Jo blushes at the memory of her and Riley sleeping together. It was so amazing, so fucking amazing. She hasn't been able to stop thinking about it, about the way he looked at her, the way he touched her, the way he felt inside her.

She blushes hard as she sits in class, her heart picking up. She glances around as she crosses her legs tightly. She clears her throat as she continues typing what her professor has written on the board, trying to pay attention but Riley keeps filling her head.

His incredibly fit body, his beautiful blue eyes, his rough hands, ugh.

Before she knows it, class has ended and she's packing up.

Jo takes a deep breath as she pushes her dorm room door open. Her eyes land on Riley's half of the room and sighs when she sees it's empty.

She kicks her slip ons off and tosses her bag on her bed. She strips her clothes off and steals one of Riley's t-shirts. She pops open her laptop and starts working on her homework.

The door opens and Riley steps in, pushing his damp curls out of his face. "Hey, Joey." He says in an exhausted voice. "What's goin' on?"

"Just workin' on my paper for business." She shrugs back, stretching her legs out. Jo smirks when she catches Riley looking. "How was practice?"

"Kicked my ass." He sighs heavily, sitting across from her.

Football season has started and, of course, Riley's on the team.

He lays back on his bed, exhaling loudly. "Here." She hands him a bottle of aspirin and a cold Gatorade from the mini fridge. He groans as he sits up, his back hurting like a son of a bitch.

Jo leans against his headboard and bites her lip when he stands, pulling his sweaty, dirty clothes off. He looks so good. "You stole my shirt?"

"You want it back?" She lifts her arms, the shirt riding up and exposing the hem of her panties.

Riley hasn't been able to stop thinking about Jo and her body since that time they hooked up.

He bites his lip as he glances between the hem of her shirt and her blush colored face. His rough, sore hands go to her hips and slide up to her waist. She giggles quietly, pushing him to sit back down, straddling his lap.

He laughs quietly, leaning back against the wall. "You are so beautiful, Joey." He whispers, brushing her hair behind her ear.

The marks on her face have healed and the gash on her lip is barely visible. She's still heart-stoppingly stunning.

She leans down and kisses him softly. He blushes hard, she can feel the heat in his stubbly cheeks against her skin. She giggles and pulls away, resting her forehead against his.

"You wanna get somethin' to eat?" She asks, running her fingers through his curls. His eyes flutter closed at the feeling. "I found my fake so we can go to a bar- the one off campus has somethin' goin' on tonight."

"Sure. Lemme grab a shower." He smiles.

Riley wraps an arm around her waist and lays her back on his bed. She squeaks, the stolen shirt riding up, completely exposing her rather skimpy panties. Riley bites his lip at the sight but forces himself to get his towel and leave the room.

If he didn't leave now, they wouldn't leave the dorm room for the rest of the night.

+++

"Hey Jo!" The girl behind the bar shouts over the crowd. "Haven't see you in a while!"

Jo grabs Riley's hand and pulls him to the bar. "Ri, this is Vanessa. V, this is Riley."

Riley smiles warmly at her. "Hey."

V blushes at his smile. "Hi."

Jo chuckles. "I'll take a whiskey sour."

"Bud Light for me, please." Riley says politely.

They're served their drinks and they find an empty table. Jo looks Riley over as she sips her drink, swinging her leg. "They's havin' a karaoke contest tonight." She says, pointing at the huge chalkboard behind them. "I signed you up."

"What?"

"I signed you up." She repeats, using the straw in her glass to stir her drink.

"Joey-"

"What? I thought you was a music man."

"I just- y'know..."

"What? Are you scared?"

He scoffs playfully. "No. I just don't really- I dunno." He takes a drink of his beer then smiles over at her. "You're singin' with me."

"I don't sing."

"Well, y'are tonight!" He laughs. They look up at the small stage when they hear his name being called. "C'mon."

He stands, his beer in one hand and Jo's in the other. He tugs her to the stage and politely helps her up.

Jo is nervous. She doesn't mind being in front of people but she isn't too confident in her singing ability. She doesn't want to make a fool of herself.

"What're you wantin' to sing?" He asks her. His musical repertoire is pretty broad and he knows that she's also into country music.

"George Strait?" She looks up at him. "Carrying Your Love With Me?"

Riley smiles and nods, repeating her answer to the bartender who gets the track queued up.

He sends Jo a soft look that has her calming down. He takes her hand and gives it a squeeze then starts singing.

She hasn't really heard him sing before. She wasn't excepting a tenor voice to come out of him but she gets goosebumps. She can't help but look at him with a look that has him biting back a smirk.

She's heard Sean sing. He's been busy trying to make a name for himself in the country music industry and he has a nice voice but it's nothing like Riley's.

She laughs to herself, feeling silly with what running through her mind and body.

She says fuck it and sings her heart out, just having a good time. Everyone here is pretty drunk so who gives a fuck.

Riley licks then bites his lip, his heart fluttering. He gives her that look back and as soon as the song ends, she's grabbing his hand to take him back to their dorm.

+++

"What're you doin' over the summer?" Jo asks, kicking her feet up behind her as she lays on her front, browsing Amazon on her laptop.

"Prolly workin' my ass off." He winces as he shrugs as he lays on his bed, staring up at the ceiling. His back is incredibly sore from working out. "What about you?"

"Same. My daddy needs help at his shop."

He looks over at her. "Shop?"

"He's a tractor mechanic." She responds, looking at him. "What're you gonna do?"

"A friend of my daddy's has a construction company and they need extra help over the summer."

Color rushes to her cheeks when she thinks about Riley all sweaty, his strong biceps and back flexing- muscles rippling as he lifts heavy-

"You comin' back in the fall?"

"Huh? Yeah. I got my classes all signed up." Jo smiles, looking back at her screen. "I'm actually pretty excited for it."

Sean tried to convince her to drop out but she let it go in one ear and out the other.

There is no way she's letting some boy stand in the way of her future.

"I was thinkin' 'bout gettin' an apartment next year and I need a roommate. You in?"

Her eyes freeze on a spot of the brightly lit rectangle in front of her. "Really? You- you want me to be your roommate?"

"Yeah. Why not? I mean, we're friends right?"

"Yeah. Okay, sure." She grins. "That sounds good."

"Cool." He grins back, trying to bite back his excitement. "I found one off Gasden Road. Two bedroom, one bathroom. Close enough to walk." He taps around on his phone to pull up the ad for the place he's talking about.

She stands then sits on his bed next to him, looking at the house. "This ain't an apartment."

"I know. They're crazy expensive, especially near here but a house is cheaper."

"It's cute. I think it'll work." She nods, handing him his phone back.

Riley yawns in response, draping an arm across his eyes while his other hand rests on his belly. Jo reaches over and brushes a stray curl out of his face then covers his sore body with a blanket. She gives his hand a squeeze then returns to her bed, continuing to browse the internet for some things they'll probably need for their future house.

+++

Riley and Jo have become best friends. Not so surprising but still, they're practically inseparable. The school year is winding down and they have to go their separate ways for the summer and they're both incredibly bummed.

But it's just for a few months- less really because they're moving in together in the fall.

Jo is solemnly packing up her stuff while Riley is doing the same.

"Hey." He says, looking at her over his shoulder.

"Hm?"

"I really liked livin' with you, Joey."

"Well I'm glad to hear that since we're movin' in together in July." She deadpans and he laughs. "Liked? Don't use past tense, Ri. Almost broke my ol' heart." She says in a heavily southern accented voice making him laugh again.

"Man, I'm gonna miss you over the summer."

A blush colors her cheeks and ears. "Really?"

"Yeah. I'm gonna miss you bein' a little shit." He teases, scrunching his nose up at her. "You takin' care of me after practice." It's his turn to blush.

No one, except his mama, has taken care of him like she has. He can't wait to see what living in a house holds for them.