Page 38 of Chasing Xander
Chapter Thirteen
“Where the hell is my other shoe?” Kylie flung dirty clothes and towels around the room, frantically searching for her sneaker. “It was here last night.” She shoved a plastic tote full of notebooks and paper across the room.
“I saw them over by your desk,” Celeste said around a yawn.
“I already looked there,” she snapped and flopped down on her bed. She hung her head in her hands.
“So wear a different pair of shoes.” Celeste sat up and stretched her arms over her head. “What’s the problem this morning? After last night, I’d think you’d be in a great mood.”
“Yeah, well, not all of us had as much fun as you did.” She stood, kicked off her one sneaker, and then pulled her favorite sandals from under her bed. She snatched her bag from the floor and flung it over her shoulder.
“Hey, whoa. Tone down the attitude.”
Kylie sighed. “I’m sorry.” She was frustrated as hell that Xander hadn’t kissed her. Of course, it wasn’t for a lack of trying, but he’d had plenty of other opportunities, and he hadn’t taken them. “It’s Friday.” She glanced at the bowl of rice. “The nursing home calls on Friday, and my phone isn’t working.”
Before she’d left for college, she’d spent the day at the nursing home with her grandmother. During a tearful good-bye, Kylie had promised to call every day, but the head nurse, Diana, had told her not to do that because the calls disrupted the nurses’ ability to do their jobs. She’d gone from seeing and talking to Nammy Joyce every single day to being forced to speak with her only a few minutes once a week. But now, because of a stupid frat prank, she was going to miss the weekly call.
“Okay, calm down.” Celeste stood and unplugged her cell phone from its charger. “Here. Take mine.”
“How is yours still working? It got wet, too, didn’t it?”
“Yeah, but you know how neurotic my mom is. She made sure I had a waterproof phone and case.” She patted Kylie’s shoulder. “Relax, okay? You have my number listed as a backup with the home, so when they call you and don’t get an answer, they’ll call me.”
Tears burned her throat as she took the phone from Celeste. “Thank you.”
“Meet me here before my class at two so I can get it back.” Celeste hugged her. “Now stop worrying, okay?”
“Okay.” She took a deep breath. “Thanks again. We’ll catch up later.”
Kylie tucked the phone into her pocket and left the room. She hurried across campus toward the library. Her first class didn’t start for another couple of hours, but she needed to check out a few books for the paper she had due next week. She pulled open the door and went inside, the cold air-conditioning hitting her in the face.
This time of the morning, the place was deathly quiet. She made her way toward the reference section in the back of the library, pulling the folded sheet of paper from her front pocket. She glanced at the list of titles she needed and grabbed the first book from the shelf.
After gathering the others, she returned to the table and sat. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t focus. What if the home didn’t call Celeste’s phone this time?
Kylie tapped her pen against her notebook, debating whether she should call the home now and explain the situation. She blew out a breath, pushed the worry away, and refocused her attention.
Moments later, two large hands covered her eyes, and a wisp of warm breath tickled her ear. “Guess who?”
Her heart thundered in her chest, and she couldn’t stop the smile that pulled at her lips. She’d know that voice anywhere. “Xander.”
He moved his hands from her eyes and took a seat across from her, a sexy grin playing across his mouth. Although it had only been a few hours since she’d last seen him, she was struck by how clean-cut and handsome he was. Had he looked that damn good last night, too?
“I’m surprised to see you here.” She propped her elbow on the table and dropped her hand into her chin. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were following me.” Or maybe she was hoping.
He laughed, his dark eyes sparkling like they had the first time she’d seen him. “Maybe I am. Or maybe I’m like you. A smart, studious college kid who’s trying to get good grades.”
She grinned and shook her head. “I choose to believe you’re following me.”
“Oh yeah?” He raised a brow, folded his arms on the table, and leaned forward. “You into that sort of thing?”
“No!” Her eyes widened, and she let out a surprised laugh before turning serious. “But I am a narcissist, so naturally everything is always about me.”
He stared at her, and she fought to keep a straight face but failed. The corner of her mouth twitched. Xander pointed at her and grinned. “You had me going there for a minute.” He leaned back in his chair. “You have a class this morning?”
“At ten.”
He pulled out his cell phone and swiped his finger across the screen. “Perfect.” He grinned. “It’s only eight, which means we have plenty of time.”
