Page 23 of The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back

He missed practice for me? My heart sped up just a little. "Okay."

"And if you win…" he trailed off, letting me name my prize.

I would definitely win. There was no question of that. He was essentially handing me a blank check. I could have anything Jake-related that I wanted.

A kiss? My cheeks flushed and I bit the inside of my mouth to keep myself from blurting it out. A girl could only handle so much pathetic in one day. And to be honest, I didn't want a kiss that I basically had to blackmail or trick out of him.

Huh. Turned out I did have some pride where Jake was concerned. Who knew?

But what could I ask for…my mind flashed on stupid Mercedes Bentley. I tried to keep from smiling. It would be like getting to kill two birds with one bet. I couldn't quite look him in the eye.

"If I win, you drive me to school every morning for two weeks."

"Won't that be a little awkward after elections?"

"We'll see." The idea of spending time alone with him in a confined space really appealed to me. And the look on Mercedes Bentley's face when she saw me with him would make it even better.

"You got it." Jake held his hand out to shake on it. His hand felt big and strong, enclosing mine. A sudden jolt of energy exploded inside my hand and shot down my arm. I quickly pulled my hand away.

He had a knowing smile, like he knew exactly the effect he had on me. I used the bottom of my shirt to clean my black-rimmed glasses so that I wouldn't have to look at him while he dealt the cards.

I ended up with three queens. I doubted he would have a better hand. Despite his cockiness, he wasn't all that great of a player.

I watched while he pushed all his chips to the middle. "I am all in."

He put his right hand near his mouth. He was bluffing, and trying to scare me into folding. No chance.

I made sure my super poker face was intact so that I wouldn't reveal my glee. I put my cards down and pushed my remaining chips toward the middle too. "I am all in, too."

I lay my cards out for him to see. His expression went from cocky to shock to disbelief. He revealed his own hand; he had a pair of threes.

"I lost."

"Yup," I confirmed as I used both arms to sweep all the chips to me.

"I never lose. Ever."

"Maybe you should get used to it. For when I trounce you as senior class president."

"You were playing me. You're like some card shark."

I shrugged in reply and started putting the chips back into place.

His eyes bored into mine, like he was trying to figure me out. "You didn't mention that."

"You didn't ask."

"So, you knew you would win," he said.

I shrugged again and avoided eye contact. The rumbling of my father's car pulling into the garage startled me. When it came to my dad, you never knew what you were going to get. He might come in, say hello, and wander off to his studio. Or he might decide today was a good day to be interested in my life and totally humiliate me in front of Jake by telling stupid stories about me and asking him inappropriate and personal questions.

I didn't know whether my father would come in through the garage or if he'd get the mail and come in the front door. Taking Jake out back seemed like the safest bet. "Um, the sun's about to set and it's really beautiful out back on the beach. You want to see it?"

He got up and started to follow me until we got to the doorway. Then he took me gently by my upper arm and that same jolt of electricity fired up again everywhere that he touched me. I turned around and he stood so close to me that my breath caught.

"You sure a ride to school is all you wanted?"

He leaned against the doorframe, towering over me, trapping me. He sounded like…a cat or something. His voice was low, seductive, practically purring.

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