A flash of white-blonde hair and a pink workout shirt coming out of one of the yoga classrooms gets my attention—right as Rio plants a hit straight to my eye.

“Shit!” I bark and back away into the corner. At this rate, I’ll really need to brush up on my skills if some chick in a tight top is all it takes to lose my focus.

I look back to the hallway, and my heart pounds as I realize it’s Delaney—I know it from the Princess Leia buns she likes to wear. I haven’t spoken to her since the library, and that was a few days ago.

She strides toward the gym foyer, and it looks as if she’s been crying.

“Delaney! Wait!”

She pauses and looks over her shoulder at me, and once again I’m floored by how gorgeous she is. Wearing black yoga pants and a pink tank her breasts strain against, she is damn amazing, even with a tear-streaked face. Her cheeks are red, and she hurriedly wipes at them as I grab a towel and jump down from the boxing platform.

Her eyes widen as she watches me.

I call over my shoulder, telling Rio I’ll catch him later, and I give Leslie a quick nod. I’ve gotten enough sparring in today and I’m done.

“Why are you crying?” I ask as I come to a stop in front of her, still breathing hard from the boxing.

“I’m not.” She sniffs and turns her head away, giving me a view of her long neck, the soft lines of her jaw. My eyes greedily eat her up. I’ve missed her like crazy in class, and I’m a heel for not trying to explain things to her, but with the fight looming over me, I think it’s best I keep my distance. Even so, that doesn’t mean I haven’t thought about her a hundred times.

“Why did you bolt out of the yoga class?” It’s an activity I didn’t even know she participated in.

She seems to gather herself slowly. “I know it seems silly, but Han Solo’s been missing the past two days. I’m sure you don’t get it…” Her voice trails off.

“What happened?” I take her arm and lead her over to a group of chairs in the foyer. Grabbing a box of Kleenex from the desk, I press them into her hand as she sits down.

She cleans up her face. “A couple of days ago, I let him out to stomp around like he likes to do, and he just never came back. I called for him and put out tuna fish on the back porch—nothing. It’s not like him.”

“Maybe he found a girlfriend?”

She shakes her head. “He’s been spayed. What if he’s in a ditch somewhere and I can’t find him?”

“So why are you rushing out?” I glance back at the yoga room. “I didn’t even know you took a class here.”

“The campus rec center has the worst yoga classes. This one is much better, and I needed to get out of the house and let off some steam.”

I nod.

“Anyway, my neighbor, Mrs. Wells, just called me. She thought she saw him on campus today near the fine arts building, and it’s the first ray of hope I’ve had. I’m on my way there to look for him.” She stands and holds out the box of tissues. “Thank you for asking.” Her voice is shaky yet cool, and I sigh. I don’t blame her for being standoffish with me.

“I’ll go with you,” I say, and she blinks.

“What? Why?”

I ignore that. I’m in take-charge mode, and when I see the coat she wears to class hanging near the door, I stride over to get it. Slipping it off the hook, I wrap her up in it and button it carefully.

She stands there watching me as I dash back to the boxing area and grab my gym bag.

I jog back to where she waits. “Now, let’s go find Han Solo.”

A smile briefly appears on her face and she gives me an odd look. “Are you sure? You’re…” She clears her throat, her gaze lingering on my pecs. “You’re half-naked and it’s cold outside.”

I grab my North Face off a hook and slip it over my bare chest. “I’m fine, Buttercup.”

Delaney

Maverick ushers me out into the cold and straight to his truck, a Toyota that looks like it’s seen better days. He opens the passenger door for me and gives me a hand up into the cab. He gets in on the other side, looks over at me, and squeezes my hand, surprising me. He’s being so…sweet and helpful. “You okay?” he asks.

I nod. I’m worried about Han, but I’m also discombobulated by seeing Maverick at the gym, even though Skye casually mentioned this week that she heard a lot of the football players come to Carson’s during the off season to take advantage of their programs.

Part of my reason for taking the yoga class here was hoping I’d run into him—so stupid, but I can’t help myself.

“Why were you boxing?” I ask.

He shrugs. “My dad used to work there and was able to get me a few lessons when I was growing up. I’m pretty good at it.”

“Is there anything you’re not good at?”

“Nope.” He sends me a grin and I try to reciprocate, but it fails. Things are still strange between us. I sigh and look out the window.

We pull up to the fine arts building, and I’m out the door before he even gets us parked. My gaze scans the horizon, looking past trees and landscaping and buildings, trying to catch a flash of black and white fur. It feels futile, and I don’t see anything that looks like him. At least it’s the weekend and campus is dead, so there aren’t a hundred bodies to look around.

“Han, where are you, little man?” calls Maverick as he takes the north side of the building and I take the south. Ten minutes of fruitless searching goes by as I make one more pass and then two across the quad in front of the surrounding buildings. Nothing is out here except for a few crazy squirrels and blackbirds.

I feel lost. Han #1 left, and now Han #2.

“Over here!” It’s Maverick’s voice, and I flip around to see that he’s holding a squirming Han about fifty yards away. Pure joy fills me as I take off running toward them. Breathing heavily from my jog, I come to a stop, take the fighting Han, and pet him until he calms.

“Maverick! Oh my gosh, where did you find him?”

He shrugs. “Would you believe he was in the dumpster behind the building? He must have crawled in there for food and couldn’t get out. I heard a tiny meow, opened it up, and there he was.”

I rub his head the way he likes, and he nips at my hand then purrs.

Looking back up, I notice Maverick’s jacket is torn and his shorts look askew. My mouth opens. “You got in the dumpster?”

He grins. “Dumpster diver, at your service.”

I throw my arms around him, somehow managing to not squish Han in the process. My lips graze his cheek for a second and he turns his head to meet them, but I pull away before that happens.

I react by looking down at my runaway cat. “What if no one had seen him all weekend? You probably saved one of his lives.”

“Undoubtedly. I hope he’s worth it.”

I sigh. “He’s all I have.”

“Well, you have me now.” He clears his throat. “He looks a bit frazzled. Let’s get you both home.”

We pull up at my house and it’s nearly dark. Skye’s car is gone, and I recall a text from her earlier saying she was staying at Tyler’s place tonight.

I’m still holding Han in my arms and he’s anxious to get down, so I get to the front door in a hurry. Maverick follows me, taking my keys from my bag and unlocking my door.