Page 78 of Fair Catch

But hey, at least it gets him out of bed.

An hour later, we pull up outside the old movie theater on the outskirts of the city, the marquee sign glowing over the entry doors and box office.

“‘Continuous horror marathon. All seats $5,’” Kason reads the text on the sign out the window, then turns to look at me. “This is your first date idea?”

“If you want to get technical, we’ve been on multiple dates already when I’ve taken you to the arcade or out to dinner,” I remind him while shoving open my car door. He does the same, and I meet him on the sidewalk with an outstretched hand. “But yes, this is my perfect idea of a first date.”

“You’re absolutely ridiculous.”

“And you love every minute of it,” I rebut before I can stop myself from letting that pesky little L-word fall off my tongue.

To his credit, Kason either doesn’t notice, or doesn’t think anything of it. Instead, he stays in step beside me, his thumb rubbing against the back of mine as we enter the theater.

The line is short before we make it to the front of the concession line, where I order a couple of drinks, a bucket of popcorn, and two packs of Reese’s Pieces for us before requesting our tickets for the Horror Marathon.

“Can we get extra butter, please?” Kason adds while the worker rings us up. The cashier nods and gives us the total, and I quickly hand over my card once I see Kason reaching for his wallet.

Frowning when he realizes I’ve beat him to the punch, he grabs the popcorn and his drink. “You can let me pay, you know.”

The cashier’s eyes quickly dart back and forth between us before she hands me back my card. “You’re in theater three, which is about to startEvil Dead.Enjoy your movies.”

“Thanks,” I murmur, tucking my card away and grabbing my snacks. Turning my attention back to Kason as we head toward the theater, I circle back to his previous comment. “Who pays is of little to no consequence to me. You should know that by now. And two, I’m the one who asked you to go out, so why the hell would I let you pay in that case?”

Clearly ignoring my second point, he mumbles, “Says the one with money.”

If there’s one thing that has been made abundantly clear since Kason found out about the wealth I come from, it’s that he doesn’t give two shits about it. In fact, since finding out, he fights tooth and nail to pay for things as often as I do.

It’s odd to have someone fighting for a bill when the people I used to spend time with—back when I was still sociable—always seem to expect me to be the one footing it. The only exception has always been Q.

And now, apparently Kason.

“I’ll let you get the next round at the arcade. Deal?” I ask, doing my best to compromise.

He seems somewhat appeased by that plan, though I’m hopeful he’ll forget by the next time we go and it won’t matter. After all, I’m not really losing any money by being the one to pay there; it’s just semantics so we can actually use the machines.

Besides, I have more money than I know what to do with between the trusts my family set up for me, and that’s not including the still-overflowing college fund. Thanks to the academic scholarships I was awarded for attending Leighton, I’ve barely touched it.

Paying for dates is nothing. Honestly, it’s the least I can do.

After finding theater three, Kason holds the door open, allowing me to enter first. It’s already dark, and like the worker said, the opening credits ofEvil Deadare playing on the screen. But more importantly, the place is relatively empty. There are maybe half a dozen people besides us scattered throughout the seats, and I’m pleased to find this is still another one of Chicago’s best kept secrets.

Guiding Kason down the aisle, I turn into the last row of seats and settle us in two right below the projector window. It’s the best spot in the theater, in my opinion, because most people go straight for the middle area, leaving the last few rows completely empty.

“There’s no one here,” Kason says as he immediately sets to dumping the Reese’s Pieces in the tub of popcorn.

“There usually isn’t,” I tell him before grabbing a handful of heaven and popping it in my mouth. “I’ve never seen it full. Most people don’t know about the annual horror-thon this place puts on, and if they do, they only come later in the day because of whatever other bullshit they deem as more important.”

“You mean like work? School? Family?”

“Exactly. Bullshit,” I say with a smirk.

He laughs softly and shakes his head. “You’re not being a very good nerd if you’re willing to skip school to spend the day at the movies.”

“Sorry to disappoint you, but I’m only human. Even the nerdiest of us need a day off every once in a while.”

That earns me a snort and another shake of the head before leaning in to speak in my ear. “Day off or not, you realize we could’ve done this exact thing at home, right?”

The heat from his breath coasts over my skin and sends shivers running down my spine, going straight to my balls, and part of me wonders how the hell I didn’t notice the way my body reacts to him sooner.

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