As my feet carried me away from Kayla, I had to remind myself to stick with the plan.
Play it cool. Don’t look back.
But damn, I wanted to turn around to see her one more time. She’d never been more beautiful than she was today. Happy and just so… free.
She’d let her hair go natural and her skin was a little darker than I’d ever seen it before. Like light brown sugar. Sweet, mouthwatering, and gorgeous. I could see bikini-shaped tan lines peeking out from behind her tank top. That, combined with how her green eyes stood out against the contrasting colors of her skin and hair, made me want to lose control.
If I’d stayed for one more second, I would’ve mauled her right there.
That wasn’t part of the leave-her-wanting-more strategy I’d committed to.
Holding her and having her hands on me had been amazing, and I knew she wanted me to kiss her. It was obvious in the way she looked at me, but it wasn’t the right time or place. It needed to be perfect.
She deserved better than getting groped by a hornball in public. Romance and shit.
Even though my leg was a little stiff, I passed the bus stop, unwilling to take Pierre on as a service dog. Because then everyone would know there was something wrong with me.
I didn’t want to wear my weakness on my sleeve. People preyed on it. People judged it.
I couldn’t let that happen here.
I’d walked a lot today—first to my classes, then back to my apartment to get Pierre, then to the quad to meet up with Kayla.
But it was good exercise, and it was such a nice day. The warm sun felt good on my skin, but even the sunny skies couldn’t wipe out the persistent nagging feeling that ate at me as I made the seven-block trek to my apartment.
Cutting things short with Kayla on purpose left me unsettled and anxious. Right before I’d left, disappointment was written all over her face. She looked at me like I had let her down. That cut deep, worse than the twinge of pain in my knee.
Just as I shut the door to my place, my phone rang.
Jimmy. Exactly the person I needed to talk to.
“Hey,” I answered as I hung Pierre’s leash on the back of one of the kitchen chairs. “Bon garcon,” I told him with a pat on the head. Good boy. “Rapporte las eau.”
“Are you speaking French?” Jimmy asked.
“I was talking to Pierre.”
“Oh, yeah. Almost forgot about the mutt.”
“He’s not a mutt,” I defended.
“He better not be for as much as Mom and Dad spent.”
I just grunted because I had no idea what they paid—they wouldn’t tell me no matter how many times I asked, insisting it wasn’t important.
After kicking off my shoes, I sat down on the gray couch. A wet nose nudged my hand, and I took the cold bottle of water from Pierre’s mouth. “Thanks, buddy.”
“So how’s your first day as the big hotshot on campus?”
I scoffed around my gulp of water, resulting in an unattractive gurgling sound. “I don’t know about hotshot, but it’s been a good day. Had my first two classes and I saw Kayla for a few minutes.”
“How’d that go?” he asked, and I knew he wasn’t referring to my classes.
“Great. I think my attempt at playing hard to get was a success.”
“Your attempt at what?” Jimmy’s voice was strained.
“Hard to get. I only hung around for about ten minutes, then I left.”
“Dude.” I could actually hear him smack his forehead on the other end of the line. “Hard to get? No. Why would you do that?”
“Because I’m supposed to?”
“No.”
“But you said, ‘just be cool,’” I reminded him. Jimmy had come back to Ohio for a short visit last weekend and I’d spilled everything about Kayla. He’d given me some brotherly advice, and I trusted him. After all, he’d always had a knack for attracting the ladies. “Plus, that’s what my internet search said.”
“Okay, one: Don’t ever look for dating advice on the internet. Sex stuff? Yeah, go to town on that shit. But when it comes to how women work? Absolutely not. And two: What I meant was, be yourself.”
“Then you should’ve said that,” I shot back, getting flustered. “If you tell me to ‘be cool,’ the last thing I’m going to do is be myself.” I ran a hand over my head, still not used to the short length. “Because I’m so… not that.”
He growled because he hated it when I put myself down. “I’m gonna ignore the self-deprecation and tell you this—always be yourself and go after what you want. How do you think I got Mackenna? By being coy? No. I pursued her hard. I’m not telling you to stalk Kayla or anything, but don’t act uninterested.”
I got out a piece of paper to take notes, because this was some complicated shit.
How To Get Kayla
- Don’t stalk her.
- But go after her.
- Always be yourse—
“Are you writing this down?” Jimmy asked with a laugh.
I scowled into the phone. “How else am I supposed to remember what to do? You’re giving me some serious mixed signals right now.”
“Not any worse than the mixed signals you’ve given her,” he pointed out. The asshole. I hated it when he was right. “You guys have been talking all summer, and the first chance you had to see her, you blew her off.”
When he put it like that, it sounded really bad.
Groaning, I dropped my head into my hand. “Shit. Shit. I really fucked up.”
“Deep breaths, man. When will you see her again?”
“She said she would meet me at a party tonight. I’ll make it better. I can fix it.” I really hoped I could fix it.
“Good. Listen, she liked you before, right? So don’t play games with her. Just. Be. You.”
Relief flowed through me, because that was way easier than trying to be strategic in my interactions with Kayla.
Jimmy was right. She liked me when I had nothing going for me.
Now I was better-looking, my limp had improved, and I was a shoe-in with the best fraternity at McAdams.
Pierre nudged my hand, and I gave him a reassuring scratch behind the ear.
He didn’t like it when I got stressed or when I was in pain. He could always tell, even when I tried to hide it. I’d never been so emotionally connected to an animal before. We understood each other. And it helped that he was loyal as fuck. It was almost like he existed just for me.
Over the past week and a half, he’d become an important part of my life, and not just because he could do things for me. We went on walks together, played fetch in the backyard, and hung out while we watched movies. Man’s best friend, indeed.
“Okay,” I told Jimmy. “I’ll be myself.”
“Atta boy. Well, I gotta go since it’s about time for me to pursue my own girl.”
“Pursue Mackenna?” I asked, confused. “But you already got her.”
“Ah, see that’s another thing you need to learn. The wooing doesn’t end once you’ve got the girl; then you have to keep her.”
I let out a sigh, because I was in way over my head. I had no idea how I could be related to such a Casanova. Jimmy had hit the genetic jackpot—outgoing, athletic, good-looking, and he had charisma in spades. Good thing he was one of my favorite people in the world or else I’d be tempted to hate the guy.
“Love ya,” I told him, then followed the sentimental statement with, “even if you did give me bad advice at first, Jerk Face.”
“Shut up.” He laughed. “Love you, too, Doofus.”
After ending the call, I immediately sent a text to Kayla, hoping I hadn’t done any irreparable damage.
Me: Sorry for cutting things short. Can’t wait to see you later.
I’d just gotten my ice wrap out of the fridge when she responded.
Kayla: It’s okay.
Damn, I hated text. Was she pissed? I couldn’t interpret her tone in just two words and a period. I read it several times as I made my way back to the couch, overanalyzing every letter.
Placing the cold pack right where I needed it, I secured the Velcro around my thigh, then propped my leg up on the coffee table.
Me: Guess what.
Kayla: What?
Me: You’re still my favorite.
The five smiley faces she sent told me I’d said the right thing.
Looking down at my how-to list on the end table, I reached into my pocket and took out the gift she’d given me. As I opened the baggie, glitter flew up into the air like dust.
I laughed. Then I coughed because I’d inhaled some of the sparkly green specks.
Amused, I placed the pet rock on top of my list, finding it useful as a paperweight. More glitter sprinkled onto the table top and I decided to leave it.
I finished filling out the third line, then added a fourth.
4. Tell her she’s your favorite as often as possible.
Now I just needed to make her mine.