Page 55 of Some Like It Hott

She crosses her arms over her chest. “You’re more seriously wounded than I thought.” She grabs me by the hand and drags me over to the foam pit. “We’re going to jump in together.”

We do. Then she goes back and does it again, this time with a flip.

“Cheer squad. What?” she asks, squinting at the expression on my face.

“Nothing,” I say.

I’d been picturing her in a flippy little skirt, but I don’t say that. I have the feeling again, of balancing on a narrow ledge. To vanquish it, I run and do a flip into the foam pit. It feels great, like flying.

When I come out, I’m grinning.

“Are you havingfun?”

“If I say yes, what happens?”

She shrugs. “Probably nothing. I guess there’s an infinitesimal chance the earth might stop spinning on its axis.”

I give her a tiny, playful shove. She shoves me back. I pretend to stagger. Then I right myself. The expression on her face is oddly intense. She’s waiting for my answer.

“Yeah,” I say. “I’m having fun.”

She pumps her fist. “Yes! We found your fun!”

“I guess we did,” I say, and her smile gets even bigger.

She might be wrong, though. It might not be that Bouncy Town is my fun. It might be that Natalie is my fun.

She’s grinning and bouncing on the springy surface under us. Her cheeks are still that pretty flushed pink, and I can’t stop staring at her mouth. I take a step forward. I’m not thinking. I’m justdoing.

But before I can do whatever it is, a form darts between us, knocking us apart. I grab Natalie’s arms with both of mine to steady her, and a whole stream of children run between us like they’re tucking under a bridge we’ve deliberately made for them.

When they’ve finally passed, Natalie tugs away. I hadn’t realized I was still holding on to her.

“We should probably head home,” she says, not looking at me. “They close soon, and the parking lot will be a zoo.”

I want to take her chin in my hand, to turn her face so she has to meet my eyes. But I don’t. The moment of recklessness has passed, and I remember all the reasons kissing Natalie is a terrible idea.

“Yeah,” I say instead.

27

Natalie

We’re both quiet on the car ride home. I don’t know what Preston’s thinking about, but I’m thinking about that weird moment when I thought maybe he was going to…

Kiss me again.

It wasn’t the first time today the idea had crossed my mind. There was the moment during bouncy basketball when I landed on top of him. My body went molten hot the instant his cock swelled against my thigh. All my attention narrowed onto that contact and the blooming heat between my legs. I was ten seconds from repositioning myself to have him exactly where I needed him and then lowering my mouth to his. Luckily I came to my senses and rolled off.

The temptation followed me all day, as I watched him effortlessly bowl Skee-Ball—all coiled energy and shockingly precise aim, as his heated gaze tracked the fork into my mouth, as I watched him flip and twist on the trampoline, his big muscular body surprisingly lithe and graceful.

It followed me right up to the kiss-that-didn’t-happen next to the foam pit, and now it’s in the car with us, and I clutch the steering wheel firmly to keep myself from?—

I don’t even know what I’d do. Touch his thigh, maybe. To see if he’d huff out a startled breath or a small gruff noise. To see if he’d stop me if I slid my hand higher and higher and higher, seeking what I already know I’d find, because the one thing Idon’tdoubt is that he wants me, too.

Instead, I remind myself that getting kissed by him didn’t turn out that well for me last time, and I struggle to think of something to say that will break the tension in the car.

But he gets there first.

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