Nerd Girl Read Online Free Page A

different than Benihana.
    T he buzzer on my alarm sounds off at 8:00 the next morning; I’m so not ready to get up and face the world yet. I click the snooze button for an extra ten minutes and roll over to face the wall so the light from the window doesn’t shine in my face. I’m met with a cold nose to my cheek, proceeded by a very large tongue giving me a face bath. Sounds kinky, right? Yeah, not when that tongue is attached to a 60 pound Redbone Coonhound.
    “Clyde, get off my bed. Your breath smells like Milk Bones,” I say as I attempt to avoid the mad licker coming at my face again. I manage to push him away with both arms. Grunting his disapproval at me, Clyde climbs off the bed and slinks out my bedroom door that’s cracked open. “I love you, boy,” I yell to Clyde. He answers back with a loud hound howl. He always has to have the last word.
    I do love Clyde; he’s my Pops’ dog. We rescued him from a high-kill shelter in Newark. He was an eleventh-hour rescue because the trainers said he was unable to learn the most basic commands like sit, stay, speak. Those skills make dogs attractive to possible families. Pops didn’t care. He saw that rich red coat of fur with sad, pleading eyes and found his new four-legged child. They were right. There’s only one command Clyde understands and follows. Pops taught Clyde to pee on command. Have you ever watched the Clint Eastwood movie
Any Which Way You Can
? You know the one with the orangutan? Well, this is Pops’ favorite movie. When he found out the dog’s name was Clyde, Pops went on a mission. At the command of “Right Turn, Clyde” the orangutan in the movie would punch someone standing on his right side. You see where this is going? Yep, Pops taught our Clyde to pee on the command “Right Turn, Clyde.” Totally gross, but on the bright side, it shows Clyde is capable of learning, he just chooses not to do dumb dog tricks. He’s more sophisticated than that.
    The buzzer sounds again and this time the day cannot be ignored. I’ve got to go shower, shave my legs and show up for work; the three S’s. I’m so tired today. It took ages for me to fall asleep last night and, when I did, I had dreams of Derrick that turned into nightmares when Layla made a vain attempt to sexify my nerdy self for a date with him: teased hair a mile high, blue eye shadow, and hot pink lip stick. I looked like a throw-back to a Twisted Sister music video. Scary!
    The hot water pours down on me and it feels so good, I could stay in here all day, but duty calls at the bookstore, along with another long evening of my online computer college courses. Most of the online work is complete, I’m set to graduate from the University of Phoenix Online in May with a degree in Business Administration.
    After I blow my hair dry, I pull it up into my usual signature ponytail. I quickly choose my outfit for the day: black skinny jeans, a button up red and navy flannel shirt and my favorite black Chuck Taylors. I add a black leather and bead bracelet just for a girlie touch and sling my leather camel colored purse across my chest. With one last look in the mirror, I give myself my usual pep talk about my appearance. “Alright, Amy, just like any other day, this is as good as it’s going to get.” Skipping downstairs, I quickly bustle through the kitchen, grab a cinnamon roll, kiss Pops goodbye and run out the door.
    “Amy, are you going to be home for dinner?” Pops yells to me. “GG is making baked chicken and mashers.”
    “I’ll call you after work Pops, not sure yet,” I answer as I climb in my little red Hyundai. It’s a short, fifteen-minute drive to work at The Book Mark, a local mom and pop bookstore and coffee shop. What can I say, I love books, I’m addicted to caffeinated beverages and I’m a poor college girl. Working here is no hardship. I park my car in my usual spot two doors down. The downtown area of Red Bank is never busy at this time of the morning. Climbing