Page 77 of Sweetheart

"—but what about kiss number two, three, or 15?"

I swallowed as my eyes dropped to his lips. "Do you really think we'll be kissing that much?"

"I don't know," Sam said, "but maybe."

The flutters tripled.

"The point is we don't want to make a wrong move. We need to make sure every kiss we have is believable. And to do that, don't you think we should work on it?"

My brows furrowed, and I tilted my head. "You've given this a lot of thought."

Sam ran a hand through his hair. "What can I say, Kent. I likebeing prepared."

"We've been in classes together over the years, Bishop," I said. "No offense, but you've never presented an argument this convincing, even when it was for a grade. What's the deal?"

"I guess I care more about this."

My heart translated that to: I care more about you.

The stupid organ kept forgetting this was all pretend.

And that was the problem.

It was one of the many reasons I'd begun to think these 'lessons' weren't a good idea after all—no matter how much I yearned to kiss the guy sitting across from me.

Sam was staring at me as if I was a puzzle he couldn't figure out.

"Is there a reason you don't want to kiss me, Kent?"

"No," I said—but there were several why I shouldn't."Not wanting to kiss you isn't an issue."

"Then what?"

I want to kiss you too much. I think about it, about you,all the time. I want to attach myself to you and never let go.

Sam would run far and fast if I said that to him.

When I'd been quiet too long, Sam said, "I thought you liked it the first time."

"I loved it."

Sam's grin widened at my unfiltered response. "Okay, then let's do it again."

"For science?" I asked.

"Practice makes perfect," he replied.

I hesitated, but the truth wasI really did want to kiss him again. Iwas pretty sure he knew it too by the way his blue eyes sparkled.

"Ready whenever you are."

"Wait," I said with a scoff. "You expect me to kiss you?"

"Yeah," he said, "I figured that would be lesson one."

"So, I get to do all the work. Awesome," I muttered.

Sam sent me a solemn nod. "I believe in you."

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