Hopelessly Broken Read Online Free Page A

blow dried and straightened her hair. And she even put on makeup. Then she put on some real clothes, instead of sweatpants and a hoodie. With Logan at her side, carrying his new best friend, she squinted against the bright sun as they headed east, toward Logan’s school.
    “If we can’t find Aeron, you’ll take care of Cojack until I get home from school, right?” Logan asked.
    Oh, the joy. “Yes, Logan.”
    “You’ll take him outside? And not let him get away?” he asked.
    I can’t wait. “Yes, Logan.”
    “And you’ll get him some food, too?”
    Where the hell is Aeron or one of those fliers? “Of course, Logan.”
    “And he can sleep in my room ,” he said, nuzzling the beast.
    “I’m sure he’ll like that, Logan.”
    “Oh, darn.” Logan said.
    He had just seen Aeron.
    Jenn had too.
    But Jenn wasn’t thinking oh darn . She was thinking oh, wow . And she was thinking don’t make an idiot of yourself ...even though she had a very bad feeling she might do that anyway.
    Frowning, Logan trudged up to Aeron. “We found Cojack,” he grumbled. “Here you go.” He dumped the dog into Aeron’s hands.
    “Thank you, buddy.” Aeron’s smile made Jenn’s heart do a flip-flop in her chest. Aeron ruffled Logan’s hair. “I’m so relieved you found him.”
    While they in teracted, Jenn tried to act normal. But it was hard. Impossible. Aeron was too good looking to be real. Just like the heroes in her books. She felt awkward and uncomfortable, even though she’d spent all morning making herself presentable.
    Logan gave Cojack a pat on the head. “He was hiding under our deck. In our backyard. We found him last night and he slept with me.” Logan gave the little dog a final stroke. “He’s a good dog. You’re lucky.”
    “Yes, I am. I’m lucky to have him back. Thank you again.” Aeron tucked the dog into the crook of his arm and smiled at Jenn. She smiled back. “Can I pay you a reward?”
    She shook her head. “No . We don’t need--”
    “I don’t mind ,” Aeron interrupted. “I mean, I advertised on the flier that I would pay.”
    “That’s okay. We don’t need the money.” That was a lie. Jenn could think of a million reasons why a little extra cash would come in handy. But it was way too embarrassing, taking money from Aeron.
    “Okay.” Aeron flopped an arm over Logan’s shoulder. “How about if I take Logan out for some lunch tomorrow? It’s Saturday. Maybe we can go play some laser tag too.”
    “Laser tag?” Logan shot Jenn one of his pleading sad-eye looks. He knew the answer before she said a word. Logan sighed. “No, thanks.”
    “No?” Aeron turned his questioning glance Jenn’s way. “Are you sure?”
    Jenn nodded. “I’m sure. Nothing personal, you know.”
    “ Sure. Okay.” Aeron let his arm slide off Logan’s shoulder.
    Jenn motioned to Logan. “Ready to head to school?”
    “Yeah. I’m coming.”
    Jenn started walking, expecting Logan to follow. When she didn’t hear his footsteps trailing behind her, she turned.
    He was huddled with Aeron.
    She waved him over. “Come on, Logan.”
    Logan straightened up. “Bye, Aeron.” Back, more or less, to his bouncy self, Logan shuffled up to Jenn and together they walked to school.
    On the way he only asked her three times why she wouldn’t buy him a dog. However later, after school, he asked her at least another hundred times. By dinnertime Jenn was ready to scream if she heard the word dog in any context, even on TV. And after three days of badgering, she threatened to punish Logan if he so much as whispered the word. Being the manipulative little monster that he was, he resorted to drawing pictures of himself with a dog and plastering them all over the house for the next few days.
    On Friday, exactly one week after they’d returned Cojack, while she was scrubbing the toilet (a job that every girl lived for), someone knocked on the door. It was just after noon. She wasn’t expecting any packages. Logan