“Is that so?”
“Mm-hmm,” she hums. A drop of punch hovers at the corner of her mouth, and my eyes dart down when her tongue flicksout to lick the drop. The prettiest laugh spills from her lips and she pulls herself back up.
“My turn. Never have I ever read…” She leans forward, looking at the cover of my book, the movement giving me a perfect view of her cleavage. The semi I’m trying to avoid is back in full force. “Never have I ever readA Farewell to Arms.”
I roll my eyes, tossing back the punch. “Brat. I think you’re trying to get me drunk.”
She shoots me a devilish grin.
“Never have I ever said, my dogs are barking.”
She throws her head back, laughing. “Now who’s the brat? I think you’re trying to getmedrunk.” She’s pitched her voice lower, mocking me, but she takes her shot.
“Oh, I’ve got a good one. Never have I ever smoked weed.”
When I reach for the shot glass she gasps, jaw dropping. “No way.”
“One time.” I lift my index finger. “Made me paranoid. I hated it.”
We trade a few more rounds of the game before she excuses herself to run to the bathroom, because, according to her, she’s “gotta pee like a racehorse.” I take my turn in the bathroom as soon as she returns. When I’m back in the library, I lower next to her, this time even closer on the couch. She doesn’t seem to mind my nearness, and I’m glad of it. Even before we started this drinking game, I found myself instantly drawn to her, dying to answer all her questions, pulled into her orbit.
Drinking game forgotten, we fall into easy conversation, and thankfully I can nurse my beer instead of subjecting myself to more punch. I’ve got to give credit where credit is due, though. I have a good buzz going and it took the edge off, lowering my inhibitions. Talking to women never comes easy to me, especially not one this gorgeous, this comfortable in her skin.
It’s clear her inhibitions are lowered, too. Each time she moves closer to me I get a whiff of her perfume. Maybe notes of vanilla? With a hint of peaches, I believe. She keeps findingreasons to touch me, knocking her knee against my thigh, or casually laying a hand on my arm.
“Do you graduate tomorrow?” I ask, flicking my eyes to hers.
She lights up, her eyes bright with passion. “I do. Leaving for Chattanooga the day after.”
“What for? What waits for you in Chattanooga?”
“I’ve got an internship with Murals of Hope. They’re a non-profit that paints murals downtown to bring awareness to mental health.” She glances down to pick at her nail polish. “I wanna leave my mark, ya know? When I’m gone from this earth, I wanna know I made a difference.” I stay silent, absorbing her words until she looks up. “I mean, I’m just one person. It probably sounds crazy, right?”
“I don’t think it sounds at all crazy. I’ve got a feeling if anyone could leave their mark on this earth, it’s you.”
Jo swallows hard and looks away. “Anyway, I’m hoping they’ll hire me when it’s over. I gotta get outta here.”
“You’re from here?” I ask.
She shakes her head. “Well, no. Singing River. It’s about thirty minutes away. I’ll lose my freaking mind if I wind up stuck there.”
I don’t know what to say to that. Being from a small town myself, I appreciate the routine, the predictability.
“What about you?” she asks. “Are you about to graduate?
“Not until next year. I took things slow my freshman year. There were some things going on at home they needed me for.”
She falls quiet, and I glance back up at her. She’s already looking at me, her blue-gray eyes going soft.
“And after? What are your plans?”
My hand goes to rub the side of my neck and I look away. A lot of people think Austin’s plans are a pipe dream. Not me, though. I believe in him. I’ve seen firsthand how hard he works on his music.
“That bad, huh?” she teases.
I turn, giving her a half-hearted smile. “Have you everknown something? Like, against all odds, you know it’ll work out?” Jo is zeroed in, hanging on my words, so I continue. “My cousin’s a musician. I’m sure everyone says this about their family members, but I know he’s gonna make it big. So, yeah…that’s my plan. Whatever I can do for his career.”
Silently, she studies me, probably thinking I’m wasting a perfectly good college degree. But I don’t regret the choice to commit to this with Austin.
