Page 21 of Fostering Chemistry
I took a handful of popcorn, my arm brushing against his as I did so. “I don’t think so, but if he was, then he was really, really bad at it.”
Aaron snorted, and we resumed watching the show.
We watchedtwo episodes and then decided that was enough for one night. Aaron stood and stretched slowly, his arms wide to the side. He had an impressive wingspan.
Then he rolled his shoulders and smiled slightly. "Can I walk you to your room?” He laughed a little, showing that he knew it was ridiculous. My room was just one flight of stairs away, and just down the hall from his.
Still, I felt a little awkward—which was generally the case when I was around handsome men. “I need something from the kitchen. But this was fun. When do we watch episode three?”
“Whenever you’d like. Except Wednesday evenings. Student council meets then.”
I stared at him in surprise. “Student council? Like in high school?”
“We have much more power than high school councils.” He leaned in with a conspiratorial smile. “We’re allowed to print out flyers and post them all over campus.”
“With great power comes great responsibility,” I said, and Aaron grinned. “So, is this the first step toward becoming mayor?”
His cheeks flushed just a little, which was adorable. “Yes, but I’m so far from the finish line, I can’t even see it from here.”
“It’s that way.” I pointed confidently out the living room windows.
“I think that’s south.” He frowned, brows knit in thought.
Oops. “Which way is northwest?” I’d never been to Chattanooga, but I knew where it was. More or less.
He spun around like the needle of a compass. “Maybe that way?” He waved vaguely toward the kitchen.
I giggled, covering my mouth with the back of my hand. “We’d be terrible contestants onAmerican Adventures.”
“We’d be even more lost than the blue team,” he agreed. “Good night, Mia.”
“Good night, Aaron.” At the last minute, I remembered my ruse about needing something from the kitchen. I waited there until I heard him jog upstairs. The hallway was empty when I went back to my room.
It was only ten, so I figured I could still get in an hour or two of studying. I looked at the small desk in my room and decided to take my stuff down to the dining room, which had been converted back to a study hall again after Tuesday’s group dinner. Evan was there at the far end of the table, his fingers flying over the keyboard, posture relaxed but focused.
He gave me a friendly wave and a quick greeting. I sat on the opposite side, avoiding some dirty dishes that somebody had left out. Except for Tuesday, people fended for themselves for dinner, and sometimes they ate out here, sometimes in the living room. Or sometimes dashing out the door, late for class.
I worked on my assignment for about half an hour, but that was about the limit of how much I could focus without takinga break. Deciding to be a good roommate, I gathered up the dirty dishes and took them to the kitchen, putting some in the dishwasher and leaving the dirtier ones to soak in the sink.
The popcorn had left me thirsty, and I went to the fridge to get something to drink. Then I heard the sound of the back door swinging open. Maybe Jenna had decided to stay here tonight after all?
I still wanted to meet her boyfriend. She seemed crazy about the guy. But it wasn't Jenna.
It was Diego. Holy shit, it was Diego. He'd obviously just been for a run because he was rubbing a white towel across his face and hadn't even noticed me.
But I sure as hell noticed him. He was shirtless, his skin tan and taut over sculpted muscles, including a six-pack of abs. His body looked like it belonged in a fitness magazine.
Was he training for something? He had on dark blue shorts that showcased his powerful thighs. Good god, I had no idea he had a body like that.
This was the man I’d been grinding against at the party. Who’d kissed me so damn well I’d never wanted to come up for air. Come to think of it, I hadn’t taken a breath since first seeing those abs. I inhaled quietly, trying and failing to look elsewhere.
Diego shut the door behind him, moving the towel to his side and then halting when he saw me.
Things got awkward.
He was half naked, and I was staring at him, probably with my eyes bugging out of my head.
“Hey, Mia.”
