Page 46 of The Playbook

“Thanks, Gracie. You saved my ass.”

“I figured it was a fifty-fifty gamble and you’d probably lose.” She shrugged. “Also, now you owe me.”

“I do?” I grinned at her. “What do you want? Maybe a kiss?”

“I don’t know.” She shrugged again, a breath stealing smile on her lips.

Something about me being the one to make her smile lit me up inside.

“I’ll get back to you on it. For now, I’ll bank it.”

I didn’t get to say more to her about it because Ryan greeted us.

“Did Nikki find you?” he asked.

“Uh…” I cast a quick glance at Grace whose head was down, her hair creating a curtain around her face.

She switched gears so damn fast. One moment she was laughing with me and loosening up, the next she was withdrawn and quiet.

“Yeah. I talked to her,” I answered when Ryan continued to stare at me.

“She wants me to find a fucking band to play her party. Why do I always get roped into these things?”

“Because you’re a really great party planner?”

He ignored my joke. “Hey, Grace. How’s it going?”

“Um, fine. I’ll, uh, talk to you later, Logan.” She bolted away before I could answer her.

“Damnit, Ryan.” I stared at Grace’s retreating back, the pull to go after her growing by the second. I tamped it down and looked to my friend.

“What?”

“Bad timing, man. She was willingly talking to me. And enjoying it.”

Ryan scowled. “You’re in over your damn head. You need to stay away from her and let Andy win. This Grace thing—”

“I haven’t forgotten the previous million fucking times you’ve warned me,” I interrupted him. “Just drop it, OK?”

“She’s a nice girl, Logan. Like, stupid nice. I think this whole damn thing is one of the worst things anyone has ever done in the name of winning a fucking bet. If she finds out none of this is real and she actually starts to feel something for you, it could really devastate her. You might even ruin the way she views guys and … I don’t know … love.” Frustrated, he wiped his palm down his face. “You know how when you have a really good slice of watermelon and then you leave it out in the sun too long so it sours?”

I gaped at him dumbfounded.

“It’s like that. Don’t turn her into damn sour watermelon, man."

“I don’t know what the hell that even means,” I lied. “But I’ve gotta go.” I pushed past him. I knew he was right. I just didn’t know how to quit the girl I was quickly becoming addicted to.

CHAPTER25

Grace

The week sped by faster than I thought it would. Logan texted me daily, sometimes even during lunch. I found myself noticing him a lot more than I ever had before. I’d catch his eye across the courtyard, and he’d wink at me from the table the clique always sat at, his world happening around him but his attention fixed on me. I’d be lying if I said it didn’t do something to me.

As much as I tried to fight the growing feelings, they were there. They confused me as much as they excited me. On one hand, maybe this was merely a new friendship to him. On the other, maybe it was more. Or maybe I was freaking crazy and needed to relax. I was a damn mess, either way because Logan knew how to work my emotions.

Friday was no different, only this time he was wearing his blue and white football jersey and looking so sexy. Excitement buzzed through the student body even more than normal. My dad had been on edge all week. The game was a big one. We were playing our biggest rivals, Acadia Prep—the only team we’d lost to last year. Some of their best players had graduated last year, making hope run high.

“What are we doing after the game?” Lana’s voice broke into my thoughts on Logan, which had been ranging from embarrassing to confused.

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