Chapter 6

Suzie

My friends were watching me from my bed—Matt sprawled out with his feet up, while Margo perched on the edge.

“I can’t believe you’re actually doing this,” Matt said.

“Yeah, well…” I trailed off with a shrug. I couldn’t really believe I was doing this either.

“You don’t have to go, you know,” Matt said. He was frowning in concern and the sight was odd. I mean, I’d seen my best friend frown before but out of the three of us, Matt was typically the most easygoing. Ever since the #GeeksGoneWild photo disaster, though, he’d been weirdly on edge. Margo and I figured this was his protective manly side coming out and in a way it was sweet, but in another way…

Margo smacked his leg. “Jeez, stop being so annoying, Matt.”

Yeah, in another way he was kind of driving us crazy with his overprotectiveness. We’d never needed him to look out for us before and I didn’t need it now.

“I think it’s great that she’s going out with Luke,” Margo added.

Matt rolled his eyes. “Of course you do. He’s Jason’s best friend.”

Margo’s expression got a little dreamy at the mention of her new boyfriend. Matt and I exchanged an amused smirk. It was kind of adorable to see Margo in love.

“I’ve gotten to know Luke a little better,” she said. “And I really don’t think he’s such a bad guy.”

Matt and I both stared at her.

“What?” she asked defensively. “It’s not like I’m brainwashed or something, I honestly think he likes you, Suzie.”

I laughed and Matt let out a snort of amusement that I tried not to take personally.

“You don’t think it’s weird that he never paid attention to Suzie until the slideshow thing and now he won’t leave her alone?” Matt asked, his brows raised in challenge.

Margo made a funny face. “It’s not that weird. He just didn’t notice her before, but now she’s caught his interest and—”

“And what?” I interrupted, reaching for a thick wool cardigan to throw over my T-shirt. “Now all of the sudden it’s his life mission to annoy me?”

Margo grinned and sipped at her coffee. “Or maybe he just wants to get your attention.”

I rolled my eyes as Matt scoffed again.

“Well then, mission accomplished, I guess.” I turned to face them. “He’s definitely gotten my attention. I can’t stand the guy.”

Margo’s shrug and the noncommittal noise that went with it made me stiffen. “What are you not saying?”

“Methinks thou doth protest too much,” she sang it in a sing song under her breath.

“Oh my God,” I moaned as I let my head drop back. “First of all, you just butchered Shakespeare. Second, just because you went and fell for a charming jock doesn’t mean—”

“So you admit it,” she interrupted with a triumphant smile. “You think Luke’s charming.”

My answer was a groan.

Matt sat up. “Seriously, though, don’t you think his sudden interest in her is kind of strange?” He addressed this to Margo who was standing up and heading to my closet, sifting through my clothes as if maybe I’d suddenly gotten a new wardrobe in the last few minutes.

“I don’t know,” she said with a shrug. “I don’t necessarily think it’s a bad thing—”

“How come he never noticed her before?” Matt argued.

I turned away and made a show of logging out of my laptop. I knew exactly why he hadn’t noticed me before. Up until that slideshow I’d been invisible—to Luke, to the popular crowd, to pretty much everyone who was not the two best friends who were currently analyzing my newfound relationship with Luke.

“She just wasn’t on his radar before,” Margo said.

Matt shook his head. “I don’t trust it. I don’t trust him.”

I scowled over at Matt. I might’ve had my issues with Luke but I was trying to figure out what Matt meant by that. “What are you implying? That he has some ulterior motive?”

Margo glanced over her shoulder at him with a frown as well. “What, do you think he’s guilty or something?” She pursed her lips. “You don’t honestly think that he had something to do with that photo or the hashtag, do you?”

No matter how much of a Luke fan I was not, I had a hard time picturing him doing anything cruel. The guy might joke and tease, but I’d never seen him be outright mean…to anyone, come to think of it.

“I’m not saying that,” Matt said. But before he could explain what he was trying to say, Margo interrupted with a total non-sequitur.

“You should wear this,” Margo said, handing me a bright pink, form fitting top that she’d bought for me in one of her attempts to make me over ala the basket case in The Breakfast Club.

I stared at it like it might bite. “We’re going to a ski slope, not a disco.”

She dropped the shirt and widened her eyes. “Disco? Seriously, what era do you live in?”

“One in which people wear sweaters when it’s bound to be freezing out.”

“It’s October,” she argued.

“On a mountain,” I shot back.

Matt intervened. “Can we get back on topic here, please?”

Margo and I both turned to face him. “Sorry,” I said. “What exactly was the topic?”

“How you’re going on a date with the jerk who’s been harassing you ever since the slideshow,” Matt said, exasperation lacing every word.

“It’s not a date,” I said.

Margo spoke over me. “He’s not harassing her, he likes her.”

I turned to stare at her with my mouth open.

Margo caught me staring. “What?”

I shook my head. “You might think I’m living in a different era, but you are clearly residing in a different dimension if you honestly think that Luke likes me as a friend.”

Margo wagged her eyebrows and dropped her voice to a comically low level. “Oh, I never said anything about him liking you as a friend.”

“You can’t be serious,” I said. But even as I said it I realized…she was. Margo had a funny sense of humor but she’d never mock me like that.

I gaped at her until Matt fell back on the bed, muttering something that sounded suspiciously like, “This is all my fault.”

Margo and I exchanged a knowing look before turning our attention to Matt. He’d been doing this to himself ever since the slideshow debacle. Yes, he was friends with the guys in the AV club and it sucked that they’d never been able to prove that it was my jerky neighbor Joel behind the photo and the hashtag that sparked a minor war at Grover High. But no one blamed Matt…except for Matt.

“This is in no way your fault,” Margo said for the millionth time.

“Seriously,” I added. “Just because your AV club friends accidentally let it be included doesn’t mean you’re somehow to blame.”

Matt sighed. “Yeah, well, that’s the thing. I actually wanted to—”

Dale poked his head into the room, cutting Matt off mid-apology. “Hey, loser.”

We all turned to stare at him because it wasn’t initially clear who that lovely term of endearment was intended for. I found my jerky jock of a brother staring at me like he’d never seen me before.

“What?” I snapped. Me and Dale? Our relationship was complicated. We loved each other because we had to. He was my brother, after all. But we were less than one year apart and we could not possibly have been more different. So while we technically loved each other, we didn’t actually like each other.

Like I said, complicated. Which was why it was weird that he was interrupting my friend time to shout the word loser at me out of nowhere.

“Dude,” he said, this time clearly talking to me, his brows arched in shock.

“What?” I repeated.

“Why is Luke Warner at our front door?”

I burst into motion. Oh crap, he was here early. I glanced at the clock. Okay, fine, he was on time.

All I knew for certain was that I had to go out there and intercept him before one of my parents decided to grill him on where we were going and why. The less my mother knew about my life the better. She took controlling and involved to new levels and the fact that I was heading out on a day trip with our school’s notorious player?

She absolutely did not need to know about that. As far as she was concerned, me and Margo and Matt were spending the day at Matt’s to watch Game of Thrones episodes. This wasn’t a stretch. That was exactly how we’d spent last Saturday and the Saturday before that.

The only difference today was that Jason would be claiming my spot on Matt’s basement couch. A fact I was rapidly regretting because OMG Luke Warner was standing in my front foyer looking…hot.

No. Not hot.

Well, yes hot. But more than just hot, he looked at ease. He always looked at ease and that drove me nuts. Now was no exception. Why couldn’t he be the one who felt awkward and out of place for once. I mean, this was my house. Shouldn’t he be the one experiencing some discomfort here?

“Hey,” he said with that slow grin that made my stomach flip. “You look cute.”

I looked over at my reflection in the hallway mirror to see if he was joking. I didn’t look any worse than usual. My hair wasn’t totally frizzing out, even though it was lying loose around my shoulders. I hadn’t had time to tie it back. My makeup was, as usual, nonexistent, and my outfit was pretty much what I wore every day to school.

When I looked back at him I realized that he hadn’t been kidding. Heat rushed to my cheeks as he stepped forward and tugged on one of the curls that fell beside my cheek. “I love your hair down like this.”

I stared at him in confusion. He did? Since when?

Dale interrupted the moment. “Dude, didn’t expect to see you back at my house. What’s up, is my sister tutoring you or something?”

I turned with a huff. “I’m standing right here.” I looked from Dale to Luke and back again. “What do you mean back here?”

I heard Luke start to talk but Dale overrode him, gesturing toward Luke. “Your man here was over the night of your rager.”

I glared at him at the ‘your rager’ part. He and I both knew who was responsible for the keg and the people—and it wasn’t me. But before I could launch into yet another pointed reminder of just how much he owed me, the rest of what he’d said registered. I wrinkled my nose up in confusion as I turned back to Luke. “You were here that night?”

For the first time ever, Luke actually looked kind of flustered. Well, flustered for Luke, which really wasn’t all that flustered. It basically just meant he didn’t quite meet my eyes and he started fidgeting with the car keys he was holding. “Yeah, well, I was at Joel’s party that night so…”

He trailed off as if that was any explanation at all. Maybe it was. I mean, after the first five minutes of the party I’d spent the rest of the night praying to the porcelain gods and cursing myself for accepting Dale’s dare to do a kegstand.

For all I knew half the school could have swung by Dale’s impromptu party out by our pool.

All I knew for certain was that the less said about it, the better. I couldn’t wait until that night and all of its ramifications were a thing of my past. Maybe one day. But that day probably wouldn’t happen until college.

“Right, well, we’ve got to go.” I took a step forward and grabbed Luke’s arm to steer him out the door. This was a mistake. His arm was hard and muscular and the heat that I always felt when he was near intensified a million times over at this platonic touch. And his scent…have I mentioned that he smelled amazing?

He did.

And being this close and touching him like this? The scent went right to my head and made me temporarily forget what we were doing and why.

“Hot date?” Dale mocked from behind us.

“Don’t be stupid, Dale,” I shot back.

I noticed that Luke didn’t look horrified by the suggestion, if anything his grin just grew. He probably found the thought hilarious.

Any second now my mother could come down from her office on the second floor. I nudged Luke again, but he didn’t seem like he had any plans of moving. “How’s the team looking this year, Dale?”

“Aw, bro.” Dale shook his head. “I can’t believe you’re not going to be coming back this season.”

“Yeah, well…” Luke shrugged. “I’ve got more important things to do.”

Dale’s ever-present grin turned taunting. His expression went from Dale-the-semi-normal-high schooler to Dale-the-most-annoying-younger-brother-on-the-planet. “What, like date my sister?”

I opened my mouth to protest but Luke spoke first.

“Maybe,” he said with a shrug.

The most alarming part wasn’t what he said, it was the way he said it. Like it was totally normal. Like he meant it. I gaped at him for a second and in that moment we were joined by a grinning Margo and a scowling Matt.

“Suzie just said this isn’t a date,” Matt said.

Margo, Dale, and I all turned to stare at my best friend since forever. My best friend who’d never once sounded so gruff and proprietorial and…macho. His tone was protective, and if I didn’t know any better I would say he was jealous.

But I knew better. We all did.

“Whoa, dude, he’s just kidding,” Margo said. “Right, Luke?”

Her expression said “Be cool, man” as she silently asked my new partner to ease the sudden weird tension in this foyer.

“Well?” Matt said, his expression alarmingly fierce. I waited in horror for him to say something chauvinistic and parental like what are your intentions toward Suzie?

To my surprise Luke didn’t laugh at Matt’s overprotective routine and he didn’t get annoyed either. He turned to face me instead. “This day trip is whatever Suzie wants it to be.”

And just like that my heart melted in my chest. Not so much the words but the way he looked at me. No one in the history of my life had ever looked at me like that.

Like I held all the power. Like I was in charge. Like I was respected and cherished and—

I turned away abruptly to face my gawking friends and get a grip on reality.

Oh sweet mercy, no wonder girls everywhere swooned at his feet. All eyes were on me, even Luke’s. Everyone was waiting for me to state what exactly this outing was.

“We’re just doing research for a project,” I said a little too loudly. I grabbed Luke’s arm and pulled him out of there before Dale could ask any more questions, Matt could make any weird vaguely threatening comments, or, worst of all—my mom could come and join in on the fun.

Luke leaned down as we hurried down the front steps of our porch. “Are you ashamed to be seen with me, Suzie Q?”

I let out a little huff of amusement, but any response was forgotten as he attempted to lead us toward the street where his car was parked. “Oh no,” I said, tugging him toward my parents’ SUV that I was allowed to borrow. “I’m driving.”

“Anyone ever tell you that you have control issues?” Luke asked mildly.

I hid my grin. DataG told me that all the time. Jokingly, of course. Well, mostly joking. At least, I thought he was joking…

“But I know the way,” he started to argue.

“Get in,” I said. I didn’t give him a chance to continue as I climbed in and started up the car. “I don’t trust you to drive,” I said. Then I eyed his car which looked like it had seen better days. “And I don’t trust your car to get us to the top of a mountain.”

“I see,” he said. “So what you’re saying is you have trust issues.”

I turned to see him smiling at me and for some reason I felt the urge to smile back. Instead I shot him an arch look. “I’m saying I have Luke issues.”

To my surprise he laughed, and the low sound made my lips curve upward even as I shivered. I felt his laughter in my bones and in my blood, and—

Don’t be stupid. I pulled my head out of the weird romantic cloud it had disappeared into at the sound of that genuine laugh. Just because other girls turned to mush around this guy didn’t mean I had to.

“So,” I said. “Where am I heading?”

We spent the better part of the hour-long drive talking about coding. Well, I talked. He asked questions. And he listened.

He was a surprisingly attentive listener and he’d been right about being a quick study judging by the questions he was asking. What should have been a long, awkward drive from hell was actually quite…pleasant.

Interesting, no less.

We didn’t discuss anything personal but for the first time since he’d walked into my computer club meeting a couple days ago I didn’t fear that I was totally doomed to have him for a partner.

I parked in a lot that had more than a few cars parked nearby. “What are these people doing up here?” I asked. “Surely we’re not all here to check out video game settings?”

He laughed and I made a mental note to stop saying anything that could even remotely be construed as joking because his laughter was unnerving. His mockery was preferable—at least that was to be expected. Plus, I knew how to handle being mocked, especially by hot guys like Luke. After these past six weeks of nonstop humiliation, I was pretty much an expert on the topic.

“Some of the cars are for employees,” he said as he led the way. “But some are local tourists using the ski lift to head up to some hiking trails they keep open during the off-season.”

“Really?” I turned to look at him as he led the way to the lodge’s front doors and held one open for me in a surprisingly chivalrous move.

He nodded. “It’s not super popular but some avid hikers are really into it.”

For the first time it dawned on me that this guy seemed well acquainted with this place. “Are you one of those avid hikers?”

He flashed me the lopsided grin that made my belly tighten in response. “Nah,” he said. “I’m an avid snowboarder.”

That I could imagine. Everything about Luke screamed fast-paced and high-energy. It wouldn’t surprise me at all to find out he was some sort of adrenaline junkie.

“During the summers I work here part-time,” he continued. “So I’ve gotten to know some of the regular hikers and I’ve been up there a few times to check it out.”

“You work here?”

He glanced over, possibly because my tone had gone high-pitched with surprise. I wasn’t even sure why I just had a hard time imagining him working. At all. Life seemed to come so easily for this guy, I guess I’d just kind of assumed he was a trust fund kid or something.

“Is that so shocking?” he asked, amusement lacing his voice as he gave a few waves and nods in response to the workers who greeted him by name.

“Yeah,” I said. “I mean no. I mean…” Ugh. Awkward much? “I mean I didn’t know that you had a summer job.”

He flashed me a grin. “What do you think I did all summer?”

I shrugged. “Party?”

His head fell back as he let out a loud laugh that had people looking and me fighting a laugh of my own at his genuine amusement. He looked over at me with a grin. “Well, you’re not wrong,” he said. “I have been known to go to some parties.”

Maybe it was the fact that we weren’t at Grover High or surrounded by my friends or his, but for a second there I felt like I was with Margo and Matt. I felt…playful. Lighthearted. That might sound weird but it was true. I normally had all my defenses up around this guy but for a second there they came crashing down.

I pretended to study him as he led us over to a coffee shop that was open to the public. “I figured you went on vacations,” I continued.

“Also true.”

“And hung out with friends.”

He nodded. “That I do.”

“If rumors are correct, I’d imagine you hook up with a different girl every day of the week.”

I threw that in there casually but I had to fight a laugh at his look of surprise. “That’s what you think I do all summer? Hook up with random girls?”

I narrowed my eyes at him, but a teasing smile tugged at my lips. “Are the rumors wrong?”

He didn’t answer. Instead he shook his head with a sigh. “You definitely think the worst of me, don’t you?”

I shrugged. “You asked what I thought you did all summer.”

“I did, didn’t I?”

I nodded.

“I regret that now.” He said it so seriously I found a laugh slipping out unexpectedly. I pressed my lips together but it was too late.

He grinned. No, he smirked. Then he leaned over and lowered his voice. “I knew I’d get a laugh out of you eventually.”

He’d moved in so close I found myself holding my breath again out of self-preservation. Maybe it was the lightheadedness of being oxygen deprived that made my head spin and my heart race. It was probably the lack of air that made his gaze seem so heated, and his expression so intense.

“Luke! Good to see you back here, man.” The guy behind the coffee counter interrupted the moment, which was probably not a moment at all. I took three steps back nonetheless, just for good measure. And also so I could breathe normally.

Luke glanced over at me with a questioning look. “Do you want a coffee? Tea?”

“Hot chocolate,” I said quickly. I started to fish for some cash but he waved me off. “My treat.”

He was buying me my hot chocolate?

Do not read too much into this, Suzie. Just because you’ve never spent the day alone with a guy who was not family or Matt didn’t mean that this had to be weird.

And even if it was weird…there was hot chocolate.

Everyone knew that hot chocolate could solve every problem known to man. There was no doubt it could help my current crisis.

Not that being here was a crisis. It wasn’t. This was research. Just research. If it had, in fact, been a date, then maybe it would have been a crisis because I’d never been on a date and would have no idea how to act or what to say.

But it wasn’t a date, as we’d so firmly established back at my house. This was just school work. A project. This was all about the video game and the contest, and as long as I remembered that there was no reason to panic.

With that thought I managed to accept the drink and take a sip without panicking. I even followed him out into the crisp fall afternoon air and kept up a steady stream of conversation—all about the video game and potential settings—as he led me over to the ski lift where yet again he was greeted like the lodge’s very own prodigal son.

“How long has it been since you’ve been back here?” I asked.

He shot me a curious look. “I was here last weekend to pick up a shift for a friend.”

I nodded.

“Why?”

I pressed my lips together and considered not answering. But then it just sort of came out. “It must be nice to be so popular.”

I felt his stare on the top of my head as we moved forward in the super short lift line to take our place. I should stop talking. I shouldn’t speak. My mouth didn’t listen. “I mean, I always knew you were Mr. Cool Guy at school but I guess I didn’t realize that your popularity translated to other scenarios.”

Oh sweet mercy, somebody shut me up.

I clamped my lips together and stared straight ahead at the chair that was heading in our direction to take us to the top. That didn’t mean I couldn’t feel his eyes on me though.

“I guess I never really thought about it,” he said.

That had me glancing up in surprise. Not at the words but the tone. He sounded one hundred percent serious. And when I met his gaze he looked serious. Like he was actually giving it thought—like he was giving me thought. His gaze flickered over my face back to my eyes and I got the distinct and bizarre impression that he was trying to read something there. That he was trying to look inside me or read my mind or something.

I was so surprised by his calm, serious expression that I didn’t even jerk away when he reached a hand out and brushed a curl out of my face like it was the most natural thing in the world.

My lips parted with surprise and he gave me a small smile that was impossible to interpret.

And then once again the moment was broken by the ski lift operator telling us to get ready. Seconds later I was whisked off my feet and we were in the air. Side by side. Alone. Trapped together in a tiny little seat that dangled high above the ground.

I looked down and gasped.

“Have you ever ridden a ski lift before?”

“Um…not exactly.”

“Not exactly?”

I glanced over at him. “There’s that one at Coley Mountain that just goes up the bunny hill?” I started.

His low chuckle said I didn’t need to continue. “Not exactly the same thing, huh?”

I cleared my throat as nerves and excitement warred within me as I took in the steep drop below and the spectacular view above. “Not exactly.”

We rode in silence for a few minutes but I was still keenly aware of his presence. He was the kind of guy who couldn’t be ignored. Chalk it up to charisma or chemistry or just physical presence, but he seemed to exude a palpable energy. Right now that energy was oddly calming. He wasn’t trying to tease or mock or even make me laugh. He was just sitting there quietly letting me take it all in.

For the first time in forever I relaxed around him completely. Heck, for the first time in a long time I relaxed. Period. It was hard not to be at peace when the only sound was the wind and all that was around us was nature.

“I love it up here,” I said quietly.

“Me too.” His voice was just as quiet and when I snuck a look over at him I was surprised to find him looking out at the serenity around us with a look on his face that matched the way I felt. Awed. Peaceful.

Happy.

“Life’s problems have a way of falling to the wayside up here,” he said.

“It definitely puts it all in perspective,” I added. I opened my mouth to ask him what problems he was trying to forget but realized just in time that the question was unbelievably personal. Not to mention presumptuous.

“I wish you could see it in the winter,” he said, turning to me with a small smile. “You’ll have to use your imagination to see how I’m envisioning it.”

It didn’t take a lot of effort to see the whole mountain in my mind’s eye covered with white powdery snow, the trees whipping in the wind.

“I see it,” I said.

My words seemed to trigger his excitement. Like a light flipping on, his entire vibe went from low-key and peaceful to high-energy enthusiasm. “Here’s what I’m thinking.” He turned in his seat to face me, making the seat rock.

I gasped and then held my breath. But this time I wasn't holding my breath because he smelled so dang good, or because I was afraid of what I might say. It had everything to do with the way the car was swinging on the rails, rocking back and forth after Luke's jerky movements. I was terrified. My wide eyes and sudden pallor must have given me away because Luke reached out and grasped my arms. "It's okay," Luke said. "It's totally normal for it to swing like this."

I nodded. "Mmhmm.”

I didn't trust myself to open my mouth and say any more than that. If I did there was a very good chance that a squeak would come out, or maybe even a shriek. This was definitely not the calmest I’d ever been, nor the coolest. I was freaking out over here.

Luke's eyes scanned over my face, concern etching every feature and making him look almost caring. No, not almost. He looked like he truly cared. He looked concerned.

It was alarming. Almost as alarming as the way this chair rocked in the breeze.

"I take it the bunny lift didn't rock like this?" Luke asked.

I let out a breathy little laugh. "No, definitely not."

His hands were still on my arms but his grip loosened a bit as he leaned in closer and lowered his voice. "Just try and relax. Focus on me," he said. “Focus on the sound of my voice."

As if that was relaxing. The sound of his voice and his closeness were far from relaxing, but they were distracting and at this particular moment that was more than enough.

We stayed like that until we reached the top a couple minutes later. His hands firmly bracing my arms in a reassuring manner as he filled the silence with low steady talk all about video games settings and modifications.

Super sexy stuff.

But it worked. I was calm again once we reached the top. Luke led the way as we wandered around some of the easier, flatter trails. The conversation was largely about the game and Luke’s vision, which was…compelling. I didn’t want to admit it, not even to myself, but his idea had merit and he’d clearly given it a lot of thought. Like, for example, how we could merge X-Games style sports with the magical gifts and spells that are synonymous with MageLand. His knowledge of the game was expansive, and his vision impressive. But what really impressed me was the way he asked questions.

Maybe I just had too much Dale in my life but I sort of expected that Luke would treat the topic the way Dale would, which was to say, like a know-it-all. Dale hated to admit that he knew less than me about anything, even video games. I’d assumed Luke would be all high and mighty, too egotistical to admit any ignorance, but he not only admitted to his ignorance when it came to the coding side, he embraced it. There was no doubt that he was eager to learn.

“Whoa, slow down,” I said at one point as I tried to sip my hot chocolate while also navigating over some rocks.

Luke came to a stop and grabbed my elbow to steady me. “Sorry, am I going too fast?”

I laughed. “No, I don’t mean slow down your pace, I meant with the questions.”

He grimaced. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be,” I said. “I admire your enthusiasm, but you don’t need to learn all there is to know about coding in one day.”

He grinned down at me. “Fair enough. But I don’t want to be a slacker on this, I want—”

“I know.” I rested my free hand on his bicep without thinking and then tugged it back quickly. Being this close to Luke was dangerous to my mental health. And touching? That added a whole other level of confusion.

He studied my face and something relaxed in him. That was when I realized…he’d been worried. Oh, the shift in him wasn’t major or anything but at some point in these past six weeks I guess I’d started to get to know the guy because while not super obvious, I noticed.

He was relieved that I believed him. He didn’t want me to think he was a slacker.

The tightness in my chest was totally unwarranted. As was this mushy sensation, like my chest cavity was melting.

Ugh. Luke Warner was officially a menace to my sanity.

“New topic then,” Luke said, turning to keep walking, but his hand now hovered over my elbow, not exactly guiding me but ready to help me at a moment’s notice. The move reminded me of one of those couples in a British period piece, like some gentlemanly act from another era. Definitely not in keeping with the smartass I’d grown to know and love.

Not love-love. You know what I mean. It was just a figure of speech.

“How’d you get into gaming?” he asked.

This was not what I’d meant when I’d asked him to ease up on the coding Q & A period of the day. Memories came flooding back but I shrugged and mumbled, “I don’t know.”

“Okay,” he said with a funny little drawl. “New question. Do you know where you’re heading to college?”

I took a deep breath of relief. This was something I could answer. I gave him the pat answer I’d been giving my well-intentioned family members for the past six months, rattling off my top choices followed by my safety schools.

“Something tells me you’re not going to need to worry about safety schools,” he said with an affectionate smile that made me turn my head to hide my blush. Confusion rattled inside me because what the heck was that?

Was I reading too much into that smile? Would he smile at any girl like that if they just so happened to be here walking alone in nature with him?

Probably.

“What about you?” My voice came out a little too loud and bubbly as I tried not to show how affected I was by his smiles and his attention. “Any plans for college?”

He made a sound that was part sigh, part groan, and all exasperation.

“Sorry,” I said. “Annoying question?”

“More like I hate the answer.”

“Which is?”

He looked down at me and behind the normal smile was a hint of sadness. “The answer is I have no plan.”

I blinked. I had no idea what to say to that. I mean, we were seniors. As far as I knew, we all had a plan. We sort of had to. Enforced sessions with the guidance counselor demanded it. Even if it wasn’t college, everyone I talked to in our class had some sort of plan. Traveling, a trade school, or going straight to work…something.

But not Luke, apparently.

He looked straight ahead and kept walking. “I know, right? Everyone has a plan. Just…not me.” He added the last part with a shrug.

I still struggled with what to say, but he filled the silence for me. “It’s like we were all just going along doing our high school thing and then one day everyone around me started thinking about the future.” He shrugged. “Everyone figured it all out while I was napping, apparently.”

I let out a little huff of amusement at his self-deprecating humor, but I was honestly blown away by his honesty. I experienced a surge of sympathy for the guy who suddenly looked not so cocky and more than a little lost.

Still, I had a feeling he wouldn’t want my pity so I lightened my tone and nudged his arm. “Not while you were napping,” I teased. “While you were partying.”

He turned to me with a laugh as I continued with a wave of my hand. “While you were playing basketball, and hooking up with every girl in our class, and—”

“Okay, okay,” he interrupted. “I get your point. I’ve been a slacker.”

I was glad to hear laughter in his voice.

“That wasn’t my point,” I informed him primly. Just because I wanted to hear him laugh again, I murmured quickly before taking another sip of hot chocolate, “And word has it you’re a player, not necessarily a slacker.”

He let out a short laugh and came to a stop with a hand over his heart. “Suzie Q, are you mocking my pain?”

His grin made it impossible not to smile in return. “Not mocking,” I said. “Just teasing you a little.”

“Fair enough,” he said. “I guess I deserved that.”

Damn straight he did. “My point wasn’t that you were slacking,” I said. “I just meant that while you were busy enjoying high school the rest of us have been planning our great escape.”

He laughed. “Great escape, huh? Is Grover High really all that bad?”

I gaped up at him. “You do recall the first day of school, right? You know, when I was totally humiliated in front of the whole student body and then mocked mercilessly for the next month or so?”

He had the good grace to cringe at the memory. “Yeah. About that…” He looked down at me. “I’m really sorry that happened to you. I never actually said it, and I should have.”

I stopped breathing. I stopped moving. Was this actually happening? “Oh, um…” I swallowed. “Thanks.”

Yup. Eloquent and cool, that was me.

After the tense silence stretched on just a little too long, I cleared my throat. "Maybe we should be heading back to the car." I looked around me pointedly. "I think I have a good grasp of what you’re envisioning for the game."

He arched his brows. "And?”

I knew what he was asking. "And…I think it's a really great idea," I admitted.

From the way he grinned at me you'd think I'd just gifted the guy a million dollars. His reaction made me feel slightly guilty and I kicked at the dirt at my feet. "This was a really great idea," I repeated.

Luke shrugged and feigned modesty. "Yeah well, I have my moments."

I laughed, glad to be back on normal footing. If Luke was acting cocky, then all was right in the world.

But something was still nagging at me. I didn't know how to address it or what to say, but as we reached the parking lot and were heading to my car I came up with something that wasn't quite good enough but would have to do. "You don't have to have it all figured out now, you know," I said.

He looked over at me, his brows arched in surprise. Yet he didn't say anything.

I felt blood rushing to my cheeks as I stared at the ground at our feet as if the right words might be there somewhere as we shuffled along toward the car.

"What I mean is, we're still young. You still have a lot of time. You don't have to have your whole future figured out now." I glanced over and saw him staring at me, his gaze intense.

He softened it with a small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "Yeah well, try telling my dad that."

I bit the inside of my lip, unsure of what to say to that. I mean, it wasn't like Luke and I were the best of friends… Or even friends at all.

But he kept talking and I found myself anxious to hear what he had to say.

"I'm kind of the failure of my family."

I glanced over in surprise, not just at the words but at his tone. He sounded so blasé, so very nonchalant. As if he was just stating the facts. Honestly, it made me hurt on his behalf.

"Luke, if you are a failure then I'd be terrified to meet the rest of your family."

He looked over in surprise and I gave him a small smile in return. "I mean, look at you." I gestured vaguely in his direction. "You're a freaking basketball star–"

"Former basketball player,” he corrected. “And never a star.”

I ignored that. "Not to mention the fact that everyone loves you," I said.

"Popularity doesn't do much for your transcripts," he said, his tone wry and his expression rueful.

I shrugged. "Maybe. But in my experience charisma gets you further in life then all the A's on the planet."

I felt his eyes on me and cursed the heat in my cheeks. “Seriously,” I said. “I mean teachers and our parents make it sound like the key to success is learning facts and figures but in all reality, if you and I were to interview for the same job today, you’d get it.”

He gave a snort of amusement. 

“It’s true,” I said. “Life’s inherently unfair like that.”

“Wow.” We both stopped in front of my car and he gave me a mischievous look. “While I’m actually kind of loving your cynicism, I’ve got to point out that you’re really selling yourself short.”

I rolled my eyes. “Oh please. What I lack in likeability I make up for in self-awareness. I don’t believe in pretending I’m something that I’m not.”

“Like a badass gamer?” he shot back. “An honest, straight shooter with an understated but wicked sense of humor and the wildest hair I’ve ever seen?”

I narrowed my eyes at him equally exasperated and amused by his apparent determination to make me sound cooler than I was. At least he hadn’t tried to convince me I was pretty. “Look, I won’t feel sorry for you and your issues with your dad and the future, and all that. But in return, I don’t want your pity either. Deal?”

His lips twitched upward in grudging amusement. “Deal.” He threw his hands up in surrender. “You win,” he said, his tone a little too casual. “I won’t try to convince you that you’re likeable.”

I shot him a wary look because there was definitely a but coming.

He leaned over slightly. “But you can’t convince me that I don’t like you.”

My mouth fell open and I waited for him to laugh, to smirk, to do something callous and rude to say that he was making fun of me. Granted, being so pointedly rude wasn’t really his style. Still, I watched and waited and…nothing. No laughter, not even that familiar teasing glint in his eyes.

If anything, his gaze grew darker, more serious. He didn’t pull back so he was still leaning over ever so slightly, almost like he might…almost like maybe he was going to—

“We should go.” I spun on my heel and dove for the driver’s side door.

Clearly I was misreading everything. This guy had screwed with my head in a major way. In no known reality would the big, bad player of Grover High be hitting on little Suzie Bryers. And he certainly wouldn’t be kissing her. Not unless there was some sort of bet involved.

I shook off the thought and shoved the key into the ignition as Luke climbed into the passenger seat beside me. I refused to look over at him as I turned the key and…

Nothing.

I tried again and…nothing again.

Panic had my heart jumping into my throat.

“Battery died?” Luke said, his voice low, warm, and calm.

Clearly he was not freaking out—about potential kisses or the fact that we were now stranded on a mountain because…why? I did a quick scan and muttered a curse under my breath.

Yup, there it was. It had been foggy and overcast on the drive up so I’d turned on my lights. And apparently I’d never turned them off. “I drained the battery.”

To his credit he didn’t laugh at me. But when I turned to face him he was definitely amused.

“This isn’t funny,” I said.

“I know.” But he still had a small smile on his lips.

“We’re stranded.”

“We’re not stranded,” he said, a laugh escaping with his words. He gestured to the other cars in the parking lot. “There are plenty of other people around. I’m sure someone will let us use their car to jump the battery.”

Oh. Right. When he said it like that maybe I was overreacting just a tad. Still, a flush had crept into my cheeks as I remembered what I’d said when I’d insisted that I be the one to drive.

“Sorry,” I said.

He looked surprised. “I’m not.”

I sighed. “You’re being too nice to me today.”

He outright laughed at that as he shifted in his seat to face me. “Too nice? Is that even a thing?”

“With you it is.”

He flinched and I realized just how rude that sounded. “Not that you’re not nice,” I said quickly. “You seem like a perfectly nice guy.”

“Uh huh.” He gave me a bland look. “Anytime you want to stop using the word nice to define me, that would be just fine by me. It’s not doing wonders for my ego.”

“I just mean—”

“I know what you mean,” he said. “You’re used to me teasing you.”

“Mocking me, more like,” I said.

“I beg to differ,” he said. “But…if I ever made you uncomfortable, I apologize.”

And there he went. Apologizing again. Being nice again.

It was disconcerting, and I was already frazzled by the almost-but-probably-not-near-kiss a minute ago, not to mention the very real evidence of my distractedness—this dead car.

“However,” he continued, his voice lightening with the jokey tone I knew so well. “All that being said, when I told you I wasn’t sorry we were stuck here together, I was definitely not being nice.”

As he spoke he shifted toward me, slowly but surely until he was in the middle of the bench seat and inches away from me. Too close for me to think properly. “Um…you weren’t?”

He shook his head. “I wasn’t. In fact, I was being kind of selfish.”

“You were?”

He nodded. “I was.”

I drew my brows together in an attempt to concentrate on what he was saying, or what he was trying to say. “How were you being selfish?”

One side of his mouth tugged upward in a lopsided smile—the one that never failed to take my breath away. “Because this means I get more time alone with you.” He leaned in closer and I jerked away.

“What are you doing?”

He paused, his dark eyes flashing with laughter. “I’m trying to kiss you.”

“Oh.”

His eyes met mine. “Is that okay?”

“Okay?” I licked my lips which were suddenly dry, as if they just knew they were being talked about. I couldn’t process this, I couldn’t think. So maybe…

Maybe it was time to stop thinking. My heart was racing and everything in me wanted to lean forward and close the distance between us. “Um, yeah. Okay.”

He didn’t hesitate, he didn’t give me a chance to change my mind. He leaned in and claimed my lips in a kiss that made the earth’s rotation come to an immediate and cataclysmic halt.

Oh sweet mercy. A sizzling sensation flooded through me as his firm, warm lips moved over mine with an assuredness that did away with any hesitations on my part. He took the lead and I let him, my lips clinging to his as he parted them, deepening the kiss. His tongue was hot and teasing, his arms tight around me, keeping me grounded. Gently but firmly he pulled me closer to him, shifting us both so we were intertwined.

Somehow my arms came to be around his neck and that moaning sound…was that me? I didn’t know and I didn’t care. My brain had checked out and all that was left was bliss. Sweet heat and this overwhelming feeling of being cherished. Adored.

This incredible sensation that I was seen, and what he saw was beautiful.

Maybe it wasn’t the car that died, maybe it had been me. That was the only way to explain the fact that I was suddenly in heaven.