Page 46 of The Lucky One
Yet a tightness spread in my chest. Something was wrong with Jon, something he didn’t want to talk about.
The door to the fridge opened and I spun around.
Only Danielle. I let out a sigh of relief.
“Girl, you left what, like five minutes ago?” She walked closer. “And your face is red and you’re sweaty.” She frowned, analyzing me further.
“Um, I... I was looking for...” I checked around. “A bell pepper. And an onion. Didn’t you want to make an omelet? I’m craving one too.” I quickly grabbed the ingredients and rushed past her.
Thank god she had no idea what I’d done in there just seconds ago.
Freaking Football Uniform
Kiki
“One, two, three... Pirates attack and seize the treasure!”
Jamie’s voice rang out as she effortlessly dropped into the splits. I did a backflip. I’d been doing gymnastics since the age of four and it had become second nature, especially when it came to cheerleading routines. There was no thrill in it anymore.
But then Paul’s exuberant “Woo-hoo!” echoed from across the field, and I couldn’t help but smile. The other day we took a walk in the park, sipping coffee. Conversation flowed easily, bypassing basic questions like What’s your favorite color?—anyway I already knew Paul’s was red, just like mine. We kept it light, though, and I didn’t mention Jon’s apology. I didn’t want to spoil the mood. The time we spent together was like an escape from my otherwise busy day.
Paul waved at me, and my eyes fixed on the red football uniform clinging to his body, accentuating his well-defined muscles. The pirate emblem on his chest glared out with a fierce expression, yet Paul’s eyes were dreamy and sparkled in the sun, and his hair, slightly damp—
“Hey!” Jamie’s sudden clap cut my thoughts short. Her freshman assistant hit pause on the music. “No flirting with the football players. Especially not—” She shielded her hand over her eyes. “Paul? What the heck, Kiki!”
I couldn’t believe myself that I’d been drooling over him. Freaking football uniform...
“I wasn’t flirting with him. We’re friends.” No more boys, I reminded myself. Only school.
“Yeah, I always undress my friends with my eyes too,” she flared. “But fine, if you want that cheating scumbag, go for it.”
I crossed my arms. Why had I been friends with Jamie since kindergarten again? “What a great friend you are.”
“You’re the one swooning over my ex-boyfriend. I’m just speaking from experience,” she said. The girls around us giggled and whispered, relishing the drama. I shot Jamie a warning glare, but she shrugged, indifferent. “Who cares what they think? They can barely even remember two steps of choreography. They’ll forget this conversation in a heartbeat.”
“Hey!” a girl complained, but Jamie only rolled her eyes.
Paul waved at me again.
“Go on without me, I’ll be right back,” I told Jamie, who let out an exasperated breath, but I couldn’t care less. “Hey!” I called out to Paul as I jogged up to him.
“Hey.” He beamed back at me. I was blinded by the sun and his smile. “Um, I had fun hanging out with you yesterday,” he said, rubbing the back of his head. “Wanna do it again? It’s Friday after all.”
“You want to get another coffee?”
“I was thinking more along the lines of dinner?” He gave a tiny raise of his shoulders.
“Sounds good,” I said casually, yet my breath hitched. I hadn’t expected that. “Pick me up at seven?”
“Paul, get your ass back here!” Coach Wood’s booming voice made the entire football team turn their heads in our direction. Brandon and Leni, ever the instigators, whistled. As if they had nothing better to do.
“I’ll be there,” Paul told me before jogging back to his team. They clapped him on the back and exchanged playful punches on the arms.
Was this really just friendship or did Paul have other motives? I didn’t know how to feel about it.
I checked my watch. Practice wasn’t even close to being over, but I had no desire to get hassled by Jamie some more. Seeing she was occupied with scolding the freshmen, I seized the opportunity and left.
“Nice show.” Jon was leaning against the side of the bleachers. He smirked.