Page 28 of The Good Girl's Guide to Being Bad

“Yeah, you’re right,” he said, surprising the heck out of me, and ran a hand down the back of his neck. “I’m just glad I could make it good for you.”

I was blushing again, couldn’t help it. When he said unexpected things like that, what was I supposed to do? And had he really just admitted to enjoying the kiss, too?

“Yeah umm…thanks for that,” I mumbled. Thanking Colton Bishop was not something I had much practice with; I’d have to work on it.

“No need to thank me, Sadie,” he said. “It’s all for the bet, remember?”

Of course, I remembered the bet. How could I forget? It had just felt right to thank him for some reason.

As he left, I thought it over and realized that my brain really had been muddled by that kiss. I won’t lie. I loved every second. Colton had been telling the truth when he said he would deliver. My first kiss had been explosive and right in in every way imaginable. Even though he was my enemy, I couldn’t get enough of his lips, his tongue, his hands.

But I couldn’t forget that he was Colton Bishop, the guy who loved to get under my skin and push my buttons. But now he was also Colton Bishop, the guy who’d helped me check off the first (and so far, the only) item of my “Carpe Diem List.”

Even if Colton said the kiss didn’t change anything, I was pretty sure it changed everything. For the first time in my life, I was looking forward to seeing him again. And if I was being honest with myself…that terrified me a little.

That anticipation died a quick death the next time I did see Colton.

It wasn’t pretty.

After I’d had a chance to recover from the kiss-induced fog, I remembered I couldn’t meet Colton at seven because I’d be visiting Betty. We had a standing appointment on Mondays, and I couldn’t flake out on her—even if she had set this whole crazy scheme in motion. So, after school, I’d gone in search of Colton…only to find him standing in the parking lot with a split lip and his latest victim.

The parking lot was crowded after school. But as I made my way to Colton’s car, through the people that had gathered around it, I saw Shawn Henley, a junior and one of our football team’s offensive line, sporting a bloody nose and a shiner on his left eye. Colton had him pushed up against a tree in a threatening position. His hair was a mess, his arms a bit scraped up in addition to the split lip, but Colton looked okay all things considered. And by “okay,” I meant openly hostile. He was glaring at Shawn with a satisfied expression on his face. The sad part was this was nothing new.

If I needed proof that Colton Bishop was a bully with too much testosterone, I didn’t have to look any further than his inability to stay out of fights. If it wasn’t Shawn, it was someone else. This happened at least once a month. It had been happening since we were in middle school. Sometimes the guys were bigger (like Shawn), sometimes smaller, but it didn’t matter. Colton would and did fight anyone.

I’d never understood his need to use fists instead of his words to solve an argument.

I was glad when Kyle stepped in and broke the two apart.

“Hey, Colt,” he said, “what’s this about?”

“Nothing,” Colton said and shot a look at Shawn before backing away from him. “We had a disagreement, but we’re good now. Isn’t that right, Henley?”

“Yeah,” Shawn said, spitting to the side. “We’re good.”

As he rolled his eyes and walked away, Colton stared him down until he was out of sight, then he turned to Kyle and me like nothing had happened.

“How’d you do on that chem exam?” he asked his twin. “I didn’t study, so I’m thinking I failed.”

Kyle shook his head, unwilling to let the matter go. “You really need to stop all this fighting crap. Mom’s going to ream you if you get suspended again. What happened this time?”

Colton laughed. “Chill out, Kyle. The idiot was saying some things in the locker room that I didn’t like, so I decided to shut him up.”

“Jesus, Colt, do you hear yourself?”

“What? I asked nicely first.”

I snorted at that, and the two looked to me. “Sorry, it was funny—but I’m with Kyle on this. You should try talking it out next time, Colton.”

“Why, Sadie Day,” Colton said, a smile in his voice, completely ignoring my suggestion. “I didn’t think I’d see you till tonight.”

“Tonight?” Kyle asked. “What’s happening tonight?”

“We’re going to cross off more of the stuff on her list.”

Kyle’s eyes widened as he looked between me and his brother. “More? You’ve already started the list? Whoa, that was fast.”

Colton raised a brow. “It started slow, but yeah, it definitely got faster there at the end. And hot, very hot. Wouldn’t you say, Sadie?”

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