Page 94 of Once Upon a Fake Date

I nodded, poking at his chest, still covered in his pads and equipment. “But go change first. You’re all sweaty.”

Sweaty, and yet… delicious. He was so hot like this, and I was practically salivating at even the faintest of touches.

He smirked, nipping at my lips. “Okay, baby. Meet you at the car.” Parker handed me his keys.

I grinned, already looking forward to showing him just how much he meant to me when I got my mouth on him. As much as I was dying to have sex with him, I couldn’t deny that the foreplay had been better than anything I’d ever experienced before, and I was content with that.

For now.

This was it.Our final full dress rehearsal. The musical was next week.

And Parker was… not here. He was late. I was already dressed in my costume for act one, the brown fabric of my skirt billowing around me as I stood at the door, biting my lip.

I knew he’d been stressed with lacrosse, and his coach wasn’t going easy on him, but we’d made it work. He’d been here all semester. Except for now, with so little time left.

“Where is he?” Professor Woods said with a frown, looking down at her watch.

“He said he had practice but that he’d be here,” I said, shaking my head.

She squeezed my arm. “It’s not the end of the world. We can send in the understudy to run lines with you.”

I nodded. “Yeah. That makes sense.”

The understudies for both our roles would still perform the musical during one of the other shows, but if Parker wasn’t here for any reason, then I’d play opposite him instead. Luckily, it wasn’t Duke.

That was my saving grace. He’d been kicked out of CU for the semester and told not to come within one hundred feet of me or he’d be charged with stalking. Ever since all of that had ended, I’d felt more comfortable around campus.

Still, I didn’t want to perform with anyone else. I had in rehearsals—we both had—but it wasn’t the same chemistry I felt when we performed together.

Parker might have been an athlete, but he was mesmerizing on stage. The grace and poise he brought to the table—plus his singing voice? It was enough to have me dropping my panties and begging him to eat me out.

Something he’d done last Saturday after his lacrosse game, making me come twice before he’d let me touch him. Even if we still hadn’t had sex, or even taken our clothes off, things between us were so hot and heavy that I knew it was only a matter of time before we did.

CHAPTER 28

Parker

I’m so sorry I’m late. Fuck.” I grimaced, coming to a stop outside of the dressing room.

Mary, the student director, just shook her head at me, a clipboard in her hand. “Hurry and get changed! We had to prep the understudy. They’re about to go on stage.”

I shoved my backpack in a locker, already stripping out of my athletic shorts and sweatshirt to pull on my costume. Ella had fitted me in it, making alterations, and even though I felt a little ridiculous in the get-up, I had to admit I looked every bit the part.

Final rehearsal? We had this.

I caught Audrey’s eye as I stood in the wings off stage left. She was on the opposite side, her entrance coming from the right. While I wasn’t in the first scene, she had her reveal after the beginning where they explained the Princess’s birth and origins, about how she was hidden away to protect her.

Her theater friends were on stage, the three seniors who doted after her like big sisters. At one point, they’d cornered me, telling me they’d kick me in the balls if I hurt their precious little rose. I was slightly terrified of them, so I’d agreed, even if I didn’t plan on hurting her. Never.

Ella was in the back, flitting around and checking everyone’s costumes to make sure they were all perfect. From what I understood, she’d designed all of them, though she hadn’t had the role to make every single costume of the show—that would be too much work for any one person. Before I’d volunteered to do this, I’d known very little about musical theater. Now, I felt like I had a much better idea of what was going on.

She gave me a thumbs up, and I smiled. I was glad Audrey’s twin seemed to approve of us. Especially since they’d always been close, and that meant we would always be in each other’s lives.

If I had anything to do with it, we would.

I’d been trying to plan something special for Audrey after the performance weekend was over. Unfortunately, lacrosse was getting in the way. I already couldn’t wait for the season to be over, but once it was, it also meant the semester would be too. Which meant less time together, not more.

There had to be a better solution to that problem, but I wouldn’t go there now. Not when we still had so much to figure out between us.

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