Page 46 of Before We're More Than Friends
After he finished hiscrappysituation, we grabbed some of the portable cages and went to the room where Hayden, Arielle, and Caleb were playing with the bunnies.
When Hayden saw us, he gave Dallas a smile. “How’s the first day going?”
“Not completely crappy,” Dallas said with a shrug. “I’ll get into the flow of things.”
“Unless more crap gets in your way,” I said, nudging him with a laugh. He didn’t crack a smile.
Caleb and Hayden exchanged confused looks.
Dallas sighed. “Just give us the bunnies.”
“He’s so moody,” I heard Caleb whisper to Hayden. “He and Raina would begoldtogether.”
Hayden chuckled. “They’re like old people who complain about the news and stuff nobody else cares about.”
“You guys aren’t good at whispering,” I muttered. “And don’t ever ship me with someone. I thought I told you that.”
Hayden smirked and shrugged. “Doesn’t mean we have to listen.”
This would be harder than I thought.
After putting the animals back where they should be, Dallas grabbed the food and I grabbed the water, and we set it out for each of them. While I hummed to the music playing, Dallas kept shaking. Every few bowls, he would drop the food on the floor and try to clean it up.
“You know there’s a better way to do that,” I told him after the fifth time . . . on the same bowl. EvenIwasn’t this clumsy when anxious.
When he didn’t answer or give me a sarcastic comment back, I stood in front of him. “Are you okay? You’re very jittery.”
Dallas stood up and threw the food bits in the trash. “S-Sorry, it’s just chilly in here.”
“It’s actually nice in here.” Mrs. Landers usually had the air conditioning blasting so the animals wouldn’t get hot, but not today. “Is something else wrong?” I asked. “This isn’t your first time being close to a girl, is it?”
He snorted, covering his mouth. “Yes, it is. You’re part of a fine specimen.”
“Why, thank you.” I fluttered my eyelashes, putting a hand to my chest. “No need to be nervous, though. Women are just like men. Just with thewo.”
“Those two letters make a big difference.” He gave me a sheepish smile, his fair cheeks flushing and his dimples appearing.
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” I pointed to his cheeks. “Are you actually blushing?”
“What?” The red in his cheeks deepened. “Oh, um, I’m just pale and get red easily. It’s a little warm in here.”
I raised an eyebrow. “You just said it was too cold a minute ago.”
He was suddenly super focused on feeding the bunnies. “The temperature changes fast in here.”
“Okay.” I wasn’t convinced at all.
When we were done feeding the bunnies, we went into the break room to see what our next tasks were. Dallas didn’t stick around, and Mrs. Landers came into the break room as he left.
“Hey, Raina,” she said with a smile, her black heels clattering against the floor. I never understood why she wore those things when she was five-foot-tenandmoved around a lot. “Have you met Dr. Friar yet?”
I shook my head. “Haven’t had the chance.” I didn’t interact with the vets much, unless I needed to bring an animal to them. Our office had three—before one was replaced by Dr. Friar—and they kept to themselves for the most part.
“Stop by her office and get to know her between tasks. She’s currently taking care of a new puppy who came in.”
“Aw. I’ll stop by right now.” I walked all the way to the vet’s hall before knocking on the door withDr. Leanne Friaron the name plaque beside it.
“Come in!” Dr. Friar said.
