Page 36 of The Quarterback Sneak

“Not too bad? That’s it?” Zach tilts his head, studying me.

Shit.

Does he know he nearly rocked my world?

“Did you see the guys’ faces when we walked out? We killed it.” Okay, at least it seems he’s oblivious to what happened earlier. “I wish I could have taken a picture of Jamie’s face when he saw me kissing your neck.”

“I’m sure someone got it,” I mutter, thankful he didn’t mention the whole near orgasm thing but also feeling a tiny bit salty that he didn’t even notice.

“Let’s get that money, Teacup. Give Jamie the biggest FU of his life.” There he goes again, touching my thigh and giving it a friendly little squeeze. Friendly being the operative word there. That’s all it is.Friendly. He doesn’t want to thrum his fingers against my center like I’ve imagined for the last hour. No. That’s just my wishful thinking since I haven’t had sex in a long time.

I don’t look at him, too concerned he’ll know what I’m thinking, so instead, I nod and turn the ignition. “Yeah. Can you put your address in the satnav? My mom will kill me if I’m not home by curfew.”

He cracks his knuckles. “You just need to drop me off at the bus stop. I’ll find my own way home,” he retorts.

I wave him off. “Don’t be ridiculous. I know that bus. My elocution teacher takes it to see me, and I know that after nine, it only comes once an hour.” He whips his head up. “It’s already midnight. I’m not going to let you wait an hour out here and not get home until God knows when.”

He doesn’t speak. “If you don’t tell me, I’ll just call Mike; I’m sure he has your address, and if he doesn’t, I’m sure he can find it.”

Zach grumbles, slipping into his seat. “It’s about thirty minutes out of your way.”

“So? I’d rather know my fake boyfriend got home than come to school on Monday and find out he had to sleep on the bus-stop bench. Come on, just do it, Zach.” He’s still indignant, and then it hits me. The question about the house size, the comments about my car. Is he embarrassed? “I won’t tell anyone where you live if that’s what you’re worried about.” I hesitate, not sure if it’s my place to say anything, but I hate the idea of him being on his own.

“I’m not embarrassed about where I’m from,” he says through gritted teeth, and I immediately feel like an ass because I don’t want him to think that’s something I care about. “I just like to keep my home life away from school.”

“Don’t worry. You are still keeping them separated. I’m just helping you get home. That’s all.” I play it off as nothing, but his resistance makes me curious. What’s he hiding?

When I lock the car door, he realizes he’s in a losing battle, then types in his address slowly. When I see the town, I’m not surprised. Northlake. That’s where my elocution teacher lives too. It’s nowhere near the South Point of town in terms of glitz and glamour, but I’ve always liked the area whenever I’ve visited. Something about the quaint cottage-style houses make me feel at home.

“Great. It says it will take me twenty minutes from here. That’s nothing.”

Our ride there is quiet, but I don’t care. The less we talk, the less opportunity there is to discuss my near orgasm and what I will have to do about it when I get home.

“It’s just here on the right.” It’s the only thing he says, and hearing his deep voice after all the silence soothes my stomach. The house he’s pointing at is small. Well, small in that it’s not one of the mansions I or any of the other students at South Pointwould live in, but it’s not tiny, and something about it looks far homier than any of the giant soulless houses I know of.

There’s a warm light glowing downstairs, and I immediately feel something. “Are they waiting up for you?” I ask.

He looks at me for the first time since we left that party and offers me a small smile. “They’re probably just up. It’s hard to sleep in our house sometimes.”

“Why?”

He opens his mouth, ready to answer, but then stops himself before starting again. “My parents work several jobs, so you never know what shift they’re on, which means there’s always someone up in the house.”

I nod, pretending to understand how tough it must be for someone who can hear their family members moving around. That’s not exactly been an issue of mine since I was a toddler. Having your own wing in a house does have its benefits, but it also makes me feel lonelier than I’d ever like to admit.

Something in his house catches my eye. The curtain twitches, and a face appears in the window. It’s a girl about our age. Even in this light, I can tell she’s beautiful with her long dark hair and small features. “Who’s that?” I ask, pointing at her. She hasn’t noticed us sitting in the car since the streetlight we’re sitting under has crashed out.

“My sister,” he blurts out. I look over at him and can immediately tell he’s shut down a little. There’s something about her he wants to keep private, and I can understand that.

“She looks nice,” I say.

“Thanks for tonight,” he says. “I’ll see you at school on Monday. We’ll probably have to walk in together.” I nod. “So, shall I meet you in the parking lot at eight?” I nod again, feeling oddly formal. “Great, I’ll see you then.” And like that, he’s shut the door and has left me sitting there, watching him jog up to his house.

Turning the car back on, I drive away, trying not to think about Zach and how good his kisses felt tonight.

Yeah, that’s a losing battle.

Chapter Twelve

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