Page 15 of Puck Block

A sarcastic puff of breath falls from his mouth, and it almost touches my lips. “No. I can’t. The second you sassed me in the ambulance, I was hooked.”

“I don’t believe you,” I admit. “I think you saw me walking through the party and recognized me.”

Cruz leans forward and pulls his phone out of his back pocket. He throws it at me, and I catch it with a cat-like reflex.

“Read them.”

On the screen is a text conversation with someone named Linc.

Linc: Go find her. What was her name? Ask Rush if he knows of her. He knows everyone.

Cruz: Her name is Taytum, but you know I don’t have time for a girlfriend. Med school is on the horizon.

Linc: Who said you have to date her? Bang her and get her out of your system.

Cruz: I’m not a dick who uses females like you.

Linc: I don’t use them. I’m up front and tell them that I’m not looking for a girlfriend. Nine times out of ten, they’re down. College girls wanna have fun. They aren’t looking for anything serious either.

Cruz: So you mean they’re dick hungry?

Linc: Fuck off. We’re all just out here having fun. Maybe you should try it.

Cruz: She doesn’t seem like a girl who’d be down for that.

Linc: Well then, have fun with your hand.

I click the phone off and hope I’m not wearing my emotions on my sleeve.

“See? Can’t stop thinking about you.”

Our eyes catch, and I suck my bottom lip into my mouth, trapping it beneath my teeth.It’s now or never.If I allow myself to think about the risk of Ford or Emory charging in to ruin my night, like always, I’ll never get laid again.

Ford is nowhere to be found.

Emory is off doing God knows what.

And thiswasmy plan, right? To take back my confidence and make my own decisions?

“What if I am one of those girls?” My question is hardly above a whisper. The room crackles with the tensing of Cruz’s jaw, and my stomach fills with courage.

“You’re not,” his voice is low.

“How do you know?”

Cruz leans forward and rests his elbows on top of his knees. I swear, the more time that passes, the hotter he gets. It’s his voice. It’s right in the middle of poised and out of control. There’s a slight rasp to it that I’m clinging to for dear life, and the prize is so close I can almost taste it. “‘Cause I’ve asked around.”

I decide to pull the trigger. “What would you say if I asked for one night and that was it?”

Cruz slowly sits up right and pushes his legs out in front of him. He pulls the denim on his thighs down a little, and if I didn’t know any better, he’s feeling just as antsy as I am. My pulse thrums, and it sends a little bit of life through my veins.This is exciting.There’s something so enticing about doing something with a random guy without being pushed into doing it just to irritate my brother and Ford. There’s something more to this moment, because for once, it’s for me.

“Then I’d say okay, but–”

“No buts.” I quickly stand up on two feet and make my way over to him.

Cruz’s eyes burn with rebellion, and I’m more alive than I’ve ever felt. He raises an eyebrow, as if he’s asking me what I’m waiting for, so I move in between his legs and straddle him on the leather couch.

The room spins when he grabs my waist, and then everything goes dark the second our mouths touch.

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