CHAPTER 11
”Remind me why we”re doing this again,” I said.
Sam cocked a brow. ”Because we want Scam to succeed.”
”Okay, but it”s already going well. People think we”re legit together.”
”Yeah, that”s because we got lucky.”
I twisted to face Sam more fully, no easy task in his Mustang which had a center console separating us and not a lot of leg room. Sure, there were fantastic things to be said about the car. It was beautiful, for one. Sporty, nice sound system, and the heated seats really did come in handyon a cold day. But, as I”d come to find out, there were drawbacks as well.
Super confined space.
Again, very little leg room.
Hard to get in and out of because it was so low to the ground.
We were currently parked in the Chariot High parking lot. More people would be comingsoon because the soccer team had a game tonight. But for now, Sam”s car and mine were the only two here.
”Go on,” I said.
Sam mirrored my position, facing me with a slight grin on his face. ”Our first kiss was hot and had a ton of witnesses who went out and spread the word.”
Cheeks flushing, I nodded. ”Band members—and high schoolers, in general—love to gossip. What”s your point?”
”It was unplanned, them seeing the kiss,” he added, ”but it worked to our advantage. Like you said, we”re killing it with the PDA.”
Yeah, we are, I thought.
”But who”s to say that wasn”t a fluke?”
My smile fell as quickly as it appeared. ”What do you mean?”
Sam shrugged. ”Well, that was your first kiss, our first as a couple.”
The way he said ”couple” sent a happy flutter through me.
”In science, for an experiment to be considered successful, you have be able to recreate the results. So we scored a ten on our first kiss—”
More like a 100.
”—but what about kiss number two, three, or 15?”
I swallowed as my eyes dropped to his lips. ”Do you really think we”ll be kissing that much?”
”I don”t know,” Sam said, ”but maybe.”
The flutters tripled.
”The point is we don”t want to make a wrong move. We need to make sure every kiss we have is believable. And to do that, don”t you think we should work on it?”
My brows furrowed, and I tilted my head. ”You”ve given this a lot of thought.”
Sam ran a hand through his hair. ”What can I say, Kent. I like being prepared.”
”We”ve been in classes together over the years, Bishop,” I said. ”No offense, but you”ve never presented an argument this convincing, even when it was for a grade. What”s the deal?”
”I guess I care more about this.”
My heart translated that to: I care more about you.
The stupid organ kept forgetting this was all pretend.
And that was the problem.
It was one of the many reasons I”d begun to think these ”lessons” weren”t a good idea after all—no matter how much I yearned to kiss the guy sitting across from me.
Sam was staring at me as if I was a puzzle he couldn”t figure out.
”Is there a reason you don”t want to kiss me, Kent?”
”No,” I said—but there were several why I shouldn”t. ”Not wanting to kiss you isn”t an issue.”
”Then what?”
I want to kiss you too much. I think about it, about you, all the time. I want to attach myself to you and never let go.
Sam would run far and fast if I said that to him.
When I”d been quiet too long, Sam said, ”I thought you liked it the first time.”
”I loved it.”
Sam”s grin widened at my unfiltered response. ”Okay, then let”s do it again.”
”For science?” I asked.
”Practice makes perfect,” he replied.
I hesitated, but the truth was I really did want to kiss him again. I was pretty sure he knew it too by the way his blue eyes sparkled.
”Ready whenever you are.”
”Wait,” I said with a scoff. ”You expect me to kiss you?”
”Yeah,” he said, ”I figured that would be lesson one.”
”So, I get to do all the work. Awesome,” I muttered.
Sam sent me a solemn nod. ”I believe in you.”
With a deep inhale, I drew up all my courage. Okay. I could do this. It was just a kiss. Right?
Not just, my heart said. It could never be just anything with Sam.
But I leaned forward anyway.
My lips met his in the softest of kisses. Eyes closed, I lingered there for several moments, enjoying the feel of his lips on mine way more than I should, before pulling away.Even that small touch was enough to have sparks going off inside my chest.
”There,” I said, trying to seem unaffected. ”Lesson one complete.”
Sam was already shaking his head. ”I don”t think so.”
”What? Why not?”
”Kent, if you kiss me like that people will think we”re about to break up.”
My eyes widened. ”They will not.”
”Yeah, they will. That was lukewarm. It has to be hotter, more passionate.”
”I think it was hot,” I said with a sniff.
He gave me a dubious look as if to say Seriously? to which I rolled my eyes.
”Well, it was good for my first try. Plus, this car is so confining. I feel like I can”t even move.”
Sam”s eyes narrowed. ”You”re blaming my car?”
”Maybe I am.”
”Okay then,” he said and popped the locks, ”let”s take this outside.”
I went to argue, but he was already circling the car. Once he got to my door, Sam opened it for me and offered his hand. I ignored it and tried to get out on my own. Unfortunately, in my haste, the toe of my shoe caught on the floorboard. The car was already so low to begin with. I truly thought I would end up eating gravel—but Sam was there. He caught me and righted me in the same breath.
”Try not to hurt yourself,” he said.
I nodded, doing my best not to notice how good his arms felt around me.
”Also, that”s what you get for insulting Lucinda.”
”Who”s Lucinda?” I asked.
”My car,” he said. ”She”s very sensitive.”
I tried not to smile, but it was a losing battle. Seeing this, Sam grinned back.
”She”s also vindictive,” I said.
He shrugged then closed the door. ”What can I say? I like strong girls, ones who aren”t afraid to take what they want.”
While he leaned back against the side of his car, I shook my head. ”Was that your way of challenging me, Bishop?”
”No idea what you mean, Kent.”
He raised a brow, telling me without saying a word that he knew exactly what I meant.
”Now, you want to try that kiss again?”
”Fine,” I said.
This time I stood on tiptoe and pressed my mouth more firmly to his. The sparks started up again, and before it could get too far, I drew back.
”Better?” I asked.
”Honestly?” When I nodded, he said, ”It was good, but where”s the heat?”
I crossed my arms. ”You”re kidding, right? There was heat in that kiss.”
Sam stared at me a second, then his eyes shifted to something to our left.
”Hey, Felix,” he called out. Startled, I followed his gaze and found the guy he was talking to, leaning up against one of the bleachers several feet away. He was dressed all in black. Black t-shirt with the sleeves rolled up, black jeans, and black shoes. His hair looked black too. Even from a distance, he gave off intimidating, don”t-mess-with-me vibes.I hadn”t even noticed him until now which was crazy because the guy was tall and hard to miss. ”On a scale of one to 10, how would you rate that kiss?”
Felix thought about it a second then held up two fingers.
”Thanks, man,” Sam said.
”A two?” I said indignantly. ”He seriously just gave me a two?”
”Technically, he gave us a two, but yeah. I told you, Kent. It”s missing something.”
That low score had officially awakened my competitive streak.
”Let”s try again,” I said.
Sam nodded, and when I leaned forward, wrapping my arms around his neck and pulling him closer, he came willingly. Our mouths moved together. It was like a song, a slow one that built with intensity the longer we stayed connected. I was slightly out of breath when I stepped back. Looking over my shoulder, I raised a brow at Felix.
The guy gave me a blank stare.
A second later, he held up a hand.
I scoffed. ”Five? What the what? That kiss was at least a six.”
”Hey, no argument here,” Sam mumbled.
”Who is that guy anyway?”
”Felix Sorensen. We grew up together. He”s a friend.”
I frowned at that. ”Some friend. He”s dissing my kissing technique.”
When I looked back at Sam, he was staring at my lips.
”I”ve never gotten a failing grade in my life,” I said.
”Wouldn”t want to start now,” he said back. ”But if you don”t want to do this, it”s okay.”
”One more kiss.”
”Whatever you want,” Sam said and pulled me closer.
Those words would replay a thousand different times in my mind.
I kissed him, and this time I didn”t hold back. My lips moved over Sam”s with intention. All the emotions I”d been fighting, the frustration at having to hide them, I let it all pour out into that kiss. The sparks turned into flames that started low in my stomach before expanding outward, licking up my insides, until I felt the kiss everywhere. When I ran my tongue along the seam of Sam”s lips, he opened. When our tongues met, I whimpered at how right it felt. Sam”s hands tightened on my waist in response, and when I lifted up higher on my toes, trying to get closer, feeling like I could never be near enough, he held me so close it felt like we were one. I”d never felt so wrapped up in another person. Never felt so connected. The kiss lasted forever and not nearly long enough. As he lowered me back to the ground, Sam stayed attached to my lips, following me, and I couldn”t help it. I caught his bottom lip and gave it a slight tug before releasing him, letting him know without words how much I wanted him and how pissed I was that he couldn”t see it.
Sam”s breath hitched, and as we parted, his eyes stayed on mine.
I cleared my throat then said, ”Let”s see what your friend Felix thought about that.”
But when I looked back, the guy in black had disappeared.
”Guess he had somewhere to be,” Sam said.
”Of course, he did,” I mumbled. ”Too bad he couldn”t stick around. I”m sure that score would”ve been higher.”
”Ten out of ten.”
I looked to Sam, a blush stealing up my cheeks. He reached out and placed his hand there, causing my pulse to go crazy.
”A plus, plus, Kent,” he said then added, ”I love it when you blush like that. It”s even better knowing I had something to do with it.”
You had everything to do with it, I thought but didn”t say. Stepping back, I forced a laugh, projecting unruffled calm. But inside? I was a total wreck.
”I should get going,” I said. ”Let you get ready for the game.”
”That”s not for a couple hours. I was going to go home and come back. We”ve got time.”
”Yeah, but still.”
Sam ran a hand through his hair. ”Will you be there?”
I hadn”t planned on it, but…
”Might be nice,” he said. ”To see my girlfriend in the stands.”
Would I ever get used to hearing him call me that?
As my heart skipped, I didn”t think so.
”Well, I”ve still got to send in my plans for student council,” I said. ”I”m organizing the Back-to-School Festival, have to get all the details hashed out. After that, I”ve got to meet my cousins for practice, and then I have a boat load of homework. Plus, sports aren”t really my thing...”
”That”s cool. Just thought I”d ask,” he said.
But I couldn”t stand seeing his face fall.
And it did fall.
Sam looked sad, and I knew there was something I could do about it. So…
”I”ll be there,” I said.
”Really?” He sounded surprised. ”Seriously, you don”t have to come.”
I nodded. ”I know, but I”ll be there.”
Sam”s smile was bright and blinding.
”I”ve got to support my boyfriend, right?”
He laughed quietly, leaned forward and pressed a light kiss against my cheek. ”Thanks, Kent.”
I gave him a shrug. ”Thanks for the kissing lesson.”
”No problem.”
Sam rounded the car to the driver”s side then met my eyes over the hood.
”Looking forward to the next lesson,” he said, and with a wink, Sam got into his car and drove away, leaving me staring after him.
Did we really need another lesson when Sam”s kisses nearly brought me to my knees?
Probably not.
Would I spend way too much time thinking about, looking forward to, and longing for lesson two?
One hundred percent yes.