CHAPTER 5
”You”re in?” I repeated.
Sam nodded.
”Without reading my plan?”
”Yeah,” he said.
”Without any questions or anything? You”re just in?”
”Did I stutter, Kent?”
”No, but…”
”I thought you”d be happy about this.” Sam ran a hand through his hair as we walked down the hall. We didn”t have the same first period. In fact, my class was located at the other end of the building, but I still had time. ”Did you think I”d say no?”
I scoffed. ”Even if you did, I”m very persuasive. I would”ve worn you down eventually.”
”No doubt,” he said. ”I don”t see the problem.”
He was right. I should”ve been happy. And yet…
As we stopped, I suddenly realized what was bothering me.
”How did you know?” I said. In answer to his questioning look, I added, ”That I would ask you. How”d you know?”
Sam gave a shrug. ”After our talk, I figured you might.”
I lifted a brow at that.
”Come on, Scarlett,” he said. ”You”re a smart girl. I knew once you thought it over you”d realize I”m the right guy for the job.”
”Really?” I sniffed. ”A little presumptuous. Don”t you think?”
”You asked me, didn”t you?”
”I did,” I mumbled, ”though in the face of your smug cockiness, I”m currently reconsidering my decision.”
With a grin, Sam said, ”Too late. I already agreed.”
I huffed.
”Besides, who else would you ask?”
I gestured to the crowded hallway. ”Look around, Bishop. The possibilities are endless. I could”ve asked literally anyone else.”
”Like who?” Sam said.
”I don”t know,” I replied, picking a random guy, standing a few feet away. ”Him, possibly.”
”That guy?”
”Yeah. Why not?”
”Well, for one, he”s a freshman,” he said. ”Name”s Martin, plays on JV. I was assigned to mentor him. Never knew you like them so young, Kent.”
”Ha ha,” I said then pointed to someone else. ”That guy then. He seems okay.”
Sam nodded. ”What makes you say that?”
”He”s carrying an instrument case,” I said with a shrug. ”A fellow musician. We might have some things in common.”
”Hmmm, not unless you”re into convicted criminals.”
My eyes widened. ”What the what?”
”That”s PJ Manning.”
”That”s PJ?” I said back.
”Yep. In case you forgot, he was suspended last year for—”
”Breaking into the school and taking a poo on the principal”s desk,” I finished. ”I remember. I just didn”t recognize him from the back.”
”Wanna try a third option?” Sam asked, and I could hear the laughter in his voice.
”Okay. How about him?” I said. ”Quentin”s a cool guy.”
Sam frowned. ”He is.”
”I”m sure I could convince him to help with my list.”
”I”m sure you could too.”
I lifted my brows in triumph but then noticed Sam”s lips were twitching.
”What”s wrong with Quentin?”
”Nothing,” he said with a shrug. ”Pretty sure he just started dating Dominique Fiorella, though.”
My shoulders fell. ”Really? When did that happen?”
”At the Banger brothers” party.”
”Ah,” I said.
”Yeah.”
A beat of silence then…
”Were you secretly hoping I”d say no?” he asked.
”No, but…you didn”t have to say yes so quickly.”
Sam”s face remained blank, but his eyes held a hint of amusement as I clutched my books tighter to my chest. The plan that I”d meticulously written out rested on top. All those bullet points, the thought that went into them—and Sam hadn”t read a single word before agreeing.Humph.
”It wouldn”t have killed you to skim the plan first,” I mumbled.
His eyes brightened. ”So, that”s what this is about.”
”What?”
”You”re mad because I didn”t read your ten-point plan.”
I forced a laugh. ”I”m not mad.”
His eyes narrowed.
”I”m not,” I repeated—then couldn”t help but add, ”And technically, there are only five points.”
Sam shook his head.
”Which you would know if you”d read the plan.” I shrugged. ”I could”ve put anything in there, Bishop. Would”ve been smart to read it over, get familiar with the terms, see if you had any concerns. Instead, I asked the question, and you agreed. Just like that.”
”Technically, you didn”t ask,” Sam said. ”I volunteered.”
True.
Though I still hadn”t figured out why.
Maybe this was all part of his plan to…do what? Mess with my head?
Quick as lightning, Sam”s hand shot out and grabbed one of the pieces of paper resting on top of my books. I”d barely seen him move, too caught up in trying to decipher his motives. I gaped at him as he gazed at the sheet.
”What are you doing?” I asked.
”I”ll read it and get back to you,” he said.
I remained calm on the outside, but inside, I was doing a victory dance. ”Only if you want to,” I said.
Looking at me, seeing the smile I couldn”t quite contain, Sam shook his head again. ”You”re unbelievable, Kent.”
”Thanks,” I said. My phone alarm went off, and I pulled out my cell to silence it. ”I should get to class.Want to meet up after school?”
”I have practice,” Sam said.
”Oh, that”s right,” I said, ”and I have student council.”
”Lunch?” he asked.
”I usually hang out in the music room.”
”Okay.”
”We”ll figure it out,” I said as my second alarm went off. ”See you later, Bishop.”
He raised a brow as I backed away. ”You know, the school has a warning bell.”
I nodded. ”Yeah, but my alarms are set for five minutes and four minutes before that. Gives me extra warning.”
”Always good to have a backup.”
I couldn”t tell if he was being sarcastic or not, so I just nodded.
”Might change my mind after reading the plan,” he called after me.
”No, you won”t,” I replied. ”And if you do, I”ll convince you to change it back.”
As I waved and jogged away, his chuckle followed me, but it didn”t sound malicious. Sam wasn”t laughing at my expense. Or at least, I didn”t think so.
Change his mind?
Yeah, right.
Sam had just as much riding on this as me—maybe more.
He was going to love the plan.
But just in case…
I began composing another list in my mind.
#
The final notes of my violin sang as I opened my eyes and looked to my teacher and mentor, waiting for her feedback.
”So?” I asked. ”What did you think?”
”That was beautiful, Scarlett,” she said. ”Truly. Just gorgeous.”
I frowned, sensing the ”but” before it even came. Theresa Vander Mere was honest to a fault. I”d been working with her, taking private lessons and getting critiques, for years. Whenever she started out with excessive compliments, it was because she wanted to soften the final verdict.
”I love your passion. But—”
And there it was.
”—can you tell me who composed that piece?”
”I did,” I said.
”Hmmm.”
”Didn”t you like it?”
”I loved it,” Theresa said with a sigh. ”I always love your compositions. You know this.”
I opened my mouth, but she lifted a hand.
”That”s not the point. What about the pieces I gave you to practice?”
”Oh, I practiced the sheet music you gave me too. The songs, they”re amazing. I really like them. They challenge me technically, but…”
Theresa raised a brow. ”Go on.”
I shook my head. ”Well, I feel like they”ve been done before. I”ve heard them played a million times by a million different violinists.”
”There”s a reason for that,” she said softly.
”I know,” I said, ”and I respect the classics. Really I do. I draw so much inspiration from Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Vivaldi. I just want to play my own compositions too.”
Theresa sighed. ”Scarlett, we”ve been over this.”
We had. It was a well-worn conversation we”d beenhaving for a while now, ever since I discovered my deep love for creating my own arrangements.
”When you audition,” she went on, ”whether it”s for a college program or a professional orchestra, the people judging expect certain things.”
I forced a laugh. ”Maybe they”d appreciate something unexpected.”
Theresa did not look amused. Her voice was deadly serious when she said, ”Trust me, I wish that were the case. But there”s always at least one person on the panel who thinks the only valid string pieces were composed by men before the year 2000.”
I shook my head. ”That”s not fair.”
”You”re right. It”s not.”
”But,” I said before she could, ”life isn”t fair.”
Theresa shot me a sad smile. ”I hate that you know that already.”
I sat back in one of the chairs with a shrug. ”I learned that lesson early.”
A brief image of my mother on the day she left flashed through my mind. She”d been smiling, her hair blowing in the breeze, ready to set off on a new adventure, a new life. My dad had begged her to stay while Charlotte and I cried.
”Anyway,” I said, shaking it off, ”it”s not a big deal. I”ll just play one of the classics.”
”If you get a contract,” she said then shook her head, ”when you do, the music they play will be pieces like that. They want to make sure you have the technique.”
I nodded. ”Then I”ll just have to show them.”
Theresa grinned as she reached forward and patted my hand. ”I know you”ll wow anyone that hears you. You always do, Scarlett.”
”Thanks, Miss T.”
”Now, can I see what you”ve been working on?” she asked.
I lifted a brow.
”What? You”re one of the most creative young people I know,” she said. ”Those judges might only want to hear the old stuff, but I”m always looking forward to what you”ll come up with next.”
Smiling, I handed her the sheet music I”d been working on. Theresa really was open-minded. She genuinely appreciated my compositions, and her feedback helped me shapethe music and make it better. I also knew she was right. Theresa wanted to give me the best shot at landing a job, to fulfill my dream of playing violin professionally.
What I didn”t tell her—though part of me thought she already knew—was that my dream wasn”t only to play.
I wanted to compose.
To created something that was totally mine.
Someday, I wanted an orchestra to play one of my pieces.
It might take a long time. The gatekeepers might laugh at me or cut me down. But I was determined to try.
”Scarlett?” Theresa said, and as I looked over, I noticed she had an odd expression on her face.
”Something wrong?” I asked.
”No, just wondering how you came up with this one.”
”Which one? Is it the mashup of Drake and Bach?”
”Definitely more unique than that.” Theresa looked at me with mirth in her eyes. ”Ricky Ballas, CJ Wallace, Nathan Tooks, Oz Portner, and Sam Bishop?”
As she turned the page to me, I felt my cheeks heat up, seeing not music notes, but the names she”d just read aloud staring back at me.
”A very interesting composition.”
Laughing with her, I took the sheet back and rolled my eyes. ”It”s nothing,” I said. ”Just one of my many lists.”
The bell rang, and Theresa stood.
”Okay, fine,” she said, ”lesson”s over. You don”t have to explain.”
Thank goodness.
”But Scarlett, my love life, as you know, is nonexistent.” Theresa got to the door and turned back to me with a grin. ”It”s okay. Just like I”ll always support you as a musician, I also support your collection of boyfriends.”
Right as she said that, Sam stepped through the door and lifted a brow.
”Hi,” he said to me and then nodded at Theresa. ”I”m Sam. I”m here for Scarlett.”
Theresa nodded. ”Why hello, Sam. I”m Theresa, Scarlett”s overly-curious music teacher.”
As he stepped farther into the room, she sent me a wink over his shoulder.
”I”ll leave you both to it,” she said.”Bye, Scarlett. Have fun.”
”Bye,” I mumbled.
Looking to Sam, I shook my head.
”Great. Now, she probably thinks there”s something going on between us.”
”What makes you say that?”
”Between the wink she just threw me, you showing up here, and my list of names”—I released a sigh—”it”s a good guess.”
Instead of focusing on anything else I”d just said, Sam tilted his head. ”You made another list?”
I shrugged. ”Yeah.”
”What for?”
”Decided to take your advice,” I said. ”About always having a backup. After our talk, I wanted to be prepared. I came up with a list of possible alternates—none of them freshmen or criminals by the way—to help me in case you say no.”
Sam stepped forward.
”They”re currently single. No girlfriends,” I added.
”Can I see that?” he asked.
”Sure.” I handed him the paper, and Sam spared it a glance. ”Any feedback?”
”Yeah,” he said—and before I could say another word, he crumbled the list into a ball and threw it over his shoulder. ”You don”t need a backup, Kent. You”ve got me.”
Adding insult to injury, the paper sailed through the air before landing perfectly in the wastebasket by the door. My eyes were glued to the place where he”d thrown my now-ruined list of guys. The audacity. I was still staring in disbelief as he placed a folded square in my hand.
”What”s this?” I asked.
”My notes.”
”Your what?”
”I read your plan,” he said.
”And?”
He shrugged. ”Looks good, but I had a few thoughts.”
And he”d taken notes.
Which must mean he cared about this.
Right?
Trying to hide my surprise, I unfolded the paper and saw that Sam wasn”t kidding. He really had made several notes, some in the margins, some at the bottom after the text. No particular section stood out—except the word he”d written in all caps at the top. My brows furrowed.
”SCAM?” I said. ”What the heck, Bishop? Why did you add that?”
”Because it”s accurate,” he said.
His answer made my frown deepen.
”You really don”t get it?” Sam”s lips pulled up into a grin as I shook my head. ”Scam. That”s you and me, Scarlett and Sam.”
”Oh!”
”Ironic, isn”t it?” he said.
”Could be fate,” I retorted. ”Who knows? Maybe we were destined to do this all along.”
Sam gave me a dubious look, but I ignored it and continued reading his notes. Unfortunately, I couldn”t ignore the heart sparkles he”d awakened in my chest. Sam had thought up a perfectly wonderful if slightly ironic couple name for the two of us. Honestly, I was upset I didn”t think of it first. Yet the heart sparkles continued. What was this madness? Getting back to business, I read his next comment.
”Beside Reasons Why You Should Say Yes,” I said, ”you wrote ”Need to discuss.””
”I did,” Sam agreed.
I looked up with a shrug. ”Well, the first one is pretty obvious. Good karma. If you agree to assist with my list, you”d be helping out a former friend.”
”Former? I thought we covered this, Kent.” His eyes were a clear ocean blue today, and I tried not to get lost in them. ”We never stopped being friends.”
”Okay then,” I murmured and crossed out the word former. ”You”ll be helping a friend. That better?”
Sam nodded. ”Next?”
”Second, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain,” I said.
”Debatable,” he said.
”Not really, Bishop. There”s a ton of pros and no cons that I can see.”
”Just because you can”t see it, doesn”t mean it”s not there. If you let yourself care, you can always lose something.”
”Geez, that”s bleak.”
Sam gestured for me to keep going, so I looked to the plan again.
”You”ll win back Brisa, the girl of your dreams,” I read aloud. ”Again, that one seemed obvious.”
”Who says I want her back?”
My gaze snapped to his. ”What?”
”I told you. We ended things,” he said. ”What makes you think I want her back?”
Looking down, I saw that he”d written those exact words on the paper in my hands. I thought about it then shook my head.
”I saw you guys in the hallway earlier,” I said. ”She was obviouslyusing Cooper to get a rise out of you. And you were staring at them with this look on your face. Don”t deny it, Bishop. You were upset.”
”Yeah, but there could”ve been a ton of reasons for that,” he said.
”Like what?”
”I don”t know. Like my dog died.”
Chest tight, tears rising immediately to my eyes, I said, ”Oh my God. I-I didn”t know. I”m so sorry.”
”No, geez,” Sam said, holding his hands out, ”calm down, Kent. It was just an example.We don”t even have a dog.”
Shaking my head, voice tight, I said, ”Well, that was a terrible example.”
”You”re right.”
”The worst ever.”
”I know, I”m sorry.I didn”t mean to make you cry.”
”I”m not crying.”
”Yeah.” He reached forward, cupped my cheek, and gently ran his thumb beneath my eye, capturing a tear that had managed to escape. ”Must be my mistake,” he murmured.
My breath hitched at that soft touch. As he lowered his hand, I couldn”t help wishing he”d left it there a while longer.
”The point is,” he said, ”me being in a bad mood wasn”t only about Brisa.”
”Then what was it?” I asked.
Instead of answering, he shrugged and said, ”Hey, I been meaning to ask. When did you delete my number?”
”Excuse me?”
”This morning, when we texted, you didn”t know it was me.” His laugh sounded forced. ”I know it”s been a minute.”
More like years, I thought.
”But I still have your number. Just wondered what I did to make you delete mine.”
”I never deleted it,” I said.
Sam cocked a brow at that.
”A few summers ago, my old phone broke, so I had to get a new one. Not everything transferred. I lost all my contacts. It sucked.”
”Oh.”
For some reason, the news of my broken phone made Sam”s face brighten.
”Sorry to hear that,” he said.
”You don”t sound sorry,” I said.
Sam didn”t even try to hide his grin, and I just shook my head.
”Anyway, let”s get back to the plan.”
”Sounds good,” he said.
”You”ll also earn my (Scarlett”s) undying gratitude.” I paused in my reading to look up. ”That”s priceless.”
Sam gave a solemn nod.
”And you”ll have someone to confide in who won”t judge,” I finished. ”We”ll be in this together, Bishop.”
”In a fake relationship,” he said.
”Yeah.”
”While we complete your list, and you help me win my ex back.”
”That”s right.”
”And you don”t find that even a little strange?”
I shook my head. ”Nope.”
”Can you run me through the steps of the plan again?” he asked.
So, I did.
Step 1: Fake it. Scarlett and Sam become the new ”It Couple.”
Step 2: Create Jealousy. Scarlett and Sam awaken Brisa”s green-eyed monster.
Step 3: R R. Make Brisa regret letting Sam go and remember why she fell for him.
Step 4: Second Chance. Provide an opportunity for a reunion/makeup.
Step 5: HEA.
”What”s hea?” Sam asked.
”Happily ever after, of course,” I said.
”Of course.”
”The sarcasm is not appreciated, Bishop.”
”I”ll try to tone it down,” he said, but I didn”t believe that for a second.
”So?”
Sam cocked his head. ”And if I said I”m not interested in Brisa? What would happen then?”
”Well, that would ruin the whole plan,” I said slowly, letting that sink in. ”She”s integral to everything. My undying gratitude really is priceless—but if Brisa”s not part of the deal, I don”t see what would be in it for you.”
Sam stayed silent.
”In that case, I guess you wouldn”t have enough incentive to help with my list, so I”d ask one of my backups. I don”t know the other guys that well. But like I said, I can be persuasive.”
He grunted.
”That”s all moot, though, because you do want to get back together with Brisa,” I said. ”Don”t you?”
A few moments passed.
Sam stared at me while I stared at him.
Until finally he said, ”I told you before, Kent. I”m in.”
”Okay,” I said. ”Me, too.”
Stepping forward, I held out a hand.
”What”s that?” Sam said.
”I figured we should shake on it, make it official,” I said.
He cocked his head. ”It”s not really that kind of deal.”
”I know. Just think, you get the girl, and I get my list. It”s the best sweetheart deal ever.”
”I think we should kiss.”
My eyes went wide. ”What?”
Sam grinned at the look on my face—or maybe it was the shock in my voice. I couldn”t be sure. ”I said, we should kiss. Feels more appropriate than a handshake. All things considered.”
”Okay.”
”Really?” he said, and before I could talk myself out it, I nodded. ”You sure you don”t want your first kiss to happen somewhere specific, like a library or in front of a crowded stadium?”
”My sister”s the one who loves libraries,” I said past the lump in my throat, ”and I hate crowds.”
”Come on, Scarlett. I bet you”re one of those girls who”s imagined their first kiss a million times.”
More than that.
”I know it”s on your list. But are you sure you weren”t saving your first kiss for someone special?”
Lifting my chin, meeting his eyes, I said, ”Just do it. Lunch is almost over.”
”So romantic,” he said sarcastically, but when he wrapped his arm around my waist and pulled me closer, placing the other hand against my cheek, I shivered. ”Don”t worry, Kent. I”ve got you.”
I knew he did.
That was what made me shiver.
”You ready?” he asked as he studied my face.
”Mmm-hmm.”
Leaning forward, Sam stopped only inches away from my lips. ”Sure you don”t wait for the one?”
Meeting his piercing stare, I reached up, curled my fingers gently around the back of his neck and drew him even closer.
”I”m tired of waiting,” I said quietly.
Sam swallowed. ”I know what you mean.”
Curiosity swept through me, but in the next second, he closed the gap between us. His lips met mine. Sam Bishop kissed me, and I felt it in every part of my body. Deeper than that. My soul sang with the rightness of it as his mouth moved with mine. A symphony played in my ears and raced through my blood as the kiss deepened. The first sweep of his tongue drew a gasp from my lungs. When I kissed him back, Sam”s quiet groan was music to my ears. I felt lightheaded and fully awake for the first time all at once. The kiss went on and on. I lost track of everything except that kiss. The feel of Sam”s broad shoulders beneath my fingers, the taste of him on my tongue, the quiet sighs he made—oh wait, maybe that was me.
Time didn”t exist.
Breathing could wait.
Because Sam, my Sam, was kissing me.
I never wanted it to end.
And honestly, it might”ve gone on forever…
…if someone hadn”t walked in.
”Excuse me”—a throat cleared—”we”re about to start class. You two will have to take this little lovefest elsewhere.”
Or make that several someone”s.
When we broke apart, I finally came back to my senses, looking around to find Mr. Petrie, the CHS band director, staring at Sam and me—along with the entire Symphonic 2 Band. Petrie was the one who had spoken. He was going for stern disapproval, but I thought I caught a hint of amusement there.
”Did you hear me, Miss Kent?” he asked.
”Um yes.” I nodded then glanced at Sam, comforted to see that he looked a little dazed as well. ”Sorry about that, Mr. Petrie. We”ll just go. Bishop?”
”Right,” Sam said then grinned and gave everyone in the room a salute. ”You guys have a good class.”
There were more than a few giggles, and as we were leaving, I heard one guy say, ”Hey, wasn”t that Sam Bishop and Scarlett Kent? When did that happen?”
A few minutes before you guys walked in and caught us kissing like the world was about to end, I thought and shook my head.
Despite what he”d said, the band director followed us out, making sure I walked one way and Sam the other. We didn”t even have time to talk, but that was for the best. I needed a moment—or a few days—to process everything.
We were doing this.
Sam signed on.
The plan was a go.
And I”d just experienced my first kiss—which, even with the way it ended, was better than I could”ve dreamed.
And honestly, I did.
Dream of it, I mean.
Despite what I said—or didn”t say—there was someone special. Iwould likely never admit it to him. Chances were good I”d die of embarrassment if I did. But Sam was right. I”d imagined my first kiss in a million ways, in different places, different scenarios. But try as I might, even with my overly active imagination, one thing remained the same. There was one face that always came to mind.
His.
But the kiss wasn”t real, I reminded myself.
We did it to seal our agreement and check an item off the list.
My mind knew this to be true.
But my heart still shot off sparks when I thought of Sam.
And the kiss that awakened a symphony in my soul.