Read Online Bad Intentions by Nacole Stayton - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Nacole Stayton
Tags: Fiction
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eyes suspiciously. “I thought you left the playing-it-safe side of you at home.”
“I so did, but come on— it’d be ridiculously stupid of me not to do any research. It’s not like I closed my eyes and picked a state off the map and decided that’s where I was going to move.” I abandon my danish and bite into a piece of the burnt, delicious goodness better known as bacon. Forget Zoe’s cute little sighs—I’m practically moaning.
As I chew, I can picture the wheels in Zoe’s mind spinning, but I luck out when she drops the subject. “Okay. Well anyway, did you register for your classes online?”
“Sure did. You?” I answer while holding the tip of my straw in a makeshift coffee stirrer.
“Yeah, but my Internet stalled and it didn’t save shit. I have a meeting with an advisor this afternoon. I’m sure all the classes I wanted are full. Flipping Internet Gods.”
“Girl, I registered weeks ago.”
She snorts. “That’s because you’re a good girl.” I roll my eyes. “Now who’s a bad girl?”
“Shut up and eat your damn food!” I brush off her remark and laugh.
“Did the preacher’s daughter just cuss?” She draws out the word cuss with a deep southern accent – an image of her dressed like a debutante sipping tea flashes in my mind.
“I love the Lord, but I cuss a little. So what?”
“You’re killing me, smalls!” Zoe mocks.
The sound of a clock striking the five o’clock hour makes me jump to my feet. I know we slept in, but I didn’t know it was this late. I have a meeting to get to. I cannot be late. He said in the email that he hates tardiness.
“Shit. Zoe, I had an interview at the gym at four forty-five,” I pause and look down at my wrist knowing that I’m not even wearing a watch. “Like fifteen minutes ago!”
“The campus gym?” She clarifies.
“Yup. That’d be the one. Look I have to go now,” I huff. “Point me in the right direction.”
“I’ll do better than that.” She stands up and crumples her trash into a ball. “Follow me,” she instructs before she takes off into a sprint.
Not missing a beat, I follow. Weaving in and out of students walking slower than pond water on the pavement, my heeled sandals pound the ground. I know my feet are going to ache later, but I pick up my pace and match her strides. The breeze ruffles my hair, as I think about how important this interview is. Without the blessing of my parents, I’m going to need money to survive. The campus gym had an opening. It’s a match made in heaven. That is, if I even still have a chance to talk to Kaiser, the gym manager.
My hair is disheveled and my heart is pounding as we near a large building with windows adorning the front of the structure. I mouth a thank you to Zoe as I turn and reach in front of me to open the door, almost colliding with someone coming out. I take a step back as it swings open.
“Watch where you’re going,” a familiar voice harshly scolds me.
Regaining my composure, I draw my attention upward, only to find Ryle-freaking-Benson hovering over me. His presence both pisses me off and arouses me. Which pisses me off even more, because he’s proved one too many times that he’s a royal jack…
“Bite me,” I bark and try to slide by him.
A hand snakes around my wrist, stopping me in my tracks. I glance up to see whose body it belongs to before I rip the appendage straight off and toss it aside. Thankfully, it isn’t his .
“The gym’s closed,” A dude standing to my right says, before he lets go of my wrist.
“What? It’s just now five. I need to—.”
“Look little lady, we’re closed. I had an interview, but the girl no-showed. Can’t keep it open for the next shift if there isn’t anyone to run it.”
This is a cruel joke. It has to be.
“I’m the no-show. I ran here. Literally. I’m so sorry I was late. I’m Adaley.” I take a breath hoping that he caught all of that.
“You’re Adaley Knight, my four forty-five?”
I
“I so did, but come on— it’d be ridiculously stupid of me not to do any research. It’s not like I closed my eyes and picked a state off the map and decided that’s where I was going to move.” I abandon my danish and bite into a piece of the burnt, delicious goodness better known as bacon. Forget Zoe’s cute little sighs—I’m practically moaning.
As I chew, I can picture the wheels in Zoe’s mind spinning, but I luck out when she drops the subject. “Okay. Well anyway, did you register for your classes online?”
“Sure did. You?” I answer while holding the tip of my straw in a makeshift coffee stirrer.
“Yeah, but my Internet stalled and it didn’t save shit. I have a meeting with an advisor this afternoon. I’m sure all the classes I wanted are full. Flipping Internet Gods.”
“Girl, I registered weeks ago.”
She snorts. “That’s because you’re a good girl.” I roll my eyes. “Now who’s a bad girl?”
“Shut up and eat your damn food!” I brush off her remark and laugh.
“Did the preacher’s daughter just cuss?” She draws out the word cuss with a deep southern accent – an image of her dressed like a debutante sipping tea flashes in my mind.
“I love the Lord, but I cuss a little. So what?”
“You’re killing me, smalls!” Zoe mocks.
The sound of a clock striking the five o’clock hour makes me jump to my feet. I know we slept in, but I didn’t know it was this late. I have a meeting to get to. I cannot be late. He said in the email that he hates tardiness.
“Shit. Zoe, I had an interview at the gym at four forty-five,” I pause and look down at my wrist knowing that I’m not even wearing a watch. “Like fifteen minutes ago!”
“The campus gym?” She clarifies.
“Yup. That’d be the one. Look I have to go now,” I huff. “Point me in the right direction.”
“I’ll do better than that.” She stands up and crumples her trash into a ball. “Follow me,” she instructs before she takes off into a sprint.
Not missing a beat, I follow. Weaving in and out of students walking slower than pond water on the pavement, my heeled sandals pound the ground. I know my feet are going to ache later, but I pick up my pace and match her strides. The breeze ruffles my hair, as I think about how important this interview is. Without the blessing of my parents, I’m going to need money to survive. The campus gym had an opening. It’s a match made in heaven. That is, if I even still have a chance to talk to Kaiser, the gym manager.
My hair is disheveled and my heart is pounding as we near a large building with windows adorning the front of the structure. I mouth a thank you to Zoe as I turn and reach in front of me to open the door, almost colliding with someone coming out. I take a step back as it swings open.
“Watch where you’re going,” a familiar voice harshly scolds me.
Regaining my composure, I draw my attention upward, only to find Ryle-freaking-Benson hovering over me. His presence both pisses me off and arouses me. Which pisses me off even more, because he’s proved one too many times that he’s a royal jack…
“Bite me,” I bark and try to slide by him.
A hand snakes around my wrist, stopping me in my tracks. I glance up to see whose body it belongs to before I rip the appendage straight off and toss it aside. Thankfully, it isn’t his .
“The gym’s closed,” A dude standing to my right says, before he lets go of my wrist.
“What? It’s just now five. I need to—.”
“Look little lady, we’re closed. I had an interview, but the girl no-showed. Can’t keep it open for the next shift if there isn’t anyone to run it.”
This is a cruel joke. It has to be.
“I’m the no-show. I ran here. Literally. I’m so sorry I was late. I’m Adaley.” I take a breath hoping that he caught all of that.
“You’re Adaley Knight, my four forty-five?”
I