Petite Madeleine: Drew's Story (Meadows Shore Book 3) Read Online Free

her otherwise bare shoulders to where her nipples strained under the stretchy pink fabric. The whisper-thin straps made no pretense that she was wearing a bra. From the way his body was reacting, hot pink might just be his new favorite color.
    “Is anyone sitting here?” she asked, gesturing to the seat near him.
    “No,” he choked out, coughing to clear the frog that had settled in his throat. Completely tongue-tied, but wanting desperately to talk to her, he channeled his older brothers, and leaned coolly back in the chair with his legs stretched well beyond the desk. “What’s in the box?”
    “Cupcakes.”
    “Cupcakes?” Damn . The seminar was a class, but it was also their freshman advisory. Or, as his brother Mark referred to it, a support group for dorks who don’t have a clue about life away from Mommy and Daddy. Hmmm, was he was supposed to have brought food today? Had he already blown the first assignment?
    “It’s my birthday. I made cupcakes,” she said, as though she could read his mind.
    Her voice was lyrical, without a hint of guile. And he wondered if she was two French fries short of a Happy Meal, bringing cupcakes to class on her birthday like a second grader, or if she just had big balls and didn’t care what people thought of her. By the time class ended that afternoon, he didn’t really care which it was. She was hands down the most incredible creature he’d ever set eyes on, and he wanted to know her better.
    There were a dozen students in the advisory group that afternoon, and the professor asked each one to introduce themselves. She went first.
    “I’m Cassia Anteros, but almost everyone calls me Cassie. I’m from New York, but I live in Keeney now. Today’s my birthday,’’ she smiled, “and I brought cupcakes and iced tea to share. I hope you’ll help me celebrate.”
    “Anteros. The god of unrequited love. Cupid’s brother and the son of Aphrodite and Ares. By all means, Cassie, let’s have your cupcakes. And tea,” Professor Stamoulis said with a twinkle in his eyes.
    Everyone in the group was mesmerized by her. The guys because she was hot and brought food, and the girls because she was genuinely nice and didn’t flirt. She acted like she didn’t know she was beautiful, handing out iced tea and cupcakes, serving them like she was a mere mortal instead of a descendant of the gods.
    The cupcakes were frosted with pale lavender icing, and decorated with white and purple sprinkles. They were big, chocolate treats with a fudgy center that melted on his tongue.
    It was just what everyone needed after the excesses of a long orientation week. Although they’d be loath to admit it, they were all a little homesick, and tired of the responsibilities that came with free-flowing alcohol, and unsupervised nights filled with the unrelenting pressure to have a fresh, warm body in their bed every night, or to be that fresh warm body. The cupcakes made them feel like carefree kids again, and they had Cassie and her quiet confidence to thank for the welcome reprieve.
    He hung around after class, pretending to help her clean up, hoping she might throw him a crumb or two, but she didn’t, and he was too unsure of himself to take the initiative.
    The next day, when he strolled into freshman English, she was there. It was turning out to be his week. No cupcakes, but a different kind of treat: her lean, tanned legs in white denim shorts that hugged her tight, round ass. She smiled up at him through long, dark lashes while he slid into the empty seat beside her.
    And their friendship began.
    The first assignment in English class was to choose a critique partner for the semester. “Want to work together?” she asked when they left the building after class.
    “Sure.” He tried to appear smooth, not too interested. After watching his three older brothers do it hundreds of times, he knew just how to pull off that cool external façade. But inside, his heart was tap dancing on his chest