Page 28 of The Pinkie Pact

"I know what you mean," I finally said. "Kara will be thrilled. I'm sure she's been up there a time or two." Of course, she had. She'd probably been up there hundreds of times. And God knows what else.

"I'm sure." A large group of people flooded into the previously quiet space. "All right. We should probably go. Thanks for humoring me."

"My pleasure." We squeezed past tourists and headed for the stairs. "You know there's four score and seven steps here?" I asked like a complete dork.

"Um, no. I'm a little rusty on my Civil War-era terminology. But if I remember correctly, a score is twenty. So what's that? Eighty-seven?"

"Well done, math major," I couldn't help teasing her.

She nudged me with her hip during a flat stretch between the steps. "Thanks."

Was it just me or had that been kind of a flirty move?

I thought back to the planetarium a few hours ago and how her arm had felt against mine. Initially, I hadn't moved my arm because I was in shock, in shock at the way that physical touch had sparked electricity in me, something I'd never felt before in my life—not with anyone and, sadly, not even with Christina.

And then when she didn't move her arm either... well, it just felt so damn good, I wanted to keep feeling that.I was a pig. Shaking my head, I tried to rid myself of the thoughts and feelings. But they wouldn't go away.

From the first moment I met her, when she'd sat there like a queen, despite the smeared lipstick on her face, and refused to shake my hand or even look at me, she'd fascinated me in a way I knew she shouldn't.

God, Kieran, you're practically married.

And when I'd seen her walk into that fundraiser looking like an absolute goddess... well, I had to stop myself from staring at her the whole time she was there. But it was like I couldn't control my eyes as they kept trying to find her. And of course, I'd seriously put my foot in my mouth when I'd attempted to apologize to her.

Flashes from the dream I'd had the other night popped into my mind. After seeing her dancing with that ridiculous guy named Bear, grinding up against him, kissing him, her chest pressed up against his, I'd had dreams of her doing the same with me. I'd woken up hard as a rock, the images ingrained into my mind.

I could almost feel her body against mine, almost taste her lips on me. And the thought of anything more? I seriously needed to stop before I embarrassed myself. I had to remember I wasn't exactly single. Not in the slightest.

Trying to slyly adjust my jeans, I cleared my throat. "So how are your classes?" I asked.

She gave me a funny look as we left the crowded mall area and waited on the sidewalk for the signal to cross the street. "I think you already asked me that yesterday."

Idiot. "Um, right. Well, I mean, I was curious to know more about what exactly you're taking, you know."

The light changed, and we started to cross. "Just the usual math major classes, really."

That was another thing. I was such a sucker for a smart girl. At first, that's something I'd liked about Christina, that we could actually talk and have a conversation. In the years we'd been together, I wasn't sure when or how things had started to go downhill.

"And piano," she added, stepping up on the curb.

"Piano?" That certainly caught my attention. "How does that work? Where do you practice?"

"They have little practice rooms that are soundproof," she said.

"Wow, that sounds really cool."

"It is. I've already been a bunch of times, and it's just so nice to be by myself and get lost in the music."

The way she said that made me think that was something she really loved, something she depended on to keep her grounded. "I can totally understand that."

She glanced up at me after we dodged a few people on the sidewalk. "Do you play an instrument?"

I couldn't help smiling at her, her face lit up by the passing cars' headlights. "I play piano too."

Her eyebrows rose in surprise. "You do?"

"Well, I try. It's been a while, and I was never that great," I admitted. "Believe me."

She let out a laugh. "Huh. I'm sure you're just being modest."

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