Was that a line from a Juliet entry or what? Very poetic. :)
He actually sent me a smiley face.
No. I’m being serious. Rescue us from Liv’s mom’s car. It’s raining so hard and I don’t want to walk in it. Neither does Liv. We’re in a newer silver Accord.
You want me to come to your rescue.
Yes.
And you’ll be mine forever if I do.
I chew on my thumbnail before I answer him.
Yes.
So I can do whatever I want to you and you have to agree.
My skin goes warm. What kind of question is that?
Depends on what you’re talking about.
You won’t be disappointed. Promise.
Within seconds I hear tires screeching and there’s Jordan parking right alongside Livvy’s car.
Get your stuff and get in my car. Tell Livvy to stay put.
“Jordan is giving us a ride to the front building,” I say to Livvy.
She turns to look at me with a frown. “What are you talking about?”
“He’s right there.” I indicate his parked car with a wave of my hand. “I’m going to jump in his car but stay put. He’ll drive around to your side of the car in a minute.”
I grab my backpack and bail out of the car, hopping into the passenger side of the Range Rover within seconds and only the tiniest bit damp. He smiles at me, leans over to give me a little kiss, then throws the car into drive and wheels it around to the driver’s side of Liv’s mom’s car. Livvy goes through the same process, and after she climbs into the Rover, Jordan takes her keys and hits the remote to lock it before rolling up his window.
“You’re my hero!” Liv says from the backseat of the car. She reaches forward and gives Jordan a playful shove on the shoulder. “Better than Ryan. He hasn’t even bothered to text me back.”
“You’re welcome,” Jordan says with a hint of sarcasm, which makes me smile. He returns the gesture with one of those secretive smiles only for me, the ones that say, I’ve had you nearly naked in my bed and I’m going to do it again.
A shiver moves through me at the possibility.
He drives the Range Rover to the front of the main building and Liv hops out the moment he puts the car in park, not even bothering to look back or ask me to come with her. We watch her go and then I turn to look at Jordan, ready to offer him a thank you.
But he’s watching me with the most intense look in his gaze. All thoughts, all words, disappear in an instant.
“I did what you asked of me,” he says softly. “I came to your rescue and now you’re mine.” He pauses. “Forever.”
Oh. That’s right. I forgot I said that. Sort of.
“I was just kidding.”
“I take all requests from you seriously.” He waves a hand toward the building before us. “Like rescuing you from the rain.”
“I still need to go back out in it to get in the building.” I glance behind me, checking out the backseat. This of course, reminds me that a few nights ago, I’d been rolling around in that very backseat and it had been awesome.
“Want my hoodie?” He starts to take his off and I grab his arm to prevent him from taking it any further.
“No, stop. It’s okay. I have my own.” I’m dressed pretty sloppily today, with the weather spurring my choices. I have on a school hoodie, leggings and a pair of shiny black designer rain boots I found on clearance at the Nordstrom Rack this past spring. I put zero effort into my outfit, yet here I sit with Jordan in his fancy car and he’s wearing fancy clothes and fancy cologne he most likely bought at a high-end department store. A place I probably can’t even afford to walk into, let alone actually buy something.
Uh oh. I’m having one of those moments where I feel inferior yet again.
“Thank you for rescuing me,” I murmur.
“You’re welcome. I’ll expect full reimbursement this afternoon. After practice.”
“What are you talking about?”
He smiles and kisses me again, his lips lingering, his voice so deep, so low, I swear it vibrates within my soul. “You’ll see.”
He takes me to his house after practice. I text my mom saying I won’t be home for dinner, that I have to work on my English project with Jordan. When she asks where we’re working on it, I make up a lie and tell her we’re going to the school library, then to a mutual friend’s house, implying a bunch of us are working on this project together.
There’s no working on the project. The project is long forgotten. He’s keyed up after a particularly intense football practice played out in the rain. I hung out with Kyla while he took a shower, and when he came to get me after he was finished, I lost all train of thought at first sight of him. He glowered, his muscular body practically vibrating with frustration.