Love Me(The Keatyn Chronicles #4)

Logan slumps down next to me before rehearsal starts.

“Lunch used to be my favorite time of the day. Now I hate it. Jake’s been sitting with us and he flirts with Maggie. Why can’t he just take her to his own table?”

“Because he got mad at Whitney. I don’t think he’ll go back there. And that’s saying a lot because Dawson is his best friend and he and Bryce still sit there. But that’s not really what matters. What matters is what you’re going to do about it.”

“There’s a romance movie that she loves. Where they talk about the big gesture.”

“Oh, I’ve seen that. Isn’t she the President’s daughter? And she goes off on what she thinks is an adventure through Europe with a dreamy guy but it turns out he’s really an agent protecting her?”

“Yeah, that’s the one.”

“That guy was hot.”

“That’s besides the point.”

“What is the point?”

“I want to make the big gesture. Win her back.”

“Logan, what really happened that night? I know she got drunk and slept with Parker, but why?”

“Why? Because she was drunk.”

“I know I didn’t know her then, but Maggie is a lot like me. She likes to party. She drinks. Gets tipsy. A little drunk. But never that out-of-control drunk where you don’t know what you’re doing. Something had to trigger it.”

Logan looks at the ground and sighs. Then he puts his face in his hands and shakes his head. “I was the trigger. We got in a fight that night.”

“What was the fight about?”

“A girl.”

“What girl?”

“Doesn’t matter. There was this girl that I was texting. Maggie saw the texts. It looked bad.”

“So you were cheating on her?”

“We never hung out. Only texted. But the texts were sexual. She went out that night, got drunk, and slept with Parker.”

“She rebounded.”

He nods sadly.

“You have to forgive her, Logan. Let it go.”

“I know. I want to. I’m just not sure what to say.”

“Then let’s script you a new ending. No. It will be a new beginning. What is your big gesture idea?”

“I was thinking of bringing her here. On stage. In front of the moon backdrop and telling her how I feel.”

Logan and I work together on the script. Figuring out what he should say.

“What do you think I should wear? Should I still be in my prince costume? Or would that be cheesy?”

“Sometimes cheesy is good.”

We continue our collaboration. Each of us writing down lines, crossing them out, and then rewriting.

“Logan, you can’t say death by paper cuts. That’s not romantic.”

“Okay, well scratch that. What do you think I should say?”

I think for a second. “Oh! I know the perfect line,” I say, quickly writing it down.

“That’s really deep, if you think about it. How did you come up with that?”

I smile. “Someone said it to me once.”

“They were right. It’s almost like coming full-circle. Maggie and I started out together and hopefully we’ll end up together.”

“Full-circle. I never thought of it that way before. So are you going to do anything else? Flowers, maybe?”

“What kind?”

“You know, lots of flowers have specific meanings attached to them. Let me look it up on my phone. Well, let’s see. Daffodils represent new beginnings and unrequited love. That might be a good one. Oh, wow, I didn’t know this. Lavender roses represent love at first sight. Did you and Maggie have that?”

“Love at first sight? No, not really. It was maybe more love at first kiss. Our first kiss was memorable.”

“Tell me about it.”

“She came to my lacrosse game. I scored the winning goal, and she came down to congratulate me. I grabbed her and kissed her. Very spur-of-the-moment. She was surprised by it. Hell, I was surprised by it. Up until then, we’d just been friends. And it isn’t the kiss that I really remember; it’s after. The way she looked into my eyes. I fell in love with her then and there.”

I do a little happy clap. “That’s so adorable.”

Logan rolls his eyes at me. “Do you really think this script will work? What if Maggie doesn’t say what she’s supposed to?”

“I think she will say most of it. Or something close. And if not, ad-lib. Just remember the order. Apology. Confess your love. Full-circle line. True love’s kiss. Flowers.”

“I better get up there. Thanks, Keatyn.”

Aiden’s backpack hits the floor, startling me. “What’d you do?” he asks.

“Oh, uh, helped him with a script. He’s hoping to win back Maggie.”

“He’s been miserable.”

“I know.”

Dawson plops down on the other side of me. “Hey, Keatie, can’t wait to see you in that sexy little costume. Giddy up.” Then he goes, “Oh, hey, Aiden. Didn’t see you sitting there. You here to watch dress rehearsal too?”

Aiden curls his hands into a ball. “Yeah.”

I smile at Aiden and run my finger across his fist, hoping it will calm him down.

“I have to go get ready. Enjoy the play, boys!”



Dawson is waiting for me by the stage door. He’s clearly trying to mark his territory. I need to talk to him. I haven’t kissed him since Aiden kissed me with his tongue. And I don’t want to.

“So, what did you think of the play?”

“I thought you looked sexy.”

“What did you think of the rest of the play?”

“It was good. Kinda funny. Some people messed up.”

“That’s why you have a dress rehearsal. The show will be much better.”

“Are you coming back to my room?”

“Actually, yeah.”

Aiden walks up to me with a big grin on his face. I can tell he wants to talk to me.

“Aiden, I’m going to walk back to the dorms with Dawson. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”

Aiden looks pissed, but then his face softens and he says, “Vous avez volé le spectacle.”

His comment makes me beam, and blush. “Thank you.”

Dawson grabs my hand and pulls me outside. “What did he just say to you?”

“He said I stole the show.” I seriously can’t stop smiling.

When we get in his room, Dawson immediately tries to kiss me. “I really was waiting for you naked the other night.”

“Um, Dawson?”

He looks at me sexily, expectantly. “What, Keatie?”

“Remember how you said when I felt like stopping that’s how I’d know.”

“Yeah.”

“I feel like stopping.”

He backs away from me. “Really?”

I nod.

“Is it because I’m going to Columbia?”

“It’s sort of because of everything.”

“After last weekend? All the fun we had? All the fun you had?”

“Yeah.”

“You did it with him, didn’t you?”

“No. We’ve only kissed.”

“So the wooing won out over the sex?”

“I guess. I’m sorry, Dawson. It’s late. I’ve gotta go.”



I get back to my room and call Aiden.

“Hey, sorry about that. I needed to talk to Dawson.”

“Is that what you’re calling it?”

“When that’s what I was doing, yes.”

“You were in his room.”

“I’m not going to stop hanging out with him. He’s my friend.”

He doesn’t respond. I can hear him take a deep breath.

“He wanted to have sex tonight.”

“I’m sure he did. That’s all he wants.”

“It’s not all he wants. I was going to tell you something, but never mind. Thanks for watching the play, Aiden. And for what you said. I really appreciate it. I’ll talk to you later. Night.”

“No.”

“No, what?”

“Don’t go. Tell me.”

“I told him no.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really.”

I feel something. An overwhelming warmth wraps around my body. I close my eyes and know immediately what it is. It’s the power of Aiden’s smile coming through the phone.

“Are you smiling right now?” I ask him.

“I have a very big smile right now, “ he replies.

“I’m wearing your jersey tomorrow.”

“I need to give it to you.”

His comment makes me whimper. Because I so want Aiden to give it to me.

“Give me your shirt?” I manage to say.

“Meet me in the morning for breakfast?”

“Sure.”

“You really did steal the show.”

“I love that you said it in French.”

“Well, French is a sexy language. Bonne nuit, Boots.”

I get up off my bed. Katie is in the bathroom putting her hair in a ponytail. “Are you ready to go?”

“Yeah. And I’m so excited. Did you see what I made for Bryce? It’s on my desk.”

I look at the heart on her desk. It’s got hot pink glitter around the edges of it, a football drawn in the middle of it, his number 44, and her name at the bottom covered in more glitter.

“It’s really pretty! This is a cool tradition, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, we didn’t do anything like this at my old school. Annie’s coming over. You should see what she made for Ace. She’s so excited because, you know, it’s usually the dancers and the cheerleaders that decorate the boys’ locker room. It’s cool that for this game the escorts get to do it. And sneaking out after curfew to decorate makes it feel that much more exciting.”

“You know we aren’t really sneaking out. We’re supposed to.”

“I know. It just makes it seem funner. What did you make for Aiden?”

I grab the paper football off my desk and show it to her. It’s got a big green four-leaf clover on it, just like the one he drew on the footballs, his number 1, a cowboy boot, and the word sort.

“Why didn’t you put your name on it?”

“I did. The cowboy boot. He calls me Boots.”

“Really? Why?”

“Because he didn’t know my name when I first met him and I was wearing cowboy boots.”

“Boots is the name of the monkey on Dora the Explorer. Do you want to have a monkey name?”

“I didn’t at first. Now, I kinda like it.”

“I like when a boy gives you a nickname that’s original. So why the word sort?”

“Sort means fate in French. He once told me that we’re sorta like fate.”

“Oh, that’s dreamy. I’m so excited for neon day and the black light pep rally tomorrow afternoon. Do you have an outfit planned?” She looks at me and shakes her head. “Of course, you have an outfit planned.”

Maggie, Annie, and Peyton burst through our door, waving construction paper and streamers. I know that Maggie is wearing Jake’s jersey and Annie is wearing Ace’s. “Peyton, whose jersey are you wearing?”

“Dawson’s.”

“Dawson’s? I thought Brooke was wearing his?”

“No, she’s wearing Brad’s.”

“Oh,” I say.

Peyton wraps an arm around me. “It will piss Whitney off. But wait until I get Super Cooper. That will really piss her off.”

“Super Cooper?”

“Yeah, a body like that and he’s got to be like Superman between the sheets.”

“Peyton!” Annie exclaims. “He’s a teacher.”

“And I seriously need to be taught,” Peyton says, while Maggie and I snicker.

“Let’s go decorate!” Katie yells.
    

Friday, November 4th

The happy trail.

Breakfast



I wake up early, dress myself in neon, put my hair back into a ponytail, and then rush to meet Aiden in the café.

He’s already here.

And he looks so adorable. He’s got on a bright orange sweatshirt, white athletic shorts, and gold aviators. He hands me a folded up jersey to wear tonight. I open it up and look at the number one. The name Arrington across the back.

And, yes, I go there. Keatyn Arrington.

Doesn’t that sound pretty?

“So I heard Dawson isn’t going to be here this weekend.”

“Where did you hear that?”

“Peyton. She’s his escort but he’s not going to the banquet.”

“Yeah, he’s going home with his parents.”

“I heard he’s going to party with his brother.”

“Yes, that too. I don’t want to talk about Dawson. Have you seen your locker?”

“Not yet. Did you decorate it for me?”

“I don’t know.” I smile. “All these traditions are new to me.”

He leans closer to me and says sexily, “I have an important tradition that I need your help with.”

“Oh, really? What kind of tradition?”

He responds by taking off his orange sweatshirt.

I swear to all the gods on Mount Olympus that someday I am going to run my tongue down those abs. Follow the happy trail all the way down . . .

“Uh, what? Did you say something?”

He flashes me a knowing grin. “Yes. I said that it’s your job to paint this neon stuff on me for the pep rally.”

“Are you going to be shirtless for the pep rally?”

“Yeah, the cheerleaders asked me to be in their skit.” He tosses the orange sweatshirt over his shoulders like a cape. “I’m Super Cougar.”

“I hate cheerleaders,” I mutter under my breath.

“I heard that.” He bats his brown eyelashes at me and says, “Would you prefer one of them paint me?”

“No!” I say, grabbing a paintbrush out of his hand. “I’ll do it. I’m really good at art.”

Like, sorta.

I mean, I have painted my own toenails in a crisis situation.

He holds up small tubes of yellow, orange, and green neon paint.

I run up to the food line, grab a paper plate, and then squeeze the paint onto it.

“Did they tell you what they wanted?”

“I think just stripes here and there.”

“Okay.” I dip the brush in his water bottle then into the paint. I carefully place the brush on the end of his collarbone, trace it over his shoulder, then slowly down his arm to his hand. Going over each and every muscle. I repeat the procedure on his other side, using the orange instead of the neon yellow.

Then I run stripes of color straight across his stomach, the brush slowly gliding across all the places my mouth longs to be.

Aiden shifts uncomfortably.

“Did I do something wrong?” I ask, standing back up from where I was kneeling in front of him.

“Uh, no,” he says, clearing his voice.

I brush more paint onto his skin directly above his waistband where his shorts are riding low on his hips.

He groans a little and then steals the paintbrush out of my hand. “Your turn.”

“My turn . . .” I start to say as he quickly paints stripes across my cheeks.

I stick my finger in the paint and run it down the sides of his cheeks. Making him look like a warrior god getting ready for battle.

He adds more paint down the sides of my arms.

I move my neon sunglasses from the top of my head down to cover my eyes. “I can’t be seen with all this paint on my face,” I tease.

Then he sets the paintbrush down, curls up his fist, places it gently under my chin, and kisses me.



The sexual one.

Lunch



I'm walking toward the café when Dawson grabs me. “We need to talk,” he says.

He has my hand and is dragging me toward our bench.

“Do you know what today is?”

“Friday. The big Compass Cup game day. Are you nervous?”

“It’s our two month anniversary. The sexual one.”

“Oh.”

“Are you in love with him?”

I rub my hand across my eyebrow and slump my shoulder. “I don’t know.”

“I don’t know what I’m gonna do this weekend.”

“If you’re asking me if it’s okay to hook up with some girl, I’m going to give you the same advice you gave me. When you feel like you want to, you will.”

“I don’t feel like I want to. But then, I do.”

“Dawson, just the fact that we can sit calmly and talk about this should probably tell us both something.”

“That we’re better off as friends?”

“Probably.”

“You made me believe in love again.”

“I was broken too. Still am. Love sucks. Or maybe I just suck.”

Dawson grins at me and jabs his elbow teasingly into my side. “I always liked that about you.”

“Happy Anniversary, Dawson,” I say, kissing his cheek and laughing.

“Sit with me at lunch, today?”

“Okay.”

“Whoever you date better be good with us being friends.”

“I won’t date them if they’re not.”

As we walk back to the café, I say, “I heard Peyton is your escort.”

“She wants to piss off Whitney.”

“I think pissing Whitney off is a bad idea. Why do you keep sitting at her table, Dawson? Jake’s left. Really, everyone’s left.”

“They’ll be back. It’s always been our table.”



I wanna get lucky.

Pep rally



The football guys are getting set up for their speeches.

As I walk by Ace, Dawson, and Logan with my pompoms, Logan calls out, “Keatyn, wait! I want you to have one of these.” He flashes a clover tattoo at me from the stack in his hand.

“What’s with all the f*cking clovers?” Dawson asks.

“Shouldn’t they be cougar paws?” Ace adds.

“They’re for luck,” Logan tells them both. “Don’t you wanna be lucky?”

“I wanna get lucky,” Ace says, fist-bumping Dawson.

I raise an eyebrow at them.

“Oh,” Ace says. “I mean, uh, you know. With the big victory.”

I roll my eyes and walk away.

Logan follows me. “These are for the team, but I saved you one.”

He pours some water on a paper towel then looks me over.

“Right there,” he says, pointing to my hip, right above where my other tattoo is.

As he’s putting the tattoo on me, I say, “That’s right above my other tattoo.”

“You have a tattoo?”

“Yeah.” I pull down the waistband of my neon green dance skirt and show him.

“What’s that mean?”

“It stands for chaos.”

“Luck and chaos. Perfect.”

“Why is it perfect?”

“Because we’ve lost the last three years running. And tonight,” he yells out loud, “there’s going to be chaos in Connecticut!”

“Chaos in Connecticut!” everyone cheers.

Maggie walks by without saying anything, so I grab her.

“Can Maggie have one?”

Logan looks her up and down and smirks. “I don’t know. What do you think?”

“I think she needs one more than you do.”

He nods. “You can have mine, Maggie.”

“Hold still, Maggie,” I boss. “He’ll put it in the same spot as mine.”

“Naw, different spot,” he says, holding her gaze.

Then he shocks us both when he places it right above her heart.

“Now you’ll be lucky in love,” he says and walks away.

Maggie puts her hand over the tattoo and visibly melts.

But then she squints her eyes at me. “Why does he want me to be lucky in love? Does he want me with Jake?”

“Maybe he wants to be lucky in love with you.”

“That would take more than luck,” she says. “That would take a miracle.”



The big game.

7pm



There's excitement everywhere. Pompoms wave. People cheer as the team runs out of the locker room through a blowup cougar head.

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice Riley grab Ariela's hand and pull her out of line, but then more guys run by and I don’t see where they go.

The big game is held at a nearby college stadium and the place is packed.

All the escorts are waiting for the football players to come off the field from warm-ups.

I notice Ariela has a clover tattoo on her cheek.

“Did Riley give you that?”

She puts her hand up to her cheek and smiles. When she does, I see a flash of pink on her left hand.

“Ohmigawd, did he finally ask?” I jump up and down.

She beams but then grabs my hands and whispers, “Shhhh. I haven't told anyone yet.”

“What'd he say? When did he ask?” I whisper back, still sort of jumping in place because I'm so excited.

“Just before the game. He gave me the tattoo, asked me to be his lucky charm, and then asked me to be his girlfriend.”

I give her a big hug. I'm so excited.

Then she looks at me and says, “Wait. What do you mean, finally asked?”

“He showed me and Dallas the ring weeks ago. Was all shy and said you had a thing for Hello Kitty. Isn't it adorable?”

“You didn't help him pick it out?”

“Nope. He did it all by himself. And I'm pretty sure he had it for a while before he even showed us.”

“He told me he loves me,” she whispers breathlessly.

“Back off, Kiki, she's mine,” Riley says loudly, wrapping an arm around Ariela and planting a big kiss on her lips. “Officially.”

“It's about time,” I say to him

Big hands curl around the bare skin at my waist sending waves of electricity down my sides. I turn around and immediately get a spine-tingling kiss of my own.

“You look good as my number one,” Aiden says.

“I saw you warming up. The balls all have four-leaf clovers on them.”

“Yeah, Coach saw all of Logan's tattoos and asked us to put them on—since it worked before. Although it seemed to piss Dawson off.”

“Why?”

“Maybe because you have a clover on your hip?”



The game is exciting.

A back and forth battle.

Dawson still seems to be pissed at Aiden because he's only thrown one pass to him.

Although it might be the fact that Dawson’s been on the run most of the night. Our offensive line is having a hard time holding back their defense.

Right before the half, Dawson gets tackled and is slow to get up. Tyrese helps him limp off to the side.

The coach sends Riley in to replace him.

He lines up in the shotgun position and is still calling the play when one of the defensive players rushes across the line of scrimmage and tackles him flat on his back.

The crowd boos as the official throws a flag. Riley stands up quickly, wraps his hand into the guy’s jersey, and gets in his face. I'm not sure what he tells him but the guy quickly moves back to his side of the field.

Riley calls a timeout, runs over to the bench, and has an animated discussion with the coach. Riley takes the field with Logan and Aiden following him.

They all line up, the ball is snapped, and Aiden and Logan both sprint down the field in a crossing pattern. Logan's defender misses the read, so Aiden ends up double-teamed and Logan is wide open. Riley launches the ball to him for the score.

Maggie is standing next to me in the dance line.

Logan runs past us, looks at Maggie, and pats the spot above his heart.

She touches the clover tattoo and smiles at him. But her smile is tinged with sadness and regret.

I hope after the play tomorrow night that regret is turned to hope.



After winning the game, we're wandering around on the field congratulating all the players. I look for Dawson to see if he’s okay. Cam is standing next to him, as are Peyton and Whitney. Peyton is flirting with Cam. He's got a big grin on his face, clearly loving the attention. Whitney is wearing her bored look.

“How are you?” I ask Dawson.

“I’m fine, just took a shot to the ribs. Knocked the wind out of me.”

“He'll be fine. The girls we’re hanging out with tonight are pre-med.”

Dawson tries to pull me toward him but winces and stops.

“You're really hurt.”

“I’ll be okay,” he says, stepping away from everyone else.

“I saw your face when Cam said that about the girls. You looked sad.”

“This is hard, Dawson.”

“I think the transition back to friends might be a little rough.”

I nod.

“You looked really happy when you went out on the field with Aiden. You don’t look like that with me. Even Cam said so.”

“You deserve a girl that looks like that when she's with you.”

He gives me a sad smile. “I felt really jealous, but not in the way I expected. More like I want that someday.”



Real electricity.

1:20am



I go to Aiden’s room to party and find him waiting for me outside his door.

He looks at me with such dreamy eyes that I feel a bit tipsy even though I haven’t had a drop to drink. “Come in.”

I walk in his room and am confused. “Where is everyone?”

He grins big at me. “I cancelled the party.”

“But Katie went to a party.”

“They moved it to the Cave. I told them they couldn’t party in my room anymore.” He points toward the back of his room. “The keg is gone for good.”

“Was everyone pissed?”

“Very. But I don’t care. I think it was you who told me I should only worry about what the people I love think. What my real friends think.”

“What does Logan think?”

“He and Riley helped me get the keg down to the Cave.”

“I’m proud of you, Aiden. It’s hard to stand up to your friends. Do what’s right for you.”

“What can I say? You inspire me.”

“Me? I’m a mess.”

“You’re not as much of a mess as you think you are. Do you wanna dance?”

“No.”

“Oh?” He looks perplexed. I think gods are not used to being told no. It’s like the word bewilders him.

“I’d rather kiss you.”

He smiles, flashing all that blinding, brilliant power at me. I touch his hand and lead him to his bed.

We sit on the edge of his bed, both of us staring at each other. I remember thinking it was just a line when he told me he could stare into my eyes all day, but now I think he really meant it.

When his lips touch mine, they shock me.

And not his normal electrical feel. I’m talking, he actually shocks me.

“Damn, I knew your kisses were powerful, but I didn’t realize they could produce real electricity.”

He laughs, then looks at me seriously. “My kisses are powerful?”

I swallow, breathe, and nod. I’m afraid to say anything else. He taps my lip with his finger to see if he’ll get shocked again. When there is no shock, he traces my bottom lip with his finger.

I kiss his finger. Then I close my eyes and slowly suck on it. I run my tongue up the side of it, across the tip, and then slide my mouth down most of his long finger.

He seems to like it because he’s rubbing his hands hard up and down my back and leaning toward me. He rubs my lower lip with his finger when I let it slide out of my mouth and hang there before taking it deep into my mouth.

He makes a deep, throaty noise. It’s thrilling to have this effect on him just by kissing a finger. I can’t even imagine what it will be like when I kiss something more personal.

I finish sucking on his finger and he gives me a deep, hard kiss. His hands run wildly through my hair and down my back. Our tongues play a fun game of cat and mouse.

Then he leans me back across the bed and lies on top of me.

I pull his shirt off. I want—no, I need—to feel his skin against mine. I run my hands all over his smooth back, across his chest, down the front of his abs, and then back again. I want to memorize every muscle, every curve, every bulge, everything.

He kisses my neck, so I’m not really sure what exactly I’m doing now. I just know I need my hands on him.

I’m rubbing, massaging, and even letting my fingers trail the line just underneath his waistband, but not trying to go any further.

I could seriously spend days, weeks, maybe months, kissing him.

I kiss down his neck and suck on it.

He makes the sexiest noises I have ever heard.

While I’m kissing every square inch of his neck, he pulls off my sweatshirt. Well, I have to stop kissing his neck for a second while it comes over my head, but then I continue like I never stopped.

He runs his hands all over my skin. Searing his name into my soul with every single touch.

His hands are everywhere. Touching every part of me.

Well, every part of me that is naked. Which really isn’t much. Considering I’m still wearing my bra and jeans.

His fingers dance around the edges of my bra, like they’re trying to decide what to do.

I have to admit, I’m a little disappointed that he doesn’t unhook it.

Until his lips move from my neck to my chest.

His tongue moves across my cleavage and around the edges of my bra.

Like the feather.

Only with his tongue.

I changed my mind.

The feather isn’t my heaven.

It’s his tongue.
    

Saturday, November 5th

That little shit.

10:30am



“We need to discuss this trip,” Cooper tells me. I’m in his office after being called in. I had geared up for a fight. For him to tell me I can’t go. So, I’m pleasantly surprised to hear that he’s been planning already.

“Okay.”

“Obviously, we’ll leave here separately and meet up at the airport.”

“Okay.”

“If at any time anyone from school figures out that we were gone together, we’ll admit that we were.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. There’s an MMA fight in Atlantic City. I’ve booked us separate rooms at the hotel and bought us tickets. I have two friends with our basic descriptions checking us into our rooms and using our tickets. They will also be giving me our receipts.”

“I don’t get why that’s necessary.”

“Whitney has been snooping around. It’s important that I keep my job.”

“Okay. What about the flights?”

“I chartered them all. First, we’re flying to South Bend, Indiana. You’ll be wearing a brown wig and, if anyone asks, you’re there on a college visit.”

“Then what?”

“Then, we’re renting a car and instead of visiting the college, we’re driving two hours to Chicago. We’ll drop off our rental car at O’Hare, catch a cab to a nearby hotel, and then go to a smaller executive airport. We’ll take that charter to somewhere closer to Vancouver.”

“Let’s go to Salt Lake City and fly from there under my real name.”

Cooper grins at me. “That was one of the places where he thought you might be, right?”

“Yeah.”

“Perfect. We’ll charter a flight from there to Vancouver under your real name. That way, he can follow the trail there if he wants to.”

“But it will lead to a dead end.”

“Exactly. This is going to be exhausting. We’ll leave here at 4am. With the time difference, that should put us there around noon their time.”

“That’s perfect. Thank you so much, Cooper. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

He eyes a stack of papers on his desk. “I have to admit, I never realized how much work teaching would be. And I’m basically teaching a senior slack-off class. I can’t imagine what it would be like if I was teaching something like history.”

“Wait, did you say seniors!?”

“Yeah, why?”

“Some juniors take health, right?”

“Um, no. Seniors only. To prepare them for college. We talk about their overall health. It's not just sex. It's nutrition, alcohol, drugs, exercise, stress control, and time management.”

“So if a junior told me he was taking a poll about sex for health class, he was lying.”

“Yes.”

I smile. That little shit.



Life can follow a script.

11:15am



I go to the auditorium to get into hair and makeup. We have two performances back to back followed by the cast party tonight.

Before the first performance, Aiden texts me.



Hottie God: Can I see you before the play? Wish you luck?



Me: You can see me before the play, but you can’t wish me luck or you’ll jinx it. That’s why you always say break a leg.



Hottie God: Maybe that was just an excuse to kiss you.



I walk out the stage door already dressed in my cheerleader costume for the first scene.

Aiden immediately gives me a sweet kiss. Then he pulls a green marker out of his pocket.

“What’s that for?”

“It’s for breaking a leg.”

“What?”

He looks me over then bends down on one knee and lifts up my cheerleading skirt.

I want to ask him what the hell he’s doing, but his hand touches my thigh, making me incapable of speech.

He takes the lid off the marker and puts the tip of it on my thigh. I can feel that he’s drawing hearts on my leg. But when he finishes and lets me see, I realize the four hearts are forming a perfect four-leaf clover.

I fish inside my bra and pull out the glass four-leaf clover he gave me before my speech. “I already had this with me.”

“In your bra?” he laughs.

I hold my hands out. “Look at this costume and tell me where else I could’ve put it.”

He lets his eyes wander slowly down my skimpy costume. When they return to meet mine, I see the fire in his eyes. The passion that he had that day he first kissed me with his tongue. But this time, he’s not mad at me.

He kisses the glass clover, tucks it back inside my bra, and says, “Break a leg, Boots.”



Our first performance of the day goes off without a hitch. No one forgets their lines and no one messes up the lighting, sound, or sets.

Afterward, Aiden comes backstage carrying a bouquet of lavender roses and white feathers.

“Aiden, these are beautiful. Love the feathers. I wonder what in the world they’re in reference too?”

“I think you know exactly what both the feathers and the lavender roses mean. You were amazing. You seriously light up the stage when you're on it.”

I grin my widest smile. I can't stop grinning. I don't think I've ever felt so happy.

I’m not sure if I lit up the stage or not, but I do know that the stage lit up something inside of me.

I know without a doubt that acting is what I want to do with my life.

“I think you’re going to change your mind about acting,” he goes on to say. “You may not think you’re ready, but you are. It’s obvious.”

I start to disagree because I have to. He holds up his hand and pushes a piece of paper in front of me. “I don’t care what you say. I want to be the first to get your autograph.”

I close my eyes and take a deep breath. I know Aiden is just playing, being sweet, but he’s touched something deep in my heart. I think it’s because he believes in me.

“Do you have a pen?”

Aiden pats his pockets and when he comes up empty, he starts looking around.

“I have a bunch in my purse.” I grab my purse, dig to the bottom, and pull one out. I’m shocked to see Avery’s purple glitter pen come out in my hand. Although, it’s the perfect pen to use for my first autograph.

I take the cap off and start to write my name.

And I think there may be something magical about this pen, because for the first time since I’ve been here, I don’t even hesitate. I write Keatyn Monroe.

Completely. No M that’s half a D. It’s a perfectly-formed M.

“Aren't you going to kiss it?” Aiden says with a grin.

“I think I’d rather kiss you.”

He gives me a beaming smile. “Only if I get to end up in the moonlight with you.”



It’s the final scene of our second, and last, performance of the night.

The Good Prince and the Cheerleader, along with the Bad Prince and his Debutante fiancée, have been called into the coronation room by the Queen.

“You were all good sports about this competition and the TV ratings were extraordinary. The monarchy is back in the black. Even though this show was all about involving the townspeople and the world in your quests to find brides, only one of you can be the next King. As I told you in the beginning, true love is the key.”

She takes a crown and places it on the Good Prince’s head. “You, my son, will be the next King. And remember, everyone, true love conquers all.”

After our final bows, I rush off stage to get Maggie, making up some lame excuse about needing her backstage with me while everyone clears out. I chatter endlessly about everything and nothing.

Finally, I get a text from Logan letting me know that it’s time. That everyone has left for the cast party.

I walk Maggie out of the dressing room, where Logan is waiting to take her hand.

I rush away quickly, so she has no time to argue.

Then I sneak to the back of the darkened auditorium to sit next to Aiden.

He grabs my hand and gives it a little squeeze.

We watch as Logan, in his full Prince costume, leads Maggie out onto the stage.

Time to see if life can actually follow a script.



THE SETTING: EASTBROOKE AUDITORIUM. THE BACHELOR PRINCE SET OF THE BEACH IN THE MOONLIGHT.



LOGAN

(Taking Maggie’s hands in his)

I brought you here because I owe you an apology.



MAGGIE

(Wearing a look of confusion at being brought onto the stage. Then her face shows shock)

An apology?



LOGAN

Yes. I’ve been blaming you for our breakup and it’s not all your fault. If I hadn’t been texting that girl, we’d still be together. I’m really sorry, Mags.





Maggie smiles at him in a way I’ve never seen her smile. I’ve also never heard him or anyone else calls her Mags.

Logan smiles back at her, clearly happy that for the most part she’s been following our script, and continues.





LOGAN

I also want you to know how I feel about you.





Maggie instantly frowns and says exactly what I predicted.



MAGGIE

You hate me.





Logan lets go of one of her hands and gently touches her cheek. “I may act like I do, but I don’t. I’m still so in love with you.”

“Bullshit. You’re mean to me.”

“I know I have been, and I’m sorry. But I’ve realized that it’s not where you’ve been that matters, it’s where you end up that does. I want to end up with you, Mags. Forever.”

Maggie has tears in her eyes.

Aiden and I both hold our breaths. We know it could go either way at this point. She could walk out or kiss him.

Aiden squeezes my hand tightly as Maggie wipes her tears and says, “I want to end up with you too.”





(They share true love’s perfect kiss)





Well, it starts out as a perfect-ending-fairy-tale kiss, but it quickly turns into something that would not be appropriate for a Disney movie. Aiden pulls on my hand and we sneak out of the auditorium.
    

Sunday, November 6th

Full of life.

7:55am



I wake up, trying to figure out where I am and why it’s so bright in here. “Aiden! It’s almost eight! What time does your dorm advisor wake up?”

“He works out every day at six. But it’s okay. If anyone sees you, they’ll just think you came over this morning. I mean, you’re in your running shoes.”

Sadly, I am. I just woke up in a boy’s bed and am still fully clothed.

I calm down, mostly due to the fact that he’s running his hand across my face. It might be more relaxing than a bath and weed combined. He does have good, good hands.

“Aiden, that seriously feels so good. You have no idea.” Then I open my eyes and look into his. “My dad used to do that to me when I was little. It calmed me down. Apparently, I could be a little wild.”

“I like that about you.”

“That I’m a little wild? Wild, like slutty?”

“No, silly. I just like that you’re spunky, wild, and full of life. It’s that little spark of fearlessness that made you steal the soccer ball from boys you’d never met and kick it at my face. It may be the thing I like best about you.”

I want to cry. There’s something that Aiden likes best about me and it’s not a sexual thing. I want to kiss him.

So I do.

“What do you like best about me?” he asks.

I think about it for a second. I love his godly smile, his lips, and his muscles. The little freckle just under his eye. The sound of his voice. But there’s one thing that has always made Aiden stand out.

“Your strength. I like your strength.”

He flexes a buff arm in front of me. “This strength?”

“No, your inner strength. You’re determined. You never seem to get stressed. You naturally take control. You make me feel safe.”

He wraps his strong arms around me and pulls me into his chest. I breathe in his strength and, possibly, his love.

“Last night was nice, Aiden. I liked falling asleep with you.”

“It was better than nice. So next weekend, we’re still going to New York, right? Do some shopping. Hang out?”

“That sounds fun.”

He points to the four-leaf clover, which is peeking out from under my shorts. “Break a leg again today.”

“Thanks.”

He kisses me on the cheek, and says, “I wish I was going with you tomorrow. I’d love to meet your family.”

I wish he could too, I think wistfully as I say, “Maybe someday.”



Didn’t listen.

6pm



After our performance, a stagehand brings me a beautiful bouquet of flowers. It’s a mass of pastel blooms held together by an aqua satin bow.

“Are these for me?”

“Yeah, some dude asked me to give them to you.”

“Some dude?”

“Yeah, he was talk and dark haired. He said there’s a card.”

Tall and dark?

My hands are shaking as I pull the little card out of the envelope. On the card is just one thing.

A replica of my chaos tattoo.

I drop the bouquet and look around wildly.

Because I know.

Vincent is here.

My director didn’t listen to me. He called Vincent. He came to the play. He knows where I am.

Aiden walks in and says, “Boots, what's wrong? You’re shaking.”

“Um, I don't feel very good.”

“What do you mean?” Aiden asks as I rush over to the trashcan and throw up in it.

Aiden chuckles. “Aren't you supposed to get stage fright before the play?”

I hang onto the big trash barrel while tuning out Aiden’s voice.

I've got to get out of here. I've got to find Cooper.

“I’m sorry. I have to go.” I run out of the dressing room and leave Aiden standing there.

But I can’t go outside. I can’t risk him waiting for me.

I run back onto the now darkened stage and wrap myself in the folds of the velvet curtains.

I grab my phone out of my dress pocket and hold it tightly against my chest while I change the setting to dim.

Then I text Cooper.



Me: He’s here. He came to the play. The director told him about me even though I asked him not too. I don’t even know where to go. I can’t run because I know he’s going to catch me this time. Cooper, I’m scared.



Cooper: Where are you? I'll be right there.