Gold Rush

Chapter Nineteen

            "I may be old, but I have to admit I'm curious to see what they come up with," Jenny said, tossing Rian's shirt into my dirty laundry hamper.

            I nodded. "Me too."

            Jenny went over my bathroom next, popping her head in to make sure it was clean. "You're low on hand soap," she told me, coming back out. "Do you have any in the closet?"

            The moment she started heading toward it, I stepped out in front of her. "No!" I cried, too loudly. "Uh, I looked already. I have to go out and pick some up."

            She gave me a suspicious look. "You're not hiding a boy in your closet, are you?"

            "Of course not!" I said quickly, letting out an obnoxious, forced laugh. "Are you kidding? Me? No way! Of course not! Never!" Kicking myself, I forced my mouth shut. Crap, I was bad at this.

            "Right..."

            "You done here, then?" I asked hopefully.

            She gave the closet a lingering glance before nodding. "I suppose. Don't have to give you the usual check, fortunately. Saves me a good five minutes."

            Barely holding back a sigh of relief, I nodded. "Yep, that's me. The good student, ha ha ha."

            "Right..." She began walking toward the door, and I let my shoulders slump. Almost home free.

            Then, before I could even protest, she had the closet door open. My mouth fell open in shock and a million excuses bubbled to my lips.

            However, none of them were needed.

            "Iris, you're supposed to fold your blankets," Jenny scolded me, staring at the pile of comforters and sheets now lying on the ground at her feet.

            Confused, I peered in, looking for Rian. Those blankets had been on the top shelf... Forcing my eyes to stay focused on the bottom of the closet, I nodded, scooping the blankets up from off the floor and tossing them on my bed. "I'll do that now."

            "Okay," Jenny responded, shutting the closet door behind me.

            Now I really had to hold back my sigh of relief.

            The moment Jenny was out of the room, I rushed back to the closet, peering at the top shelf. Rian grinned down at me from where he was, curled up on the wood ledge. "Hey."

            "How... I actually don't want to know," I said, taking a step back so he could unfurl and hop down.

            "That was close," he said with a grin. "Really woke me up."

            "Tell me about it," I responded with a sigh. "I need a shower."

            "Me too. Want to take one together?"

            I gave him a short glare. "I'll take one first, then you can, and then we'll go get breakfast. I suggest you text Noah or Luke to let them know where you've been."

            Rian pouted. "No fun."

            Ignoring him, I pulled out a fresh set of clothing and undergarments from my dresser before hurrying to the bathroom. "Don't answer the door if anyone knocks. Oh, and lock it."