Page 110 of All In Good Time

“You can tell Parr all about this, too, if you’d like.” And then his lips were on hers.

Two seconds, a quick peck—but long enough to steal the air from her entire body and leave her lungs gasping for more. She didn’t even have a chance to close her eyes from the surprise.

His lips still felt exactly how she remembered, soft but confident, until the moment they pulled away.

He smirked, enjoying whatever face she was making, because he chuckled, then turned away, returning to his house for real this time.

Before, watching him walk away in those jeans was anoption, but now it was a necessity. She couldn’t tear her eyes away, even after he was inside the house and the door was closed.

The dopey smile remained on her mouth the entire drive home.

* * *

Becca tried her best to be discreet. It was like last January, and she was worried all over again about the rumors that would rise when people spotted her by Derek’s car right after school.

She wasn’t worried so much about people associating her with Derek as she was about the rumors that would come from the sudden, drastic change in dynamics. One minute they were avoiding each other in the hallways, the next they couldn’t keep off each other.

Okay. So that was an exaggeration—an irrational fear that everyone could look at her and just tell how much she wanted him. How much she thought about his kisses, or how her eyes followed him.

So maybe it was pointless, but she was careful nonetheless—hiding near the outdoor cafeteria door after school and waiting for Derek to make his appearance.

“What are you doing here?”

Becca jumped in surprise and turned to see Nicole standing there with a pile of books in her arms.

“Aren’t you leaving?”

Becca had failed to mention to Nicole earlier that she was going on a date with Derek.

Actually, she’d failed to mentionanythingto Nicole. From the kiss to the fact that they’d kind of made up. She hadn’t told her a single thing—nor Marty.

Even though Derek had jokingly told her she could tell Marty about him kissing her again, she hadn’t even known what to tell either of them. They would be supportive—that wasn’t the worry. The worry was that it all felt far too good to be true. She was scared that, if she said it aloud, it would slip through her fingers again and that really would be it.

She blinked. Nicole blinked and then raised a brow. Becca’s mouth opened, but nothing came out. Nicole’s other brow lifted.

It was both a blessing and curse to have an observant friend.

“What is it?” She stepped closer. “You’re not telling me something.”

Becca was a deer in the headlights, completely giving herself away. “I—”

Right then her eyes were drawn to the curly haired boy who walked out of the school doors, putting a cigarette to his lips. He was like a magnet, and even when she tried to look away, his mere presence drew her attention to him and only him.

Like a magnet, both sides drew together equally, and his eyes snapped to hers immediately. Her eyes widened, and he grinned.

In her own little world, she forgot about the single audience member watching her face carefully. Nicole turned and followed the invisible line Becca had painted between herself and Derek.

“Holy fuck. You’re waiting for Stokes.”

Over Nicole’s shoulder, Derek motioned his head toward his car, and Becca nodded in understanding, before sheepishly looking back to Nicole, who’d watched the entire interaction with an open mouth.

“What happened last week?”

God. Nicole was asking for a quick sentence-long explanation, but that wasn’t possible. It would take hours to tell her the full story.

A familiar BMW entered from stage left, and Becca used it as a distraction.

“Oh, look, your ride is here.”

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