Page 13 of The Stand-In Boyfriend

I roll my eyes. “Fine, I’m sorry I said you’re a bad kisser. You’re… passable, I guess.”

He glares at me, his eyes falling down to my lips before he forces them to meet mine. I lift my brow in a silent question. Waiting to see what he’ll do next.

Noah made a point to come and apologize, I shouldn’t be mean to him, but for some reason I enjoy giving him a hard time. He seems so composed most of the time, it’s nice to ruffle his feathers, so to speak, for a change.

“As I was saying…” he continues, gritting through clenched teeth to keep his cool. “I was just trying to help.”

“By kissing me?”

I still didn’t see his logic behind that. What did I get out of him kissing me in front of those girls?

Noah rubs at the nape of his neck, a sheepish smile curling his lips. It’s small, but it changes his whole face, making him more approachable. Almost… sweet.

Noah? Sweet? Am I going feverish?With the back of my hand I touch my cheeks. They do seem slightly warm. So maybe I’m catching something.

“It was a spur of the moment thing.”

“Spur of the moment?”

“Yes, I heard them talking shit and I saw you…” He trails off, his cheeks turning pink. I blink and look more closely, and sure enough. They’re pink. Noah Russell, blushing? What is this? An alternate universe or something? “Anyway, I heard them, and I reacted.”

“By kissing me.”

“You mention that quite a lot for something you deem ‘passable’,” Noah mocks, drawing air quotes. “If you’re not careful, I might think you even liked it.”

“W-what?” I blurt. This time it’s my cheeks that turn crimson. “I certainly did not!”

“Whatever you say, Sunshine.”

“Is there a point to this conversation?” I ask—anything to get off the subject of that damn kiss. “Or do you only like to listen to yourself talk? You apologized. Apology accepted. Now we can move on, each of us in a different direction.”

I walk around him, more than happy to turn these words into actions. I have to get away from Noah Russell before I do something stupid.

Yup, off I go.

Noah’s hand shoots out, grabbing my wrist and stopping me from moving. A chill runs up my arm, leaving soft tingles in its wake.

“That’s just a part of why I came.”

There is no way he’ll leave me alone if I don’t let him say what he came to say, so might as well get it over with. “What’s the other part?”

“I want you to date me.”

Chapter Six

NOAH

“Y-you what?!” Jessy screeches, pulling her hand out of mine. Her mouth hangs open in surprise, her eyes turning round.

That went over well.

I rub at the back of my neck and shift my weight from one leg to the other, suddenly feeling uncomfortable under the weight of those big brown eyes.

I didn’t expect her to jump into my arms while singing my praises, but I most definitely didn’t expect complete shock either. Hell, I don’t know what exactly I expected.

“That didn’t come out as planned.”

“No shit!” She crosses her arms over her chest defensively. “Because for a moment there I thought I heard you say you wanted to date me.”

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