Page 13 of The Roommate Problem
He’d read a lot about whole food eating because he liked the idea of living off the land. Not saying he wanted to go 100 percent off-grid, but the notion of relying on no one but himself held some appeal. Hell, he did it enough as a kid, being shuffled back and forth between his parents’ homes, keeping all his belongings in a backpack and duffle so he wouldn’t miss a homework assignment or gym class clothes.
He’d learned early on not to rely on anyone but himself. That way when people let him down, it didn’t matter as much.
“Here,” he said after hearing Mo grunt for the fifth time trying to heave the basket around. He grabbed the handles from her and placed it in his cart.
“My hero.”
She gave a dramatic sigh, batting her eyelashes at him. August rolled his eyes at her antics, but he was smiling as he wheeled the cart to a check-out line.
“You don’t have much in there.”
Now it was his turn to sigh. “The whole food selection is lacking here. I need to find another store. Preferably one with organic options.”
She snapped her fingers. Face bright with excitement. Uh oh. That couldn’t be good for him.
“I got it! The farmers market is still going on. We can head there next.”
“Denver has a farmers market?” Kind of an odd thing in the middle of the city.
“Oh, August.” She laughed, patting him on the chest. “Poor country boy. Yes, we have a farmers market. In fact, we have about half a dozen. I told you the city has everything anyone could possibly need. Now let’s pay for these things and I’ll prove it to you. I’ll make a city man out of you yet.”
He highly doubted it, but if there was fresh produce, he was game to give it a try.
…
Mo smiled as she watched August move around the tables and stands picking up various fruits and vegetables to inspect them, squeeze them, sometimes even sniff them. Weird. She didn’t think people outside of movies did stuff like that. Still, she had to pat herself on the back for this genius idea. The farmers market had been the perfect place to take August. All the healthy, organic, tasteless food his bland taste buds could ever want.
Most people wouldn’t care this much about making a roommate feel at home, but to Mo, it was important. First off because she needed August to stay and help her out with the rent. That was the most important. But also because she hated seeing people unhappy. Life was too short to spend it in misery. Mo took it upon herself to make sure everyone was having a good time, at all times. And if anyone needed a good cheering up, it was August Porter.
“So, what do you think?” she asked as he handed some cash to the man behind the table who gave him a bag of—gag—zucchini. Why did the man need four zucchinis? No one needed that much green food.
“Good selection. Prices are a little high.”
She barely held back a groan. Could nothing satisfy this man?
They started to walk again when Mo almost tripped over a large golden retriever. Her arms went spinning, trying to find her balance again, but it was no use. She was going down. Except she didn’t. Two big, strong arms caught her, saving her from cracking her head on the hard pavement. She glanced up, staring into a pair of beautiful hazel eyes and a firm, turned-down mouth.
“Are you okay?” August asked with concern.
Heck yeah, she was! She was currently being held by a very sexy redhead. Who wouldn’t be okay with that?
“You just keep coming to my rescue today. You’re like my very own knight in…” She glanced down at his tight black t-shirt and dark, worn blue jeans. “Rough denim.”
Feeling exceptionally playful, she moved up on her toes to place a grateful kiss on his cheek.
Mistake!
The brief contact of her skin pressed against his sent a bolt of sexual awareness through her. The hands on her hips tightened, pulling her slightly closer, his thumbs stroking the small strip of skin left bare between her shirt and skirt. Heat blazed in August’s eyes for just a moment before he blinked it away, releasing her and stepping back.
Hmm, that was interesting.
A friendly bark drew Mo’s attention down to a happy-faced pup with a pink tongue hanging out the side of its mouth. She reached down to pet the animal.
“Oh, aren’t you just the sweetest little puppers there ever was? Yes, you are, yes, you are. Who’s a sweet doggo? You are.”
The dog whined, tilting its head and staring past her to August.
“Just go with it, man,” August replied. “She’s weird, but it kind of grows on you.”
