When the hell did Paige get so gorgeous?
The thought keeps intruding every time I sneak a glance at my best friend sitting in the seat next to me while our history teacher, Mr. Morris, rambles on about who knows what—well, I’d probably know if I could concentrate for longer than ten seconds.
I can’t stop replaying the moment when she opened the door this morning. For a second I was worried I might come in my pants because of how hot she got over the summer. Has she always been this beautiful? I mean, I knew that Paige was cute, but something definitely changed over the summer. Maybe it’s because I was away for a couple of months and now I’m seeing her with fresh eyes. Whatever it is, it’s got me all kinds of distracted and my body in a constant state of arousal that I’ve been fighting all day.
I sneak another glance. My gaze instantly lands on her plump pink lips that look shiny from her lip gloss, but it quickly drops to admire the way her dress hugs her in all the right places. I wiggle in my seat subtly, suddenly uncomfortable with the—once again—tightening of my pants. I’ve got to stop thinking about Paige this way, but damn, she looks so good.
Unlike me, she seems completely unaffected by my presence. She’s focused on our teacher and taking notes dutifully like the good student she is. At least one of us can concentrate. I wonder if she’ll let me copy her notes later. Maybe I can invite her over under the pretense of copying her notes but then make a move.
What the fuck am I thinking? This is Paige, for fuck’s sake. She’s my best friend. She’s the one person in my life who has never cared about my parents’ wealth or my popularity. Hell, she’s the one who’s always calling me out if I start to get too cocky. I can’t fuck things up with her.
But, goddamn, I can’t stop thinking about her either…and not in a purely friendly way. There is nothing wholesome about the thoughts swimming around nonstop in my head right now—even when she’s less than three feet away from me.
I glance over at her again and catch her looking at me—or my arms more specifically. She turns away quickly, a blush creeping across her cheeks that makes her look even hotter if that’s even possible at this point.
Did Paige just check me out? Is she feeling this too? Fuck, I hope so.
After what feels like forever, the class ends, and I walk out into the hall with Paige. She tucks a lock of hair behind her ear, suddenly shy with me. Paige hasn’t been shy with me since we were five and I taught her how to swing, but I kind of like that I seem to make her a little nervous now. It’s causing this adorable blush to stay on her cheeks, and I really like that. I put my hand on the small of her back and pull her into a secluded walkway. I quickly glance behind me to make sure no one is coming down this way before facing her.
“Jack? What’s up?” She’s looking at me like I’m being weird, which makes sense since I am acting weird, but I’m suddenly desperate to get her alone.
“I…I couldn’t focus in Morris’s class. Would you be down to come over to my house tonight so I can copy your notes?”
She quirks her brow, still confused, but also maybe amused. “Sure, or I could just give you my notebook now. You can give it back to me tomorrow.”
“No,” I say too quickly. If she gives it to me now, then I lose my excuse to hang out with her after practice. “It would be better if you just came over…you know, so I can…ask you to clarify your notes if I’ve got a question…or something.”
“Okaayyy, sure. Did that really require you pulling me into this hallway? You’re acting like you’re about to do something illegal.” She laughs at me nervously like she thinks I’m losing my mind.
To be fair, I might be. I’m trying to think of a valid excuse for my odd behavior, but she looks so beautiful looking at me with those big brown eyes that match her long, wavy hair, I can’t stop myself.
Before I lose my nerve, I whisper, “No, but this did.” Then, I lean down and kiss her.
Her lips are soft, just like I imagined they’d be. She makes a little moan and leans into me, kissing me back thoroughly and causing me to get hard again instantly—not like that’s been a big challenge today. Her moan is, hands down, the sexiest sound I’ve ever heard. I kiss her deeper, holding her close to me and feeling her soft curves against my hard body, which only makes me wish we were truly alone and not still at school where anyone could walk up to us. Regardless, I’m going to take full advantage of this moment. My tongue snakes out to slide along the seam of her lips, and they open for me on a gasp.
I groan a little, kissing her harder, our tongues dancing with each other as if they were always made to do this. I’ve never wanted anyone this badly before, and it should probably weird me out that it’s my best friend who’s making me feel this way. But it doesn’t. Everything about Paige pressed against me feels right.
The bell rings loudly, trilling along the hall and signaling that I’m likely going to be late for my next class. Paige pulls away, and I take great pleasure when I notice her eyes are dazed and slightly glassy and her perfect pink lips are plump and wet. She looks perfect. A smile breaks across her gorgeous face, and I can’t help matching it with a big smile of my own.
“Pick me up after you get out of football practice. See you tonight.” Paige gets on her tiptoes and kisses me briefly—too briefly—on the lips before she rushes to her next class.
I lean against the wall and take a deep breath, not caring in the slightest that I’m going to be late for class.
I just kissed Paige, and she kissed me back.
I’ve kissed a girl before—Jenny Blake at a football party my freshman year—but it was never like that. Even the brief kiss I gave Paige in seventh grade just to see what it was like doesn’t compare to what just happened.
The problem is now all I can think about is how badly I want to kiss her again, which is going to make the rest of the day away from her absolute torture. I turn and walk down the hall toward my next class, not even bothering to hide the smile glued to my face.