Page 92 of Choosing Forever
The guy sends me a confused look while stepping away and taking the ticket. He darts his eyes to Delaney before saying, “Thanks, I guess.”
“You’re welcome. And thank you! The drive-in appreciates you lending me your cheek,” she calls as he’s leaving.
I watch him until he’s far enough away that I know he won’t come rushing back. The lack of a line after him is relieving, but it also means that there’s nobody here to witness her scolding my ass any moment now.
“Are you being serious right now, Darren? This kissing booth was your idea. You don’t get to be an asshole to the people who actually come and take part in it.”
Cocking my head, I reply, “And I suppose you were being a darling with dear Sarah?”
“I was being helpful. You can have her number if you want it that badly.”
“Helpful? If that was you being helpful, then I may as well have offered to be giving that guy a step by step on how to receive a kiss on the cheek.”
She palms her hips, her eyebrows nearly fastening together. “You don’t get to flirt with a line full of single women but be like this when it’s my turn.”
“Oh, you’re planning on flirting with a line of single women?”
There may as well be steam flowing out of her ears by now, while I’m enjoying this all a bit too much.
“Oh, hey, guys! Darren, it’s funny seeing you here. I thought this was Delaney’s shift.”
My sister pops up in front of the booth, all grins and excited eyes. Bryce follows her, an arm slung over Daisy’s shoulders and fingers playing loop-de-loop in her hair.
“There aren’t shifts,” I grunt.
“Oh . . . oops. I thought it was Delaney’s turn, and, well,we’ve wrangled quite a line for her to get through,” Poppy explains pointedly.
I tense up and follow her line of sight to the men slowly moving into a single file line leading right to where Delaney’s standing.
“Poppy, you didn’t have to do this,” Delaney starts.
My sister places a hand to her heart. “Don’t worry about a thing. I’ve vetted them all myself and have already turned away the real weird ones.”
“Well, you haven’t done a great job of that,” I mutter, flicking a look at the guy walking away.
“Good luck, Della. You’ll need it,” Daisy says.
I clear my throat, drawing my sister’s attention. “Is there no limit?”
“A limit on what? Money you should be raising? Come on, Darren. Don’t be a buzzkill.”
The noise around us grows in a few short seconds. It’s the swarm of men surrounding the booth. I scour the line, memorizing the names and faces that I recognize, storing the information for later.
“Come on, D. It’s only fair to share the responsibility,” Bryce placates me.
I ignore her and reluctantly remove myself from behind the booth. The tether between us pulls in rejection of this idea, but I let it go. I knew what I was doing when I made her jealous earlier, and if she wants to get even, I won’t stand in her way.
My chance will come again sooner than she’d like, and this time, I won’t give up so easily.
30
DELANEY
I pursemy lips for what feels like the ten millionth time today and press them to another scratchy cheek. The musky, wood-scented cologne belonging to the owner of said cheek sneaks a feel of my bicep and up to my shoulder before Darren clears his throat. The hand drops immediately.
“Groping isn’t included in your fee,” Darren barks, clapping his hands loudly. “Fuck, my sister vetted you?”
I hide how much I like him stepping in behind a roll of my eyes. Backing away from the man in front of me, I quickly reach beneath the booth for his movie ticket and hand it over. The stack is down by at least half now, meaning there should be way more money in the tip jar than I expected there to be at all, let alone in only half a day.
