Page 17 of The Penalty Box

No.No more thinking like this. I won’t let Liam ruin my very first date. Tonight is about me. Well, me and Noah, and nothing will get in the way of that.

* * *

“Did you have fun?” Noah asks as he pulls the car to the stop on the curb across the street from my house. He turns in his seat to look at me, and the faint light of the nearby streetlamp illuminates his face.

“I did,” I answer truthfully. If I had any doubts about Noah before tonight, they’re gone now. He really is a great guy. “Thank you for taking me.”

We went to the movies. Noah even suggested I pick what we’ll watch. I suppose he was expecting me to go for a chick-flick, but instead, I chose the latest action movie. I might dress like a girly girl, but give me hot guys, fast cars, and things blowing up any day of the week and you’ll have one happy girl on your hands.

Once the movie was done it was still pretty early, so when Noah suggested we go to the diner, I agreed. I wasn’t ready to go back home. Not yet anyway.

We had fun discussing our favorite parts of the movie and getting to know each other better over the pie. Before I blinked it was close to midnight and time to go back home.

“Good,” Noah says, his hand reaching out toward me.

I suck in a breath, surprised by his sudden nearness.

Is he…?

My heart speeds up in my chest as those light eyes stare into mine with intensity I haven’t seen before. The back of his finger brushes my cheek, pushing a strand of hair behind my ear.

A softwhooshof air parts my lips, a pang of something—disappointment or relief? I’m not sure I know—spreads through my chest.

“It was in the way,” he offers in a way of explanation.

He dressed nicely. A pair of dark jeans and a button-down shirt with a blue sweater over it that brought out the color of his eyes. His dark hair is perfectly styled, not a strand out of place.

I nod absentmindedly, grazing at my lower lip, not really knowing what to say. Thankfully, Noah fills the silence. “I had fun tonight too, Evie.”

We look at each other, neither of us making a move to pull back.

Am I imaging it or is he even closer than he was only seconds ago?

I catch a whiff of his scent. Clean. Citrusy.

His gaze darts down, looking at my parted lips that suddenly feel dry. Too dry.

“I’d like to take you out again. If you’re up for it.”

With his free hand, he reaches for mine. He doesn’t grasp it, not instantly anyway. His fingers trace my skin, making it tingle in awareness.

“Y-Yes,” I rasp, my tongue peeking out to wet my lips. “I think I’d like that.”

And I would. Noah is fun. We had a blast at the movies, trying to guess who’ll be the next one to blow up in the air. We also have a lot in common, things I didn’t even know up until now because although we go to the same school, I didn’t give myself a chance to actually get to know him.

Noah nods, his fingers sliding between mine almost playfully. “Friday night. The ice rink in the town square opens. We can do a few laps and then go to Andrew’s party.”

“You already have everything planned?” The surprise in my voice is evident. “What if I said no?”

“I wasn’t about to take no for an answer.” He grins, blue eyes shining sheepishly.

I chuckle nervously. “One’d think you’d be used to it by now.”

“Not in the slightest. You’re no good for a man’s ego, Evie. A real ball buster.”

This time I laugh out loud. I shove him away lightly. “You’re exaggerating.”

“No way.”

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