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Yawning, I close my eyes as I raise my arms over my head in an attempt to wake myself up. Sleeping on this couch sucks. Dad needs to hurry up and finish my room so I can sleep on a bed again. Sliding off the couch and stretching my arms over my head helps wake me up.
Ugh. My thighs are touching. I’ve gained about five pounds since I’ve been here because I haven’t been on my strict diet and exercise plan. I really need to run.
So I decided to just get over my fear of running alone on these back roads, and force myself to get back into my regular routine. After dressing in my workout clothes, and throwing my hair into a messy ponytail, I skate out the front door.
A smile tickles my cheeks, and I try to fight it back, but I can’t hide it. Tyler’s outside my house, sitting on the tailgate of his truck.
He remembered.
I thought he was just feeding me a line yesterday, but now I realize he was very serious when he agreed to be my running partner.
Tyler’s long legs are bare thanks to the shorts he’s wearing, and I’m able to see the defined calves he’s been hiding under those jeans. Like his arms, his legs bear multiple tattoos and it makes me wonder what other parts of his body are covered with ink.
He hops off the truck and joins me as I begin to stretch. I can’t stop smiling like an idiot. He’s putting in a lot of effort and I’m really impressed.
“Hey.” He grins. “How many miles are we doing again?”
“Not sure yet. Just try and keep up, farm boy,” I tease as I take off running down the driveway.
We run in sync, our feet pounding the pavement along the overgrown country road in perfect time. The morning sun beams down on my exposed skin, energizing me, encouraging me to push my body harder.
Digging my toes into the asphalt, picking up speed, I move a couple strides ahead of Tyler. Running is the one thing I’m good at.
With a grunt, he matches my pace. I laugh as I shoot him a sideways glace and he wags his eyebrows. I love this playful side of him. He makes it so easy to just be with him.
“Is that all you got?” he taunts and takes off ahead of me.
I grit my teeth. No way I’ll allow him to beat me. It takes me about two seconds to catch him and get back in his rhythm.
We finish our run, ending back at Granny’s—well, technically it’s my place too—both of us sweating profusely. It was the most exhilarating run I’d had in a while, and I’m pretty sure the intense delight I’m feeling has more to do with the guy than the run itself. No man has ever invested so much time in getting to know me before, and I have to say, I like it.
I watch as Tyler hops up on his tailgate, drags a cooler to the end, and pops open the lid. After handing me a bottle of water, he gestures toward the swing that hangs from the two tallest walnut trees in the front yard.
We sit side by side, sipping ice-cold water in silence.
Silence. What a contrast to the chatty coverstation about our secret pact last night. I really don’t know what to say, but I hope he isn’t having second thoughts about the whole thing.
I can’t stand the quiet. It was what my old house was filled with back in Columbus after Mom left us. It gives me too much time to ponder, so I have to end it.
“So . . . what are your plans for the rest of the day?” I ask.
“Well, first I have to work on your room with your dad, and then after that I wondered if you wanted to go out with me again? There’s a party tonight,” he replies.
“Party?” Finally something I’m used to. “I’m so game for a party.”
Tyler grins. “Great. I can show you off. You’ll be my arm candy.”
I roll my eyes. “Okay, but only because you’re my pretend boyfriend.”
Tyler heads home for a shower after our run, and then returns a couple hours later dressed in blue jeans and another old rock band T-shirt.
I spend the rest of the morning watching Dad and Tyler work on my room. I have no clue what they’re doing but I appreciate the view as I watch Tyler use a shovel to dig a couple trenches for the room’s foundation. A sheen of sweat covers his skin as his muscles twist beneath taut skin. Just as I’m about to file Tyler’s sexy forearms away in my memory vault, I hear the screen door snap back on its hinges.
“Avery?” Granny calls. “You need to get out there and get them horse stalls mucked.”
I could pretend to ignore her, but I’m sure she’d just keep hollering, so I might as well get up and do as she asks. The quicker I get it done, the sooner I can come back here and ogle Tyler some more.
I grunt as I rise to my feet. “Dad, you do realize that cleaning horse crap is one of the most disgusting things on the planet, right?”
