Total pages in book: 85
Estimated words: 80986 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 80986 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 405(@200wpm)___ 324(@250wpm)___ 270(@300wpm)
Grant stood up. “For fuck’s sake,” he muttered and left. Evidently he wasn’t going to waste any more time listening to me. Bennett would probably leave in a moment, too.
“You had no right,” I repeated, my voice strong, but I knew I couldn’t keep it that way much longer.
“I’m the president of the fraternity that owns this house. If I say we have certain standards here, then we do.” He raised his eyebrows, as if asking what I was going to do about that. “If you prefer, I can write out a dress code, but I guarantee you won’t like it.”
His threat shook me. All I wanted was to get out of here, and I knew one way to do it. Two words rose to my lips: I quit. I wanted to say them so badly. Actually, what I really wanted to do was to go back to bed and cry. But I couldn’t do either of those things. If I quit, I wouldn’t have a bed to climb into tonight.
I met Bennett’s cold gaze and tried one more time. Soon, the adrenaline would wear off and I’d collapse in a pile of tears. “This job came with room and board. It’s my room as long as I work here, so you and your cousin need to stay out of it.” There. That wasn’t as bad as saying I quit, but in the back of my mind, I knew I’d practically goaded him into firing me.
Bennett pushed his chair back and rose to his feet. I had to take a step back to maintain eye contact
“Listen, young lady—”
That was as far as he got, because Grant strode back in, and we both turned to look at him.
“Here.”
My heart skipped a beat and then rushed to catch up as I saw what he held out to me. With shaky hands, I took the robe back. It was like finding an old friend. I looked up at Grant, not sure what to say.
Bennett huffed out an irritated breath of air and gathered up his papers. “So wonderful spending breakfast with you, Hailey. Let’s hope dinner has less drama.”
He left, and Grant followed without a backwards glance toward me.
I hugged the robe to my chest and let the tears fall.
I was late to class and gave Professor Whitmore an apologetic nod as I found a seat. It was good to be out of that house. Here, no one knew that I was a maid. And no one knew how I’d been treated today.
By the end of the two-hour class, I’d calmed down enough to actually take notes. I’d have to re-read the chapter later tonight to see what I missed.
Ten minutes later, I opened the door to the only being in the world who could cheer me up right now—Sunny. The golden retriever danced around excitedly, as if it had been twenty-four days instead of twenty-four hours since she’d seen me.
“Good girl,” I crooned, bending down to give her a hug. But she was too excited for that. She jumped around so I set down my book bag and fastened her leash.
Out on the sidewalk, we wove around students and past a little bistro with outdoor seating. I usually walked her up to the coffee shop on the corner and then back again.
And then it happened. A little gray squirrel darted across the street, narrowly avoiding a car, and crossed the sidewalk practically at Sunny’s feet. It scampered down the sidewalk and the leash was yanked from my hand.
“Sunny!” I shouted, giving chase immediately. She was already well ahead of me, the leash dangling on the ground as she ran. The squirrel was nowhere to be seen, but that didn’t stop the dog.
My calls grew louder as she pulled ahead. The intersection up ahead was a fairly busy one, and my heart pounded at the thought of her dashing across it. She might not be as lucky as the squirrel.
Students and townspeople alike gaped at the running dog and me chasing after her. No one bothered to help—until someone did.
A man exited the coffee shop, looked down the sidewalk, and did a double take. He stepped forward, waited a beat, and then bent down to grab Sunny’s leash. Two young women stepped on the sidewalk in front of me, so I briefly lost sight of them. I was completely out of breath and sweat covered my forehead as I caught up.
“Thank you—” I panted, brushing my hair out of my eyes. “If you hadn’t—” I stopped short at the familiar smile.
It was Theo.
13
THEO
“Who’s your friend?” I asked as I handed over the leash. The dog looked up at Hailey with unapologetic eyes, not knowing the panic he had caused her.
“Sunny,” she finally managed. Her face was red, and her hair was windswept. And neither of those things detracted from how gorgeous she was.