Well, if I got that reaction, Avery did right by me. And suddenly I wanted to show off.
“Nice try,” I said. “I spent my hard-earned money on this outfit, and you’re gonna take me somewhere in it!”
“Yes, ma’am,” Mark replied. He backed away and studied me. “Care to do a little turn for me?”
I remembered what Avery said earlier as she pulled down my tube top to reveal a bit of cleavage, how men are visual creatures. I spun around slowly, letting his gaze hit every inch of my body. When my back was to him, I felt a playful pop on my bottom.
“Mark!” I squealed.
“Yes?”
I didn’t know what to say. He came up behind me and cupped both cheeks.
“I’m in love with your ass, Cadence,” he said into my hair. “You don’t even know the things I wanna do to it.”
My mouth dropped open, but he couldn’t see. My face also went the color of a tomato. He couldn’t see that either.
“I hope you don’t mind my hands all over it tonight,” he said, and turned me to face him. “Why are you all red?” he teased, running his hands over my backside.
“I’m not!” I replied, but I couldn’t look at him. Avery was right about the jeans.
“Is it because I said I’m in love with your ass?”
I giggled.
“Because I am,” he went on. “But I’ll stop torturing you. I don’t want you dying of embarrassment before we even make it to the club.”
“Ha ha,” I replied drily. “One of these days I’ll become so desensitized that your comments won’t even faze me anymore.”
“Doubtful,” he said, and squeezed my rump one last time before walking to the kitchen.
“I’m a little nervous,” I confessed.
“About the club?”
I nodded.
“Nothing to be afraid of. It’s a hole-in-the-wall joint where people gather to listen to good music, not get rowdy.”
“Promise?”
“I promise,” Mark said. “Did you have dinner?”
“Sort of,” I lied. I’d been too nervous to eat anything.
Mark cocked his head. “Did you have dinner?”
“No.”
“Come. Sit.” He heated me leftovers. He placed a large plate of spaghetti in front of me and leaned over to whisper in my ear. “One of these days I’ll get to stop worrying about your diet, right?”
“Maybe,” I answered truthfully. “And I don’t mean to worry you.”
“Well, you have the worst eating habits of anyone I know, Cadence,” Mark said, sitting next to me.
“I don’t try to.”
“I know. But I’d like to keep you around for awhile, so I kind of need you to start eating and being healthy. Know what I mean?”
“I eat a lot more than I used to,” I said, twirling the spaghetti around my fork.
“I know.”
“It’s just hard when I’m nervous,” I admitted.
“Why are you nervous?” Mark asked, and then added, “You can’t still be nervous around me.”
“No, it’s not that,” I said. “I think it’s just my life in general. And maybe it also has a little to do with sneaking around with you.”
Mark was quiet for a moment.
“It’s an awesome rush that makes me giddy and excited and terrified,” I said. “I feel happy, like I’m not supposed to. Like I haven’t earned the right yet.”
“Why do you think you haven’t earned the right to be happy?” Mark asked, plucking the fork from my hand and taking a bite of pasta.
“I don’t know. I guess because Mom and Dad haven’t given me the green light.”
“You need your parents’ permission to be happy?”
“No. And yes. I don’t know. I just figured if they’re still punishing me, then I haven’t earned it yet.”
“Or maybe your parents are just assholes,” Mark said.
I was shocked. It didn’t sound like anything that would come out of his mouth.
“Sorry, that was rude,” he mumbled, giving me back the fork.
“Maybe. Or maybe you’re exactly right,” I said.
“No, I’m not. I’m not right at all. I don’t know anything about your parents. I shouldn’t have said that.”
I know he was afraid of coming across as a manipulative boyfriend. I had a moment of clarity, and I’m so glad it happened while I was around him. As much as I tried to ignore the age difference between us, it was hard, and I constantly felt I had to prove my intelligence.
“It’s your way of being protective of me,” I said. “I don’t believe it has anything to do with you trying to pit me against my parents. I think you want us to mend our relationship. Am I right?”
He looked at me, amusement playing in his gray eyes. I think he enjoyed my insight, especially since it was paired with a tube top.
“You’re exactly right,” he said.
“I’ll be honest with you, though. There is something sexy about the idea of you cutting me off from the few people I know. Isn’t that so wrong to feel that way? That I wouldn’t mind being your prisoner? There’s something wrong with me, right?”
“I think you just really like my food, Cadence,” Mark replied lightly.
I chuckled. “It’s more than food. It’s the way you make me feel. Sometimes I’m desperate for that feeling.”
Why was I saying these things? Girls aren’t supposed to be so transparent, right? I felt like I was laying all my cards on the table when I should have been holding on to my one ace. But I’d already broadcast it, and now I was vulnerable. My stomach ached from anxiety and pasta.
“I’m desperate for that feeling, too,” Mark said. “Do you know how hard it is not to touch you in class? I try to come up with reasons to touch you. Like accidents.”
“Accidents?”
“Mmhmm. Walking past you and brushing your arm.”
“Oh.”
“‘Accidentally’ knocking your notebook off your desk and bending down to pick it up.” There was a wolfish glint in his eyes. “Trying to get a peek up your skirt while I’m down there.”
My skin burned all over. Man, he liked to make me squirm! I thought he needed a dose of his own medicine, and I leaned over.
“They’re just words, Mark,” I said in my most sultry voice. “I’d respect you a whole lot more if you actually did it.”