Staring up into Braden's gorgeous eyes, it appeared fairly evident that he wasn't half as shocked to see me as I was to see him. In fact, he seemed almost sly, amused.
"Well," he began, staring back down at me, wide smile forming on his perfect lips. "First things first, Jayna. I'm going to have to take you out to dinner to discuss your job a bit more in depth."
I laughed. "Please, like there's much to discuss in terms of dog walking. You're pretty precise, you know?" I giggled. Was I..... actually flirting? Jayna Freeman... flirting? Well, there was a first time for everything.
Braden laughed long and deep, and placed his strong arm around my waist. I blushed at his touch. I had never been in this sort of situation, since I had never really dated before. Slowly, I began to blush deeper for even thinking about classifying this as a date. Taking a deep breath, I steadied myself. Okay, Jayna, I thought. All you are doing is meeting with him about walking his boxers. That's it. Act totally professional, businesslike even. Put your feelings, if there are any, into the back of your brain's closet and pull them out of their box when it seems like Braden cares about you too.
Braden's voice interrupted my little pep talk and I realized his hand wasn't on my waist any longer. For a moment, I became afraid and panicked because he wasn't with me. Just after I sworn I'd be businesslike. I'm guessing my scared expression was clearly visible, because Braden moved closer to me, holding two dog leashes in his hand.
"Oh, don't be afraid, Jay. These little guys are my best friends. They are the sweetest little things."
And I looked down to see two adorable, chunky boxers hopping all over my feet, tongues dangling from their mouths, eyes shining. As I bent down to pet them, my stomach dropped, and not just because I bent down to the ground so quickly, but because of the way Brandon had called me Jay. I was hopeless at hiding my emotions.
"Oh, they are perfect! This one's such a sweetie!" I exclaimed as I felt a soft tongue lick my hand.
"That's Rat, and that's Bonine." He pointed first at a chocolate brown one, and then at a black and white one.
"Why is one named after a rodent, and the other after a motion sickness medication?" I questioned.
"Rat eats everything. And Bonine.....just pick him up, and you'll see why."
I stared down at the black and white boxer. He was fairly small, likely the runt of the litter, so he wasn't too heavy.
With bated breath, I swung Bonine up from the ground. The second he was secure in my arms, he made a deep, disturbing gagging noise. I put him back down merely seconds before he barfed up all over the street.
"He suffers from motion issues." Braden laughed. Pretty soon, I was laughing too. A second later, when our eyes met, we both abruptly quit laughing. Braden was blushing, hard, as was I. It seemed as if we were frozen in an alternate dimension before Braden finally spoke up.
"Well, I'll take the dogs and put them inside, and then we can leave for dinner. Alright?"
I nodded slowly, robotically. I was falling for Braden Hiemst. I knew it.
And I accepted it a lot more than I ever dreamed I would.
*******
We pulled up in Braden's Ferrari to my favorite restaurant, Babalouie's Sour Dough Pizza.
As he pulled his Ferrari into the parking lot, I wondered why he had never told his parents we were going to lunch. So, I asked.
As Braden unbuckled my seatbelt and held out my door, I began uncertainly, "Braden? I know this is a weird question to ask, but do your parents know about us going out to dinner? I mean, I just thought that...."
My voice trailed off as I took a look at his far-off expression.
"Braden...is something wrong?" I questioned, placing a gentle hand on his broad shoulder.
"I'm...emancipated, I guess you could say. I don't live with my parents. Haven't for two years. And they aren't dead or anything; we just....separated."
Braden's far-away look continued momentarily, but soon he smiled at me as we entered Babalouie's. The redheaded waitress guided us to a table in the back, handed us our menus, and left, promising she'd bring glasses of water. But not before she gave a cursory glance over her shoulder, assessing us. Judging by her expression, she might have been pondering why such a gorgeous guy was dating such a plain girl. I almost yelled over to her that Braden and I weren't dating. But I didn't, because, truthfully, I really wish we were. I mean, if I ever went to dinner with Jon, I most definitely would call out to the waitress on the spot that we weren't dating, and never would be, ever. But Braden was different.
"So," Braden began, getting down to business. "Rat needs chicken mixed in his food, and Bonine needs pork mixed in his food. I have a bag of dry kibble out by the minibar, where the chicken and pork are stored. You do not need to warm up the cold meat; they like it just fine normally. Bonine needs to go to the bathroom every hour on the hour, and Rat can go only once the whole time you dog sit. They both like to play with toys and they love associating with other dogs, so bear that in mind when they go for walks. Also, Rat goes to sleep after his walk, and don't try to awaken him. You'll dog sit Mondays, Thursdays, and Friday s after school for three hours. Feel free to do homework and eat any food in my house." Taking a breath, Braden finished.
"Got it," I said as I flipped through the menu.
"Great, I know you'll do great, Jayna."
Braden flashed me a heart melting smile.
I blushed, then closed my menu.
"Um, I think the barbeque chicken pizza looks great." We both said in unison.
"Let's split it," Braden said, laughing.
I nodded in agreement as the waitress returned with our waters, and Braden rattled off our order.
The waitress nodded, then looked between Braden and I once again.
"How long have you two been a couple?" She questioned, smiling.
"Since today." Braden blurted.
"Oh, cool." The waitress nodded again, then walked off to fill our order.
"Since today?" I questioned, my cheeks turning scarlet red.
"Well, she might have hit on me or something if I didn't make up an excuse. We're obviously not really dating." Braden mumbled, his face equally as red.
"Oh, yeah, that's true." I tried to choke out a laugh, but I felt so beyond hurt. Hurt that he didn't feel the same way. The glimmer of hope I had held when he told the waitress we were a couple died, and with it, my hopes for a brighter tomorrow.
I guess my feelings for Braden would stay in my brain's closet for life, never to be dusted off and ever thought about again.
<End of Chapter 4>
Okay, I have a lot planned for this story, and it's not going to wait any longer.
The next chapter will be out next week, although, since my cousin and I are writing a book together, it might be kind of short. =-]
Questions for the fans:
1. What's your favorite food?
2. Do you like Braden, or Jon?
3. Who does Jayna deserve to be with?
