Free Nothing Left to Lose by Kirsty Moseley Page B

girlfriend after all,” he countered,
shrugging.
    I stiffened at
the word ‘girlfriend’. “No I’m not. My boyfriend died. You’re just
doing your job,” I retorted, glaring at him angrily.
    His face
dropped and his eyes tightened. “Anna, I was just kidding. I meant
if people ask, we can say this was our first date. I mean, we’ve
gotta have stories and stuff, right?” he continued cautiously.
    I sighed and
ignored him, rowing harder until we reached the floating dock that
was almost in the middle of the lake. When the boat bumped against
the edge of the dock, he jumped out, tying it securely before
holding his hand down to help me up.
    “I don’t need
your help,” I protested, annoyed again.
    He sighed
deeply. “Listen, Anna, this is what guys do for their girls. We
need to start acting like a couple now so that it’ll be easier next
week. It’s not a big deal; I just want to help you out of the boat.
Please stop being difficult,” he countered, grabbing my hand and
helping me onto the deck. “Jeez, you’re stubborn.” He shook his
head, laughing. “Most girls would’ve fallen for my charm by now,”
he boasted, smiling at me.
    I snorted at
his cocky attitude. “If you’re expecting me to fall for you, then
you’re going to be very disappointed,” I said seriously.
    He chuckled. “I
know, I can tell,” he answered, grinning. I rolled my eyes at him
and took my jeans off, plopping down on the dock in just my long,
baggy T-shirt. I grabbed an apple out of the bag, nibbling on it
absentmindedly.
    When he
stripped down to his shorts, exposing that incredible toned and
tanned body that looked like something out of a celebrity magazine,
I slipped on my shades so that he wouldn’t see my eyes wander in
his direction. I forced my gaze away from him and focussed on my
apple. I actually felt immensely guilty for looking at him in that
way. I had never looked at a man the way I kept looking at Ashton,
not since Jack. No one ever caught my interest, and I felt like I
was being unfaithful to Jack’s memory by looking at my new
guard.
    Ashton sat down
next to me, stretching out his long legs. “Let’s start with the
getting to know each other. What’s your favourite colour?” he asked
casually.
    “Green,” I
answered, closing my eyes and lying back on the wooden dock. I
loved it out here; the way the dock rocked slightly on the water
was soothing. I often came out here and just lay in the peace and
quiet.
    “Favourite
flower?”
    “Dandelion,” I
replied, then bit my lip. “I mean roses, white roses,” I amended,
frowning.
    “Dandelions?
You like weeds? Why?” he asked, eyeing me curiously.
    Oh for
goodness’ sake! Why does this guy want to know everything about me
and always see through my lies? I sighed. “Jack gave me a big
bunch of dandelions when he asked me out when we were five,” I
admitted, smiling at the memory.
    He laughed.
“That’s sweet. He sounds like he was a nice guy.” I nodded, and he
smiled at me. “Maybe he was a bit cheap though,” he added
jokingly.
    I smiled and
looked at him. “He was a great guy, you’d have liked him, everyone
liked him.” I rolled onto my front, putting my arms under my chin,
watching the water ripple around the dock.
    There was an
uncomfortable silence for a few minutes before he spoke again.
“Favourite food? Mine’s a tuna melt baked potato because that’s
about the only thing I can cook,” he laughed.
    “Seriously, you
can’t cook? Do you still live with your parents? Does your mommy do
everything for you? I bet she still washes your clothes,” I teased,
grinning at him.
    A sad smile
crossed his face. “My parents died when I was ten, I grew up in
foster homes,” he replied. “And no, I can’t cook. I’m pretty good
at burning stuff though.”
    I winced and
looked at him apologetically because of my insensitive joke about
his mom. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know. I shouldn’t have said
that.”
    He smiled and
shook his