Girl's Best Friend

Chapter 5

Briar

I wait anxiously for the day of the doggy paddle, trying to leave Quinn alone so he doesn't get annoyed with me and cancel on me. I had never heard of such a thing until I moved here for school and my first two years I was so jealous of everyone with a dog that got to go. It sounded so fun, taking your dog to make new friends, getting to swim with them in a pool.

When the day finally arrived, I dressed in my bikini, opting for the one with a little more coverage, and threw a towel and some sunscreen in my bag before walking over to Quinn's. I knock on the door and hear Hank bark before it swings open to reveal Quinn. I take in his appearance, feeling like something is off. It takes a moment for it to click into place.

"Where are your glasses?" I ask, and he scowls at me a little like he's annoyed by my question.

"We're going swimming, right?" He asks and I nod. "I put in my contacts. It's hard to see with wet glasses." He says and I mentally facepalm myself.

"Oh. Yeah. Obviously." I say with a nervous chuckle. He has on a light grey t-shirt and navy blue swim trunks, looking the perfect picture for an afternoon at the pool.

"I like your glasses better." I say, honestly. They give him a mysterious, broody, scholarly vibe that I have become attached to. He stops gathering his things at my comment and looks at me as if to determine if I'm serious. When he sees that I am, he gives me a lopsided grin that makes him look years younger and has my stomach doing a funny flip thing that I try to ignore.

"Thanks, Briar." He says quietly. I nod and grab Hank's leash off the hook by the door.

"Come here, Hank." I say and he bounds right up to me, sitting so I can clip on the leash. I give his head pats and coo to him. "That's a good boy. You're my favorite boy." His tail flaps wildly with joy and I laugh a little at him.

"You ready?" Quinn asks and I nod, standing up straight.

We walk to his car and he opens the door for me which I think is sweet. I don't think a guy has ever done that before. He opens the back door for Hank before climbing in the drivers' seat. Hank makes me laugh when he pokes his snout under my arm, sticking his head through the open spot between the two front seats. Quinn lets out a low chuckle at us and I take a moment to study his smile, since they seem so rare.

"Thanks for doing this with me. I've wanted to go the last couple of years but didn't have a dog and I thought it'd be weird to show up without one." I say and Quinn looks over at me, a soft expression on his face.

"No problem." He responds and we drive the rest of the way in content silence, the radio the only sound as it plays quietly in the background and I'm struck by how nice it is. My friends are always chatting and Brad likes to blast his music. It's peaceful, sitting in quiet contemplation doing nothing but running my fingers through Hank's fur.

When we arrive, we walk up to the little booth where you pay to get in.

"It's a fundraiser for the local humane society. I got it, since I basically forced you to come." I say with a smile and Quinn shakes his head.

"Don't worry about it." He says and pulls a hundred dollar bill out of his wallet, handing it to the young girl. "Keep the change." He says, grabbing two wristbands for us, slipping mine on me as I gape at him.

"It's only five dollars a person." I murmur to him and he shrugs.

"That's where I got Hank. I donate to them anyway." He says and my heart warms towards him.

"You actually have a soft spot. Who knew?" I tease and he huffs at me.

"It's just the one." He says and I let out a laugh at him as we find somewhere to drop our stuff. Hank is bustling with excitement, his ears perking and eyes following the movement of all the other dogs. There really aren't that many and I'm glad for that. Quinn looks around and I follow his eyes.