Chapter 25 #2
His first word: KISS. It earns him eighteen points.
But it just gets worse from there. On subsequent turns, his words include YEARN, HOT, LIPS, FLIRT, and my personal favorite, CURVES.
How is he getting these letters? Is he swapping for them when the rest of us aren’t looking? Does he have some secret tile stash in his pocket?
I’m not sure our mothers have picked up on his theme. Mixed in with all the other words, they aren’t that obvious.
But I’ve definitely noticed, and it triggers a deep desire to one-up his attempts to throw me off balance.
My chance doesn’t come until the very last round, when I use my last seven tiles to go out first. Adding a Y to Theo’s FLIRT, I place the word NAUGHTY on the board.
“Double word score,” I say, “plus fifty points for using all my tiles in one turn. I think that means I win.”
Theo bursts out laughing, and it’s the most rewarding sound I’ve heard all day.
“Why do I feel like we’ve missed something?” Mom says.
Kim tilts her head toward the board. “Apparently, there was a theme to the game that I’ve only just noticed.” She gives Theo a pointed look. “Just friends, huh?”
“Who wants a snack?” I say, standing and moving into the kitchen. “Can I make something? Maybe I can go to the store? What do we need? Anything?”
“You’re being about as subtle as a freight train right now,” Theo says as he moves into the kitchen behind me. He lowers our empty water glasses into the sink.
“You started it,” I whisper. “You played way more obvious words than me.”
He smirks. “And you blushed every time I did.”
“How about some popcorn?” Kim says. “We bought some kernels at the store, and I think I saw an air popper in the pantry. It’s supposed to rain for the rest of the afternoon, so maybe we could watch a movie.”
“I would love a movie,” Mom says. “What if we watch The Notebook? Have you seen that one, Kim?” Mom’s voice is overly animated, and she’s looking at Kim like they’re definitely up to something.
Kim taps a finger against her chin. “Is that the one where they fall in love as teenagers, then reunite as adults?”
“That’s it!” Mom says.
“Or we could watch When Harry Met Sally,” Kim says. “It’s about two people who think they’re just friends, but they’re actually in love with each other the whole time.”
Theo and I exchange a look, then he turns his back to our moms. “Okay, so clearly they’re onto us,” he says, his voice low enough for only me to hear. “But that doesn’t mean we have to break first.”
“Right. I’ve got this,” I say. I step around him. “What about Saw IV?”
Theo swallows a chuckle. “Too far,” he says under his breath.
“You hate scary movies,” Mom says.
She’s right. I do hate them. Once in high school, I watched The Conjuring with Theo because I didn’t want him to think I was a wimp. I made it to the end, but I didn’t sleep for a week. But I’m already committed. It’s too late to back out now.
“I’m … trying something new,” I say.
“How about Project Hail Mary?” Theo says loud enough for our mothers to hear. Then he whispers, “I’m not letting you watch a scary movie. This one has no romance, so we still win. Plus, you love Ryan Gosling.”
The ownership in that sentence, the way he clearly wants to take care of me and also remembers one of my favorite actors, makes my heart feel too big for my chest. “That sounds good to me,” I say, holding his gaze. “Let’s do that one.”
In the end, I think our moms are the ones who win because watching a movie next to Theo and not touching him is the worst kind of torture. By the time the movie is halfway over, the air between us is so thick with crackling tension, I might actually explode.
I’m so aware of him. Dialed in to every inch of space that separates his body from mine.
During a particularly intense part of the movie, when both our mothers’ eyes are trained on the screen, Theo drapes his arm over the back of the couch, then slowly inches his hand forward, grazing his fingers over the back of my neck.
My skin lights up at the touch, and I lean in, aching for more contact. It’s all I can do not to scoot closer, nestle my whole body into his side so I can breathe him in, feel the weight of his arm around my shoulders.
Instead, I stand up. “I think we need more popcorn.” I grab the empty bowl off the coffee table and speed-walk into the kitchen.
I set the bowl on the island, then duck into the pantry where I sink against the wall.
I’ll pop more popcorn, but I need at least a moment to recalibrate and let some of the tension drain out of my body.
But then Theo steps into the pantry, shutting the door behind him.
“What are you—”
I can’t even finish my sentence before his lips are on mine, his hands almost frantic as he tugs me against him, pulling me closer, closer.
“You think you can just sit over there on the other side of the couch,” he says in between kisses. “Looking this good, smelling this good. I’m losing my mind, Bec.”
“Why do you think I’m hiding in the pantry?” I ask him. “I don’t think I’m capable of being close to you without touching you.”
He leans back, planting his hands on the wall behind me, one on either side of my head. “Then touch me,” he says, his voice like silk.
I lift my hands, sliding them under the hem of his t-shirt in search of bare skin. He sucks in a gasp, then I knot the fabric of his shirt in my hands and tug him against me, capturing his mouth in a kiss that melts us both.
Until the pantry door swings open.
Theo pulls back and smiles down at me as his mom says, “Well, well, well. Who’s busted now?”