Foregoing the chairs—because I wasn’t sure the thin plastic could handle Garrett’s bulk—I dropped down onto the stairs, cradling my knees to my chest and breathing in the crisp eastern air.
He lowered himself with significantly more grace than I had and sat next to me. He didn’t push, and I was thankful. We sat in companionable silence, each swimming in our own pool of thoughts.
I wasn’t sure how long we’d been out there, but I was jarred to the present when something covered my face. I panicked, spine snapping straight before I could suddenly see again.
A raspy chuckle sounded next to me, and I looked down to realize Garrett had pulled his hoodie over me.
“You’re shivering so hard you’re shaking the cement.”
“Asshole, I was not.” But I laughed, pulling it the rest of the way down and tucking my legs inside of it like a small cocoon. It was warm from being rolled up in his lap, and it smelled like him. When he finally stood and bid me goodnight, I watched him go, feeling oddly relaxed.
It wasn’t until later, after I’d read to Jamie and crawled into bed, two things became clear. One, I was enjoying the feel of sleeping in a man’s clothing way more than I should, and two, the entire time we’d sat outside, he’d never actually lit a cigarette.
Chapter Ten
I launched up from the bed, scaring the daylights out of Rugsy and whipping my head around to look at my alarm clock.
“Shit. Shit, shit, shit!”
The textbook splayed open near me told me everything I needed to know. I’d unintentionally crashed before setting my alarm. Again. Shit!
Dressed in only my borrowed, over-sized hoodie and underwear, I half-fell to the floor in my haste, flinging my bedroom door open and racing toward Jamie’s room. I cracked the door open enough to peek in and, remembering Layla passed out in the next room, whisper-yelled, “Get up, bud, we are so very late!”
Seeing him flinch awake, I raced back to my room, looking at myself in the mirror. God help everyone who had to look upon me today, for their eyes would truly be punished. My hair was a lost cause, more frizz than curl, so up it went into a tight, librarian-style bun.
I opted to skip makeup completely, instead shucking my clothes off and throwing on the first work dress I saw. The knee-length, pencil skirt bottom at least gave me some shape, and the leopard print, ruffled top added some much-needed flair. I’d even wear heels. It’d have to do.
Following Rugsy’s waddle, I made my way to the living room, knocking on Jamie’s door again. “Jamie, get dressed, we gotta go!”
His door flung open, “I’m ready. What happened?”
“I’m sorry, I fell asleep reading and forgot to set my alarm. I think we still have a few of the emergency fruit pastries. Go run a brush through your hair and your toothbrush over your teeth, and I’ll grab a package for you.”
I checked the time on my phone. He would be at least a solid fifteen minutes late to school, which meant I’d be even later than that to work. I cursed, dialing Evaline to let her know.
She clicked her tongue, “No problem at all, honey, I’m just sitting here online shopping for new office chairs anyway.”
Of course, she was. “Thanks, Evaline, I’ll see you soon.”
Hanging up, I grabbed my purse and slipped into my heels. I felt like I was beginning to lose the tight grip I’d been holding onto my life and everything in it. I’d never been late before, and now it felt like it was becoming a regular occurrence. Next thing you knew, I’d be missing assignments. The thought alone had me queasy.
We ran out to the Jeep like the chaotic creatures we were, and I’d never been so thankful to not run into Garrett. It’d been several days since I’d invited him into my house, and I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t worn his hoodie to bed each night since. Not because I was a lonely social creature in need of a man to date, but because Garrett smelled amazing.