haven’t decided which I like better.”

He flashes me an approving smile. “Good name. It suits her.”

“Thanks.”

An awkward silence settles over us, and even Ruthie’s quiet for once.

“I’ll be —”

“I wanted —”

My cheeks heat. “Sorry. You go first.”

“Ladies first.” Rhett inclines his head, taking a sip of water.

I try not to lick my lips as I watch his throat as he swallows. It shouldn’t be sexy, but on him, it is. And I’m in so much trouble.

“All I wanted to say was thank you again for letting me stay. And Ruthie. I know it might seem crazy taking in a dog when I don’t even have a job, but I couldn’t leave her in the shelter. I never thought that Kai’s building might not allow her. So I guess I also want to apologize for putting you in this position of having to let us stay. I’d like to help out anyway I can, when you’re traveling or whatever,” I finish lamely, realizing I’ve just said way more than necessary. Where’s the strong, smart, independent version of myself that defended her master’s thesis with confidence just a week ago?

Not here, that’s for sure.

“Evie, it’s all good. I love dogs, so havin’ Miss Ruthie is no problem at all. And I’m always happy to help Yami. And you. Make yourself comfortable while you’re here. But speaking of travel, you know we leave for a few days tomorrow. I wanted to make sure you have everything you need while me and Yami are gone.”

I nod quickly. “I’ll be fine, thank you. I can take care of myself.” Wait, that sounded rude. “And the apartment, of course. While you’re gone,” I hurry to add.

He nods again, and my head bobs up and down.

“Alright then, I guess I’ll head to bed. Early start tomorrow. See ya in a few days.”

I watch him crouch down to love on Ruthie again, lucky dog , then straighten and saunter down the hall to his bedroom.

I wait a few minutes, even after hearing his door snick shut, before scooping up Ruth and making my way to my own room. I set her inside, then duck across the hall to the bathroom, making quick work of my nighttime routine .

Back in my room, Ruthie’s sniffing the dog bed I bought for her. I lift her into it, and she circles a few times before collapsing into a pile. Based on what Rhett said about his night with her, I have very low expectations for how much sleep I might get tonight.

But while she’s calm, I might as well try to rest. Climbing into the soft, luxurious bed covered in a beautiful grey and white floral duvet, I lie down and let out a slow breath.

One day down, sixty or so more to go.