Page 124 of Naughty November

The front door slammed shut. I jumped, my heart doing cartwheels in my throat. Popcorn flew from the plastic bowl in my lap and rained down on the carpet, my clothes, and the couch. On the eighty-five-inch television screen, an enormous spider crept ominously toward its prey in the black-and-white horror movie. Ten minutes in, I’d regretted starting it, but my curiosity had me glued to the screen an hour later, though my skin prickled as if those spiders were crawling over my flesh.

“Iggy!”

I slapped a hand over my chest to calm my racing heart and paused the television. Kieran had finally come home after standing me up. The movie was to distract me from driving myself up the wall, worrying about whether he’d seen my name on the list. I was almost certain that was the reason he’d forgone our dinner “date” tonight. At least inmyhead, it would have been a date. I loved our date nights.

If only he also knew we were on a date.

Kieran stormed into the living room and flipped on the light switch, and I squinted against the sudden brightness. “Hey!”

“Sorry,” he muttered. His chest swelled as he inhaled deeply, then let out the breath slowly. “Why is there so much popcorn on the floor? Did you even get any in your mouth?”

“This is my second batch.” My smile wobbled. Why didn’t he mention what I’d done? Had he seen the list yet? What if he didn’t acknowledge my desire at all?

He scowled. “Please tell me that’s not all you had for dinner.”

I shrugged, and the neckline of his gray shirt I wore slipped down my right shoulder. His gaze followed the movement of the fabric, and I sucked in a deep breath. My skin tingled and yearned for more than just his gaze.

“Well, we had dinner plans, and when you broke your promise, I couldn’t think of anything else.”

Kieran ran his fingers through his hair. He looked haggard, dark circles of fatigue under his eyes. With a sigh, he plopped down on the sofa next to me. Silence stretched between us.

I raised the remote to resume the movie, but he took it from me. “I haven’t eaten yet either.”

“Oh.”

“How about I’ll order something?”

“Umm, okay.”

“Is Chinese good, or do you want something else?”

“Indian, maybe?”

“All right. I’ll go order it now.”

He got up, but I grabbed his arm and pulled him back down. “Isn’t there anything else you want to say to me?”

Kieran licked his lips and shook his head. “Nope, we’re good.”

“Kee, talk to me.”

He took my hand in his and squeezed. “What do you want me to say, Iggy?”

“Just say what’s on your mind.”

“So you can walk out on me?”

“Kieran.” I placed the bowl onto the floor and straddled his lap, something I had never done. Never dared to do. “I won’t walk out on you. Tell me.”

He held me by the shoulders and shook me hard. “What were you thinking? Are you crazy?”

Stunned, I blinked up at him until my vision returned to normal. “What was that for?”

“You had no right to sign your name on that Naughty November list.”

I straightened my back. “Oh no? How old am I, Kee?”

“That’s beside the point.”

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