Page 25 of The First Play

“Thank you.” I can’t help a nervous titter as I follow Zander out the door. He rests his hand on my lower back as we walk to the car, and I know my mom’s going to be watching and leaning against Dad with a watery smile, patting her chest and swooning about young love.

Zander opens the door for me, and I slip into the passenger seat, waving to my parents, who are still standing in the doorway, jumping and waving like tweens at a BTS concert.

Honestly.

I clear my throat, hoping Zander won’t look past my shoulder and see them. Thankfully, he’s checking the road before pulling away from my house.

Letting out a soft breath, I relax back into my seat, although I still feel like a ball of nerves.

I’m going on a date with Zander Donohue! Eeeepppp!

Nibbling my lip, I watch him as he flips the blinker and then turns the wheel, heading for I don’t even know where. I don’t actually care. I just want to be with him. We could spend the night just driving around town and I’d be happy.

“So, are you okay?” I check on him when he hasn’t said anything after a whole minute.

“Your parents are like…”

“From another planet?” I snicker, feeling my cheeks heat. “Yeah, I know. They can be a little extra. But I swear, they’re really nice and?—”

“I love them.” He starts to beam. “They’re so awesome. I don’t know any parent on this planet who would shout ‘YOLO’ to their daughter as she left on a date with a guy they don’t even know.” He laughs, shaking his head like he can’t believe it.

I grin. “They do know you. I mean, kind of. They know my version of you… and it’s a pretty awesome version, so…” A sudden shyness steals the rest of my voice, so I look out the window, feeling the heat flush through my cheeks again.

“My version of you is pretty damn awesome as well, so at least we’re even on that score.”

I turn back to face him, and he winks at me, making my heart go all soft and squishy.

With a quiet giggle, I lean toward him. “So, Mr. Quarterback, where are you taking me?”

“Well…” He wiggles his eyebrows. “That all depends on which envelope you choose.”

“What?”

Pulling to the side of the road, he gives me an excited little grin, reaching over my knees to open the glove box. His hand brushes my thigh, and I feel the current work all the way through me. My breath turns light and raspy when I get a whiff of his cologne, and it’s impossible not to close my eyes and inhale that luscious scent.

“Okay, here you go.”

My eyes snap open, and I gaze down at the envelopes in his hand. He’s fanned them out like playing cards.

“Which one’s it going to be first?”

“Oh my gosh, how do I choose?”

“No stress. We’re doing all of them, so the only thing this determines is the order.”

I grin and murmur, “How cute is this?” before pulling an envelope from the middle. I flip it over and announce, “Number three.”

“Excellent choice, milady.” His posh accent makes me laugh. With trembling fingers, I wrestle the envelope open and pull out the card inside.

To win you want to score the least

The fewer hits the better

This game can make you laugh or cry

But there’ll always be a winner

“Sorry about the lame poetry.” He winces. “It’s not really my strong suit.”

---