Falling for Autumn Read Free Page B

museum and was looking forward to the trip.
    “Well, you do know Laura if you’re looking for a study buddy,” I supplied and immediately wished the words back. A study buddy? I hadn’t always been this inept at conversation with the opposite sex.
    His smile was boyish, displaying a dimple in his left cheek. My muscles clenched at the sight, my body fighting against the unwanted attraction. I felt far away from my surroundings and I couldn’t stop watching him.
    “I hooked up with Laura last semester. She’ll want something from me if we’re study buddies ,” he said wryly. With his grin widening, he let me know he was just teasing me. “Since you and I are obviously not into each other in that way, it won’t end up being complicated.”
    My jaw went slack and I hoped I recovered quickly enough for him to miss my reaction. I didn’t want to be involv ed with a guy, but it still stung to hear he wasn’t interested in me. I should’ve been thankful, but my pride was hurt.
    I rallied. I didn’t want romance, so it was a good thing Blake didn’t see me as dateable material. The Blake from the party wasn’t someone I’d want to be friends with, but the Blake 2.0 standing in front of me had potential. “Okay then, where should we eat?”

Chapter Three
     
    “Is all that food just for you?”
    I looked at Blake’s tray in surprise. His breakfast consisted of a plate of scrambled eggs with bacon, a bagel with peanut butter, a banana, an apple, and two containers of milk.
    We had gone to the cafeteria in the center of campus. It served breakfast until noon and had more food choices than the smaller restaurants and caf és scattered around campus. After finding an unoccupied table by the door, Blake dug into his meal with enthusiasm.
    “You should see what I eat when I’m training. I try to eat six thousand calories a day then,” he remarked and took a bite of bacon. I shook my head in disbelief and took a tentative bite of my buttered bagel. My appetite had a tendency to come and go, causing an unexpected weight loss. Gradually, the weight was returning and I hoped my curves with it.
    “Hey , Autumn.” I looked up and smiled at my friend Josh approaching our table. He lived on the same floor as Lexi’s boyfriend, Finn, and had been in my biology class last semester. We exchanged emails over winter break, but I hadn’t run into him since moving back to campus last week.
    “Hi , Josh. How was the rest of your break?”
    “Boring, I couldn’t wait to come back. I didn’t see you in second section biology. Are you taking a different professor than Greene?”
    “I decided to wait until next year to take it. I’m actually in art history at that time with Blake. Josh, this is Blake Preston.” I gestured with my fork between the two guys. I turned away from Josh to address Blake. “Blake, this is Josh Matthews.”
    Blake stopped eating and gave Josh an assessing look before smiling. “Hey.”
    Josh ran a hand through his thick black hair nervously. “I’m actually a big fan. I went to every home game in the fall. That last catch you made in the fourth quarter against SUNY was incredible.”
    I smiled privately. It was adorable to see Josh all excited over meeting Blake. Maybe I’d see if some of the games were on YouTube and find out what all the fuss was about.
    “Good to see you have friends with good taste,” Blake said pointedly to me. Addressing Josh, he continued, “You should’ve brought Autumn to a game last semester.”
    “Autumn hates football and said the players were probably a bunch of dickheads anyway. She would stay at the dorm and study while the rest of us went to the games.”
    Blake’s smile faded. I gave Josh an annoyed look. “I never said that. I said I was too busy to go and that I went to high school with a few jackass football players.”
    “Sorry,” Josh said but his tone was unapologetic. He adjusted his dark -rimmed glasses and shifted his weight. “I have to run