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Kissing Lessons(2)
Author: Sophie Jordan

Because there was no use arguing with her. It never helped.

“Good.” Mom gave a happy gasp. “Oh! They’re here.” The phone went dead in her ear. She wasn’t even worth a goodbye. Her friends had arrived.

Hayden shoved the phone back in her pocket with a sigh that made her feel old. Her mom would probably get caught up in her friends and a bottle of Tito’s and forget she had even called Hayden in the first place. She didn’t need to bother with the pizzas. There was that at least.

She studied the closed door leading to the garage. She was close enough she could hear shouting and cheering coming from the other side. Any party was better than going home at this point.

With that happy thought, she stepped inside the garage.

 

 

Lesson #2


Leave room for the unexpected.


x Nolan x


Nolan was getting his ass kicked.

He bounced on the balls of his feet, swinging the paddle at the ball as though he was trying to launch it into outer space.

His opponent never missed, smacking the ball back at him again and again and again until, inevitably, Nolan was breathing raggedly and swinging and missing more than he liked.

Priscilla sidled close to him, as close as she dared while he was whacking the ball with his paddle like a madman. “You know Dorian is like a tennis god, right?”

He was well aware of the fact that the guy he was playing happened to be their school’s best tennis player and had a decided advantage over him. It didn’t matter. When Nolan played a game, he played to win.

He didn’t know how not to give his all to win. Although losing did feel inevitable in this situation. Dorian played with a cocky grin on his face, not even out of breath. Nolan swung his paddle like he was trying to murder the ball.

Then Dorian did the unexpected and quit.

He didn’t set his paddle down or anything, but his head definitely left the game. His gaze strayed away from the table somewhere beyond Nolan’s shoulder just as Nolan landed the ball in the corner of the table, sending it launching across the garage.

Dorian’s friends hissed and booed.

Dorian himself didn’t seem to care. He didn’t even look at the table or Nolan or his friends. No, he was looking toward the door.

Nolan swung around to see what had snared Dorian’s attention. The object of his friend’s sudden interest was—shocker!—a girl.

She strode through the garage by herself—but there wasn’t the slightest bit of insecurity in her. She wore skinny jeans and a crop top that showed off her flat gold-skinned belly. His gaze traveled up, skimming over perky breasts. Her dark hair fell in ribbons of rippling ink over her shoulders and down her back.

He’d seen her before. She was kind of hard to miss in the halls. Even in a school as big as Travis, she definitely stood out. She was the type of girl who got noticed. The type guys talked about. There were always stories. Rumors. He never paid too much attention to them, but he recalled snippets of gossip about her.

She reached Dorian and turned so that he had a view of her from behind. The things those jeans did to her body . . . He swallowed hard. He hated noticing. Hated to be that leering guy. He had a girlfriend. He shouldn’t stare at her. He knew that.

He looked away, uncomfortable.

Nolan’s girlfriend was smart and pretty and nice and happened to be an extremely popular cheerleader. He didn’t need to gaze at some other girl, no matter how much he liked the way she looked.

And it appeared that Nolan wasn’t the only one who liked the way she looked. Most of the guys in the garage were drooling after her. A quick glance around verified their glassy-eyed stares fixed on her. Though some of it was probably the beer.

Dorian said something to her and left her alone for a moment. He joined Nolan, slapping his paddle against his chest, forcing him to take the paddle or let it drop between them. “Sorry, Nol. You’re gonna have to find another partner to crush you. I’m out of here.”

“You leaving? I thought we were all going to head to Whataburger.”

“Nah, man. Hayden just showed up. She’s all the meal I need.” Dorian winked and nodded at the girl where she stood across the garage. Nolan rolled his eyes at the awfulness of that line. Fortunately for Dorian no one else overheard.

The girl nodded back at Dorian in acknowledgment, her lips curving in a slight smile. “I invited her tonight, but I didn’t think she would show.” Again, a wink. “Guess my charm and persistence finally paid off.”

“Lucky you,” Nolan murmured, trying not to stare at the girl. He didn’t know what it was about her that affected him, but she did. She was beautiful, but so were a lot of girls. His girlfriend included.

Dorian winked and brushed his knuckles against the front of his shirt in an overexaggerated gesture. “Guess she couldn’t resist this.”

Nolan couldn’t help but roll his eyes again.

Priscilla moved in and wrapped an arm around Nolan’s waist. “Hayden Vargas? Really, Dorian?” Her voice rang with disapproval. “Does your mother know?” Dorian’s mother was a teacher at the high school.

“I’m my own man,” Dorian replied, still grinning.

“Be careful,” Priscilla warned.

“He’s not going to war,” Nolan snapped. He couldn’t help it. This was a girl. Not the Terminator, and Priscilla didn’t need to warn Dorian away from her like she was something dangerous. Sometimes she could be so judgmental.

A flicker of hurt flashed across Priscilla’s eyes and Nolan felt bad then. To make up for it, he pulled her in closer to his side.

Dorian chuckled. “I don’t know about that. I hear she leave marks.”

That produced an image that Nolan promptly shoved from his mind.

“You laugh, but watch yourself,” Priscilla warned, and then glanced over at Hayden Vargas again, her gaze narrowing slightly in speculation. “I hear she’s a man eater.”

Hayden was no longer alone. Several guys surrounded her.

Dorian laughed harder. “That’s what I’m hoping for, Pris.”

Priscilla clucked in disapproval and swatted Dorian on the arm. “You’re so gross.” She looked at Nolan. “I’m going to get my coat.”

Priscilla walked away, her hips doing that natural roll of hers. Nolan turned back to look at Dorian . . . only to find him admiring her departure.

“Hey, man. Mind not checking out my girlfriend?”

Dorian glanced back at Nolan and shrugged without apology. “She’s nice to check out.”

“Well, have some respect. Besides. You’re here with someone else.”

“Yeah, but Pris has it all . . . she’s the kind of girl you can bring home to your mom.” Dorian glanced back over to Hayden Vargas. He wasn’t saying the words, but it was understood. Hayden was not the kind of girl you brought home to Mom. That’s what he meant.

Dorian lifted one shoulder in a shrug and added, “Hayden will do for now. She’ll do just fine.”

With a nod goodbye, Dorian wove his way toward Hayden, sliding up beside her and resting his hand on the small of her back. She smiled up at him and it didn’t take long for the other guys to scatter. Dorian was too much competition for the faint of heart. On and off the Ping-Pong table.

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