The Summer Deal (Wildstone #5)(49)

He was boggled. “She really agreed, no problems?”

“No problems.”

“Why?” he asked.

“It’s simple, really. The longer you wait to decide, the more the cost. There’s now additional storage and administration fees . . .”

He didn’t care about that. He was . . . overwhelmed and humbled by what she’d done, and almost unbearably touched. He felt her hand slip into his as she stood at his side, waiting for him to get a hold of himself.

It wasn’t easy. For one thing, he still couldn’t believe that she’d pulled it off. And for another, he was just starting to realize how deep his feelings for her had gone. No one had ever done anything like this for him. He started to speak but found he couldn’t. Literally couldn’t, because there was a big, huge ball of emotion stuck in his throat, leaving him too choked up.

So instead, he stared some more at the paper, which was now blurry. And because his legs were wobbly—something he decided to attribute to his swim rather than emotion—he sank onto the sand and sat.

“Hey.” She dropped to her knees at his side. “You okay?”

The nod was automatic, because he was always okay. He’d made sure of it. If he wasn’t okay, his entire world would tumble down, and he had people in it that relied on him.

Brynn cupped his jaw and tipped his face to hers, studying him with a worried frown. “You’re trembling.”

“No.” But he was, and it was his own damn fault. He’d skipped lunch and then swam for an hour. His tank was empty and his blood sugar way too low.

Brynn got to her feet and moved off, and he nodded again, because her walking away was definitely the best thing for her. He’d promised her she was safe with him as a roommate, and all he wanted to do was take her home to his bed and do some very not roommate-like things to her.

She was smart to walk away.

But then suddenly she was back, once again on her knees at his side, handing him a soda and a fully loaded hot dog she’d just purchased from the food stand. She nudged the soda at him, and he took a long pull and then grimaced when the sugar hit his system.

“Nothing like a quick sugar rush, right?” she quipped, but her eyes were serious as she watched him carefully. “Now the hot dog.”

Already just from the soda, the cobwebs left his vision and his brain cleared. And he was able to remind himself he was an idiot. But because she was looking so worried, he obediently took a bite of the hot dog and made a face. “Pickles.”

“My favorite,” she said. “Another bite.”

“Is that your teacher voice?”

“Yes, is it working?”

He gently reached out and pushed her glasses farther up her nose from where they’d been slipping. His fantasy life was as rich as the next guy’s, but he’d never had any particular fantasies regarding a teacher—until now. He stared into her eyes, slightly magnified behind her lenses, her wild hair piled on top of her head with tendrils slipping loose and framing her face. “Yes,” he said. “It’s working. Keep talking.”

She narrowed her eyes, as if unsure if he was kidding or not. She must have decided it was a combo of both, because she said, “Eat some more or you’ll get detention.”

Oh, yeah, most definitely working. It was one of those seemingly innocuous moments in time, but this one felt . . . different. He was somehow aware that he’d remember it forever: the feel of the salty ocean air brushing over him, the sound of the waves rhythmically hitting the shore, Brynn’s breath warm against his skin. How sweet she looked feeding Mini a bite of the hot dog, then her hands back on him, and that inexplicable magnetic pull he felt whenever she was close. He smiled and she stared at his mouth, reassuring him he wasn’t alone in this. He took another bite of the hot dog, and then held it out for her.

“It’s for you,” she said.

“Pretend it’s share time.”

She rolled her eyes, but opened her mouth.

He fed her, laughing softly when she tried to nip his finger along with the hot dog.

She chewed and then her tongue darted out to catch a dollop of wayward ketchup on her lower lip, making him smile. “I’m going to share something else,” he murmured. “I’m having a serious teacher fantasy.”

She looked intrigued. “Yeah?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“Do I give you detention in this fantasy?”

“Among other things.”

She laughed, just as Mini yelped and began pawing frantically at her own nose.

Brynn moved toward Mini but Eli beat her there, dropping to his knees. “Shit. Again, girl?” He opened Mini’s mouth, but when he found nothing, he swore and then scooped the dog up against him and stood.

“What’s wrong?” Brynn asked, worried as Mini lay unusually still in Eli’s arms.

“She ate a jalape?o sky raisin.” He strode toward the house at a pace that required Brynn to run to keep up with him.

“Did you forget to tell her she’s allergic?”

“She’s a lab. She lives to eat shit.”

They rushed into the house. In the kitchen, Eli lay Mini on her bed and pulled a bottle of Benadryl from the top drawer. He shook out a pill and held it out to the dog. “A trick from my vet, designed to save me a bazillion dollars since Mini’s done this four times already this year.”