I salute her authority which only pisses her off more. She punches me fairly hard for a chick, but not with enough force to make me flinch. Backing away from her door, I let her go inside ahead of me. Sophie jumps as soon as the door fully opens, realizing we may have heard her rocking out. When she sees me smirking, her cheeks flush. I wink at her, making her blush even more. Something tells me we’re both thinking about her pleasuring herself right now. If Cara wasn’t here, I might even take a chance and kiss her. Shit, I’d love to kiss her right now. But I can’t.

She tosses a few things in a purse large enough to carry a few groceries before resting the straps on her shoulder.

Jingling my keys back and forth between my hands, I give her all the time she needs to finish up. “You ready, Sophie?”

“Yeah, pretty sure I have everything.” There’s still plenty of room inside her giant bag, so she very well may find more shit to stuff in it. Instead, she walks over to the door. Expecting me to leave, I wait until she’s standing next to me before I open it. Nudging her playfully, she smiles back at me. “What?” she asks.

“You look extra short today.”

“Kipton, really? Don’t pick on her,” Cara adds as usual. Her and her damn rules.

“I’m used to it, Cara. I hear it all the time back home. I’m aware I’m vertically challenged.”

Although she was full of life a minute ago, she suddenly looks tired. I also don’t miss the dark circles under her eyes. At least she covered up the hickey. Not that I’d mind if people assumed I put it there, although one on her inner thigh would be so much more fun.

“Hey, it’s okay. I’m not offended,” Sophie says while nudging me as she brushes past me.

I’m left staring at her perky ass. Cara gets in my face, whispering as quietly as she can while still telling me off. “Kipton, I swear if you fuck up my living arrangements, I will kick your ass! Stop it, now. Off limits, remember? And stop checking out her ass!”

I put my hands on her shoulders, forcing her off her tippy toes and out of my face. “Down, girl. I can’t make any promises. Gotta run, sis.”

I hear her growl in frustration as I jog down the hallway to catch up with Sophie. “She’s extra feisty today.” Sophie smiles up at me and I swear it’s the most gorgeous smile I’ve ever been given. If she keeps that shit up I definitely won’t be able to hold back much longer.

“You do look nice; I was just joking about being short.”

She glances up at me, but only gives me a quick one word response. “Thanks.”

We walk side by side, relatively quiet the entire way to my car. She’s nervous as usual, but there’s definitely something else on her mind tonight. Right now she seems indifferent to everything. Then again she has a head injury so her mind’s probably reeling. I open her door for her, watching her slide into the passenger seat. Sophie grabs for her seatbelt right away while I close her door.

I follow suit and when I turn the key in the ignition, my radio is shouting out lyrics on full blast. Quickly grabbing the dial, I lower the volume. “Sorry about that.”

“Not a problem.” She doesn’t even look at me, instead choosing to stare out the window on her side of the car. Checking my rear view mirror, I back out of my parking spot. It’s a short fifteen minute drive to her appointment, so I choose to take her to the famous fifties diner located in the plaza across the street from the imaging center. This way, we can sit and talk for as long as possible before the test. I’m also dying for a patty melt.

The car shuts off, but she doesn’t move. I tap her shoulder to get her attention. “We’re here. You okay?”

She nods her head. “I’m good.”

“Where’d you go? You were spaced out.”

She unbuckles her seatbelt and opens her door. “Nowhere. I’m good,” she says as she climbs out of the car. Of course I stare at her ass again like a dick and then get out of the car myself.

Once inside, I look over the menu deciding quickly on my usual melt and fries. Sophie’s sitting across from me in the booth scanning the menu. “Whatcha getting?”

“I’m not overly hungry. Probably a garden salad and some water.” She closes her menu and lays it on top of mine. What?

“There’s no way you can come here and get lettuce, Sophie. This place is famous for milkshakes and burgers.”

“Coach would kill me if I ate all that. It’s bad enough I can’t practice or exercise, I’ll never get in shape at the rate I’m going. He’s going to cut me, I know it.”

So that’s what’s been on her mind. It all makes more sense now. Remembering back to her drunken confession about being too ugly, I suddenly want to have words with her coach. How the hell can he tell someone the size of Sophie she’s out of shape? She wouldn’t have been given a scholarship if she wasn’t talented. But I know what it’s like to be your own worst critic. I have to word what I say to her perfectly, or she’ll believe what her coach told her. Before I can get a word out, the waitress stops at our table. “What can I get you two?” she asks.

I respond before Sophie has a chance to open her mouth. “We’ll take two patty melts, a large fry, and two chocolate shakes.”

“Coming right up.” Tammy, as her nametag tells me, scoops up the menus and sashays across the checkerboard floor with her order pad and pen.

When I chance a glance at Sophie, she looks stunned. “What?” I question.

“Kipton, I said I need a salad. Why would you do that?”

“You said you need it, but what do you want, Sophie?”

She’s shaking her head back and forth, visibly pissed off with my selection. “It’s not a matter of what I want, Kipton. Nothing ever is. I wanted to live a little last night and look what that got me—a concussion with an entire team and coach who don’t want me in the gym anymore. I’ve never screwed up more in my life than I have this week, so stop trying to tell me what I want. All you’ve done so far is cause trouble with your damn winks and sexy smiles. So stop fucking with me!”

I grin, loving when she gets all fired up. “You think my smile’s sexy?” I tap her foot under the table with my boot which only makes her glare daggers at me.

“Out of everything I said that’s the only thing you choose to comment on? Seriously?”

“No. I heard it all, but since it’s all bullshit, I responded to the only truth you told.”

“It’s all a fact, Kipton. I’ve never told a lie until yesterday when I made up an excuse about being in a car accident. My coach told me to get in shape, not eat cheeseburgers and get drunk.”

“So you do admit I’m sexy then.”

She throws her hands in the air, exasperated by the conversation. “Oh for fuck’s sake! You know you’re hot as hell so stop trying to make me say it.”

“I’m glad we had this talk, Sophie.”

She rests her head against the back of the red pleather booth and closes her eyes the same time the waitress places our plates in front of us. Sophie opens her eyes and stares at her burger. Not waiting for mine to get cold, I dig in and take a bite. Moaning, the taste of the warm melted cheese mixed with the beef assaults my taste buds in the most spectacular way. I make each bite as dramatic as possible until she decides to give in to my food-gasm. She watches me the entire time I’m chewing. Once I swallow, she picks up her own burger and sinks her teeth into the warm bread.

“So much better than a salad, right?”

“It’s good, but I still hate you.”

Laughing, I pop a fry in my mouth. “I’ll take whatever you give me, Sophie. It takes way more energy to hate than love, so you must really want me.” I wiggle my eyebrows up and down and see her trying to hold in her laughter. Failing miserably, she starts eating and laughing. It’s the most amazing combination. I never want her to believe she’s anything less than beautiful.