Barking Up the Wrong Tree by James Emily

Author:James, Emily
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781988480619
Publisher: Stronghold Books
Published: 2023-07-16T00:00:00+00:00

10

I opened my eyes to Orion panting in my face. The hallway lights were back on. When had I fallen asleep? The last thing I remembered, Ryan and I were playing a game of Would You Rather? and I’d asked him if he’d rather be able to fly or breathe underwater.

What time was it? I reached for my phone and pressed my thumb to the home button. My phone didn’t turn on. Ugg. I should have turned it off last night. Instead, I’d managed to run down the battery. I had a charger in the car, but it was meant to plug into the car, not a wall outlet. Would it even charge if I plugged it in when the car was off?

Orion whined softly. He probably needed a bathroom break, and he’d certainly want some breakfast. I sat up and rubbed sleep out of my eyes. Ryan was still sleeping. His phone rested near his head, a cord stretching back to the nearest outlet.

Surely he wouldn’t mind if I unplugged his and plugged mine in. No need to wake him. I crawled out of the sleeping bag and shivered. The lights might be back on, but the building definitely hadn’t warmed up yet, and Ryan was wrapped up in both our coats. I’d have to tough it out with just my sweater until he woke up.

I pulled my boots on, then crawled over to Ryan’s phone. The gel he usually used to hold his curls in place had softened during the night, and his scruff from the day before had turned into the beginning of a beard. He looked good when he wasn’t as formal.

Orion whined again, and heat blistered into my cheeks. The last thing I needed was for Ryan to wake up right now and find me staring at him. Talk about being creepy and awkward.

I quickly unplugged his phone and plugged mine in. I left his right next to mine so he wouldn’t think someone had taken his for nefarious purposes.

Even with no coat, I didn’t have a choice about where we went next. Not unless I wanted to ask Leo where I could find a mop and a bucket. Orion and I headed out into the cold.

The whiteness of it seared my eyeballs. The cars and trees were covered so only hints of color peeked out, a sliver of green here, a glimmer of blue and red there. The air smelled moist and bright rather than sharp and cold the way it had yesterday. Maybe that meant we were nearing the end of the storm. The snow was still coming down, though more lightly. If we got out of here today, it wouldn’t be until much later in the afternoon, but at least there was hope.

Orion took care of his needs, and we headed back inside, my teeth chattering. I grabbed Orion’s breakfast from the fridge in the cafeteria and carried it to the conventional hall where I’d left the bowls the night before.

Darcy, Graudin, Mason, and Leo appeared to still be asleep, but Simone and Tiffany were awake.

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