Page 17 of Charger

On our way to the maze, Lisa turns on “Wonderwall” by Oasis. Even though I know Garrett doesn’t like the song, he doesn’t protest—looks like Lisa may have my brother wrapped around her finger.

Zach is sitting next to me in all his glory. He seems larger seated back here. I study his profile while he’s busy looking at his phone—probably texting Sam. Jealousy rips through me.

A strand of his dirty blond hair falls in front of his eye. I love his tousled hair and I want to run my fingers through it. His lips are full and his jaw is a chiseled dream. Taking him all in sends butterflies to my stomach.

He gives me a sideward glance with a twitch of his mouth, after he realizes that I am staring at him like a weirdo. The embarrassment makes my cheeks burn.

“What’s up, Jules?” He jerks his head to the side, tossing the loose strand of hair back. His full attention is on me, but I quickly turn my head to look out the window—as if I could play this off now. I got caught red-handed, drooling over Zach in the back seat of a car.

Lisa and Garrett are having their own separate conversation up front, and I’m back here losing oxygen. Man, does it feel hot in here or is it just me?

Zach reaches over the seat, which isn’t far, and places his hand on my legging-clad thigh. My body immediately reacts. His touch is warm and gentle, almost like he’s teasing me.

I swallow nervously.

He gently squeezes, slowly working his way up. It’s like he’s setting my skin ablaze as he moves. I know where he’s going and I should stop him, but my body won’t allow it. The ache, the throb, will not let me stop him.

I close my eyes, preparing for his touch. His hand is teasing me as he brushes the pad of his thumb right between my aroused area.

“Oh, thank God. They have a coffee stand and cupcakes. How cute is this?” Lisa squeals.

We pull into the parking lot and Zach snatches his hand off my thigh, like he is zapped by something. Without even realizing we arrived, Lisa brings me back to earth. I quickly get out of the car, tugging my sweater around me for comfort, before my insides explode. Zach just tried feeling me up in the back seat of a car and I highly enjoyed it. I breathe slowly, trying to calm myself down.

“Come on, chick, we’re going to get coffee. You two buy our tickets, will ya?” Lisa drags me to the coffee booth with Zach’s eyes catching mine. They’re hungry, heated, and wanting more.

Our boots trudge through the grass and dirt as we line up. Two boys in front of us smile down at us. They’re tall, thin, and look interested.

“You two here for the maze?” They both have brown-colored hair and a preppy look.

“Yeah, should be fun.” I smile shyly. But really, all I want to do is roll my eyes.

“It is. We did this last year. You could get lost if you’re not careful, and it’s kind of scary at night if you’re by yourselves.” The brown-haired guy closest to us grins.

“Yup, so if you ladies need someone to hold your hands, we will gladly assist.” The other wiggles his eyebrows. I raise mine.

Seriously?

Lisa snorts out a laugh.

“I think they’ll be fine.” Zach slides his arm around my waist, sending goosebumps through me. I get a warm feeling when he tugs me closer to him, Garrett doing the same with Lisa. Both of our boys are giving the newcomers challenging looks and they don’t waste any time spinning right back around.

I shake my head.

“You guys are seriously the worst.” Lisa agrees with me while she smiles giddily.

“I’m just claiming what’s mine,” Zach whispers to me. I want to push him away, to tell him I’m not his, but then my brother and Lisa will ask questions. Also, when he says I’m his, I don’t dislike the way it sounds. So instead, as a defense, I make the rash decision to squeeze the nipple that’s closest to me. “Fuck,” he mumbles. Hold up. I look at him and he’s grinning while rubbing his newly injured nipple. I felt a piercing that was never there before, at least not this summer.

“Is your nipple pierced?” I ask quietly.

“Yup. I’ll even let you play with it when you finally give up and give yourself to me.”

Damn, that’s hot. A sensation shoots through me, all the way down between my inner thighs.

I remove myself from his hold, even though it feels so warm, and give the lady at the coffee booth my order.

By the time we drink our coffees and eat, it’s almost completely dark out. The maze is already getting a line and they’re only letting a few groups in at a time. The line director goes over the rules and hands us our emergency alarms. He explains that if we want to, at any time, we can hit a button and a worker will direct us out. Guess the maze is bigger than we thought.

“This is gonna be sick.” My brother grabs hold of Lisa’s hand. Now, I feel like we’re on a double date. Zach tries to hold my hand, but I smack it away and he laughs. He’s messing with me and he’s loving every minute of it.

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