Public Display of Everything by Cara Dee Read Free Book Online Page A

Most buildings are old too, which I like.
    That’s one of the reasons I love London. It's like walking through a museum, each building with its own history.
    I set the Tesco bag on the counter next to the sink. I'm surrounded by cupboards in a faded green color that would've made me feel like I'd been thrown back into the '70s if it weren't for the bright spotlights and the state-of-the-art appliances in stainless steel.
    I could cook here. One of the few things I'm actually good at.
    As long as I'm careful with the knives .
    "You'll have to tell me if I've done something wrong with my plans for tonight," Flynn says as he opens the fridge. "A few people have said I'm too weird to be friends with, but this is my first movie marathon, so there might be a mistake or two on my part. If it's not too much to ask, I'd like the chance to correct them."
    What the…?
    Sorting through the contents of the bag, I keep my anger at a "few people" hidden and go with honesty. "Those people are obviously fucked in the head." Turning around, I lean back against the counter. He's still facing the fridge, his shoulders tense. "You're quirky, Flynn. I like it." As I tip my head to the side, I see his profile and catch him mouthing quirky to himself, as if testing the word. He seems to relax slightly. I don’t wanna make him more uncomfortable, so I leave it at that. "Anyway, you have me curious now. What movies are we gonna watch?"
    We texted a few times last night; he asked me what kind of movies I enjoy. No specifics, just the genres. I told him anything with history, horror, or comedy works for me.
    Flynn brings out cans of soda and places them on a tray, sending me a small smile akin to one of gratitude. "A movie site on the internet suggested themes. Since you like history and I enjoy war films, I compromised, or rather combined, and settled on a Western theme. Is that okay?" He glances at me.
    "Hell, yeah." I nod my approval. "That sounds good. Where do you keep the bowls?" I hold up two bags of chips.
    Joining me, he opens a cupboard directly above, and I try not to get a whiff of him. Try and fail, fucking obviously. Christ, I guess jacking off twice yesterday and once this morning wasn’t enough.
    "Thanks." I accept two bowls made of hard plastic, having almost expected crystal or something. These look like something I'd find in the 99 pence store. Love that store . I buy T-shirts and socks there. And the occasional belt.
    As I open the first bag, I accidentally tear it up completely and knock over a bowl. Chips scatter all over like shrapnel from a grenade, and I hiss a curse when I get salt in my fucking eye. In a futile attempt to prevent the bowl from hitting the floor, I reach for it with my eyes screwed shut, but incidentally grab the tray of sodas instead. I hear Flynn calling out my name, and the second he moves in to help, I step on a soda can and lose my footing.
    I fall on my ass with a pathetic thump, chips crunching underneath me and one of the sodas soaking my jeans.
    "Cory!"
    I groan at the pain in my ass—not the good kind—the sting in my eye, and the ache in my shoulder blades. Flynn's floor isn't exactly soft. Still, my ego took the hardest hit.
    "Crap, crap, crap—Are you okay?" Flynn kneels down next to me and puts a hand on my shoulder.
    I cough another groan and nod. "Yeah," I mutter, cracking my good eye open. "I'd love to say this never happens, but…" I sigh heavily and push myself up to survey the damage. "Shit." There's chips and Fanta everywhere.
    I should be thankful only one soda exploded. 
    Flynn sits back and leans against the cupboard. "This is astonishing." He looks it, too. For whatever reason. "You're always so confident—so cocksure. But you're a klutz?"
    There is so much wrong and epically right with those words that I can only laugh. Cocksure —probably the only time I'll hear Flynn say cock. But that’s how he perceives me? As confident?
    "Total klutz." I hold up my palms in a