I narrow my eyes, and Em frowns. “You’re not hungry? Are you okay?” She leans over and places her hand on my forehead, checking if I’m warm or not.
“He’s got to go, Em.” I slap her hand away.
She drops back into her seat and crosses her arms. “Who?”
“Austin.” I ground my teeth. It’s bad enough I have to see him on campus, and train and play ball with him during the season. But now, he’s showing up every day to check on Em because she’s injured and not leaving when neither one of us are there. I like my space. My own privacy. And I hate people in my house.
Em tips her head back and laughs. “It’s not that bad.”
“It is. Get rid of him.”
“Colt, he’s harmless. I thought you guys were friends.”
“I like my friends like I like my ghosts... Invisible.”
“You’re being a bit melodramatic, don’t you think?”
“Not at all.”
Em sighs. “Fine, I’ll talk to him. Okay?”
“Good.”
“Are you ready?” I bang on the bathroom door, bouncing on the balls of my feet. Em has been in the bathroom for an hour.
“Almost!”
“What’s taking so long?”
“Nothing, geez. Can’t a girl have five minutes alone?”
I push open the door and walk in. “Nope.”
Em throws her hairbrush at me, and I duck just in time. The bristles slide through my hair as it sails over my head and bounces off the wall into the small rubbish bin in the corner.
I raise my eyebrows, impressed. “You ever think about playing ball?”
Em spins and grins at me. With her hand pressed to her chest, her dress hangs open at the back. “I learned from the best. Fix my dress.” She turns and gives me her back.
I slip my fingers under the straps of her dress and drag them down her shoulders.
She shrugs out of my hold. “Colt.”
“What?” I laugh and hold up my hands in surrender. It was worth a try. “You said to fix your dress. I am. It’s better on the floor.”
Em huffs and taps her moon boot on the ground. “Such a guy. Zip it up, please. We’ll be late.”
But it would be worth it.
I spin her around and pinch her dress closed so I can pull the zip up. “Oh, now she’s worried about being late,” I tease. “There. Done.”
“Grab my shoes.” She taps me on the chest as she walks past.
Picking up her shoes and my car keys, I usher her out the door and lock it behind us.
Em can’t stop talking the entire way to the hospital. The excitement to get her cast and boot off is strong.
“I can’t wait to go for a long walk, and have a three-hour shower, followed by a three-hour bath, and another walk. I want to curl my hair and wear jeans and a hoodie. I want to play with the chickens and cook dinner. I want to go to the gym, and—”
I cut her off with a laugh, “You never go to the gym.”
In the entire time we’ve been friends, the only time she’s ever stepped foot inside a gym was to find me.
“Seven weeks of limited movement; I’m desperate to exercise. Walk along the beach. A nice long swim.”
“It’s summer, so you can do that.”
“Laser tag and bowling. We should go rock climbing, too.”
“Settle down. Just because you’re getting your cast off and losing that gigantic boot, doesn’t mean you can jump straight into extreme sports.”
“Bowling is hardly extreme sports, Colt.”
“But rock climbing?”
“Okay, fine. We can save the rock climbing for a different week.”
“Good, because we have plans this weekend,” I say.
“We do? What are we doing?”
I glance at her, considering whether I should tell her or keep it a surprise. She’s never been camping before. Hell, I’ve never been camping before. While Em is pretty laid back and relaxed, she still likes her comforts, like a bed and working bathroom.
“It’s a surprise.”
“I love surprises,” she squeals.
“No, you don’t.” Last time I tried to surprise her for her eighteenth birthday, she hacked my email account and stole my phone to find out what my plans were.
She grins and shrugs, turning up the music on the radio. “I love this song.”
It’s a classic rock song. She listens to pop. “Since when?”
Em taps a beat on her legs. “Austin listens to this band.”
He does? I’ve never paid attention, but it’s clear Em has. My fingers tighten on the steering wheel. “You like his music now? Things are getting intense?”
“We’re good friends.” She tries to act nonchalant, but I see through her.
“You’re not going to lose me that bet, are you?”
“Is that all you think about? Money?”
“I think about plenty of other things, like your mouth and what it would feel like if you—”
A glare from Em cuts me off, so I change the subject. “We might have to get a babysitter for the weekend.”
“A babysitter?” Em quirks an eyebrow.
“Chicken-sitter?”
“What are we doing that requires a chicken-sitter?”
“It’s a surprise,” I tell her again.
“Can Austin look after them again?”
No. “Maybe.” My stomach growls. “Hungry?”
“We are not stopping for fried chicken.”
“I didn’t say chicken. I asked if you were hungry.”
“After talking about the chickens.”
I roll my eyes. “Fine, what about a burger?”
Em checks her watch. “After the hospital. Then I’ll be able to hold the burger with both hands and not need you to cut it into bite-size pieces.”
I chuckle. “Good point. Okay, I’m sure I can wait a little longer.”
Em leans forward and digs through her bag. “Got you covered.”
She pulls out not one, but an entire box of protein bars and hands them to me.
“My stomach thanks you.”
“You could thank me, too, you know?”
“With an orgasm?”
She shakes her head.
“I’m not kissing you, Em.”
“One day. I’ll break you, and you’ll give in.”
“No, I won’t. You might as well give up.”
“I’m persistent.” She pokes me in the arm.
“I know.”
“Why won’t you kiss me?”
“I’ve told you. It’s a weird thing I have. Kind of like saving yourself for marriage. I’m saving my first kiss for the person I fall in love with and want to spend forever with.”
I don’t tell her I never expect to fall in love because I can’t seem to stay interested in anyone long enough to make it work.
Em claps. “That’s perfect. You and I will spend forever together. And you love me, so pucker up, baby.”
She makes a kissy face, leaning over to my side.
I chuckle and push her head away. “No.”
She wasn’t wrong when she said she was persistent.