Page 43 of Kickoff

“About that kiss?”

She rolled her eyes in the most dramatic fashion. “Huh, sorry, but no. I wouldn’t kiss you even under torture.”

I laughed, trying to cover the sting of her words. “I know you know I’m the one for you. I’m just waiting for you to be honest with yourself and catch up with that fact. I’ve been biding my time for five years for you to come clean about your feelings toward me. Put the guy out of his misery already. It’s bound to happen anyway. Why not make it official now and stop wasting precious time?”

“Not happening. Anyway, I’m sure there’re dozens of girls waiting for you at that party. You won’t miss me.”

I pinched my jersey as if looking too good for school and winked. “What can I say? Everyone wants a piece of The Mase.” Shut up, man. Why did stupid words always leave my mouth when she was around? Like my filters were defective. Why did I portray myself as a player? Dammit. What was wrong with me? Melinda would never see me as anything else if I didn’t get my act together. The goal was to get out of the friend zone, and here I was, digging my own grave and burying my heart at the same time. Since I’d just been promoted to said friend zone, I couldn’t jeopardize it too soon.

“Ugh, you’re a pig when you want to be.” She slapped my chest and pushed me aside in a teasing way. But it was the expression on her face that said she wasn’t amused. She was trying to hide her disgust with a half-smile, the sight breaking me.

“Can I be your pig, though?” Seriously, Mase, shut the fuck up.

“Oh geez. Let’s end this conversation right now before you say something else that scares me away.”

“Your loss, Mel. Guess you’ll never know how incredible a kisser I am.”

“Hard pass,” she scoffed, a hint of a smile grazing her lips, humor returning to her features. “I’m sure you won’t have any trouble finding someone desperate enough so you can sink your victorious tongue down her throat.”

“If I follow your logic, then you admit I’m the best?”

“Did you hit your head tonight? It’s unhealthy to be this cocky.”

I cupped my heart with a hand. “See, I knew you couldn’t resist me. You and I, it’s true love, baby, don’t you see it?”

We stared at each other for a long minute. A glint shone in her eyes, and she blinked it away. How I wished I could translate her expressions and read her mind.

The air became charged between us. It was thick with awareness.

She swallowed, and I got entranced by the movement of her throat. I zoned in on her eyes, which was much safer, but soon got lost in the turquoise pools of her irises. My heart hammered in my chest. My hands became moist. Melinda parted her lips like she was about to say something but swept her bottom lip with her tongue instead. I was burning up. How could she do this without knowing how wild it made me? I stepped forward, my feet not asking for my permission as they moved of their own volition, erasing every bit of distance between us. My fingers grazed hers. Little particles of electricity tickled their tips. I became super aware of every one of her gestures and the pattern of her breathing. Melinda stared at me, her eyes big and full of an emotion I couldn’t name, but that my body liked a lot.

The air between us thickened.

Could she feel the pull like I did?

She parted her lips on an exhale, and her gaze descended to mine.

The pulse point in her throat throbbed.

This was it, the moment I’d been waiting forever for.

I leaned in and she blinked, killing the moment.

“Whatever, Mase. Go and annoy someone else.” There was no fight or teasing in her tone. It sounded more like a resolve.

“You won’t get rid of me so easily.” My voice sounded huskier than usual. Almost breathless.

She cleared her throat. “Knowing you, I never expected anything less.”

Right now, I couldn’t tell if our banter was disguised flirting or friendly teasing only. No matter what, something was brewing between us. I sensed it in every fiber of my being.

I pushed her chin up with a finger so I could look into her eyes. “Seriously, though. How are you doing?”

“I’m fine.”

“You swear?”

“Yes. Don’t worry about me, okay?”