Page 18 of Pretend to be Mine
Savannah
Once I step inside, I close the door and lock it behind me. I lean against it and think back on the night. I’m confused, but also happy and excited at the same time. We had a good night and got to know one another a little more, but that ending confused me. Was he going to kiss me? It seemed like he was. Did I want him to? For some reason, I kind of did. Why? How could I want that? I’m not ready to move on. I’m not in the place where I can trust and love again. But Ben has been working his way beneath every wall I’ve built inside myself. The lines may be starting to blur and that’s something I need to watch. This could be a very dangerous game we’re playing. We both know that neither of us are ready to move on. I don’t want to hurt him, and I don’t want to get hurt either. It’s taken so long to finally feel like a normal person again.
I head for the shower in hopes of cooling off. I’m a little angry at myself that I’ve allowed us to get this close already, but what did I really expect? I’m hanging out with the guy every day, I’m sharing intimate details about my life, and I’m learning a lot about him, too. That kind of stuff doesn’t exactly scream,Stay away from me!Maybe a little time and distance will do us some good.
The hot water helps me relax and clear my head. When I finish my shower, I crawl into bed. Sleep finds me easy, but the moment I close my eyes—I picture that almost-kiss. To make matters worse, I fantasize about taking it all the way. I imagine how it would’ve felt if his lips actually touched mine. I wonder how he tastes; how soft his lips are. I bet he’s a good kisser. Not too much tongue, just the right amount that leaves me begging for more.
* * *
Saturday approaches and I wake bright and early for the baseball game. I dress in a pair of jean shorts and pull on my Bulldogs tee. I tie my hair up into a messy ponytail, and add a hat and a pair of sunglasses. I walk over to Ben’s house just as he’s walking to mine. We meet in the middle. I’m instantly worried about our almost-kiss—we haven’t seen one another since then.
“Hey, you ready to go?” I ask, hoping to ignore the awkwardness.
“Yep, you look cute,” he says, knocking his finger against the brim of my hat.
“Gotta support the team,” I say, walking back to my car where we climb inside.
I hit the AC button the moment the car starts, and he rolls down his window. I roll my eyes and offer up a smirk. He just shrugs and we start on our way. By the time we reach the game, his window is up, and the car is cool. We both climb out and head for the gates.
I pull out some cash and he fans it away. “You bought dinner last, I’m paying for the game.”
“Fine, have it your way,” I say, taking a step back.
Ben pays for our tickets and we’re waved inside. The stadium is already full of people and the game hasn’t started yet. We hit up the concession stand and fill up on beer and hotdogs before finding our seats.
“This is great. I haven’t been to a game in forever.”
“I used to come every weekend,” I say, unwrapping my hotdog and biting into it.
“With who?”
I wrinkle my nose. “James.”
He laughs and nods, but lets the conversation drop.
The game starts up and I let Ben study the teams before leaning in and asking, “So, who you rooting for?” The Bulldogs are down a few points.
“I don’t know. I mean, I know who I’msupposedto root for, but the other team is really good!”
Yeah, the boys are having an off day, but that doesn’t mean I’ll jump ship. You win some, you lose some. “Wanna make a wager?” I ask, knowing my boys will kill it in the end.
“Sure, whatcha thinking?”
“If my team wins, you have to tend to my flower garden.”
Ben smiles and nods. “Okay, and if I win…” he says, thinking it over, “you have to wash my car. We got a deal?”
I slap my hand into his. “Deal.”
The rest of the game is spent yelling at the players and heckling each other when our team scores points. It’s a back-to-back game: one team scores and gets ahead, then the other catches up and surpasses them. It keeps us both on the edge of our seats. In the end, the Bulldogs lose, and Ben’s laughing and rubbing it in my face.
“Hope you like washing cars, ‘cuz I know whatyou’llbe doing tomorrow.”
I push Ben off to the side as I walk to my car, annoyed that my poor flowers won’t get the attention they need. I climb behind the wheel and he jumps into the passenger seat. “Let’s stop and have a drink, get some real food.”
“Okay, I know just the place.”
I take us to the Bar and Grill, which is already full with the Saturday crowd. It looks like most of the people who attended the game had the same idea we did. The two of us find a table and a waitress is over in a split second.
