Page 279 of Forbidden Billionaires: Vol. 11
“Yo, Miller!” one of Jacob’s teammates yelled over. “You’re up!”
I was happy for the interruption. I didn’t want my first kiss with Jacob to happen right after I thought about Axel. Or...would it be our first kiss? Because I’d kissed the kiss thief twice now. So maybe that would make it our third kiss?
Gah.Whatever calmness being close to Jacob had given me for a few minutes had completely disappeared. I cleared my throat. I really hoped he couldn’t read my thoughts on my face right now. Because I didn’t want to be having them. I focused on his handsome face, willing myself to calm back down. I needed to say something, anything to distract my mind. “Please tell me you’re not boxing again,” I said.
“Will you be mad if I said I was?”
“Jacob!”
He laughed. “No, I’m not boxing today. I think I’m just up for beer pong. Want to be my partner?”
“We both know you don’t want that.”
“I wouldn’t have asked if I didn’t want it. I know you know how to play. I remember Coach teaching both of us.”
I laughed. Yeah, Uncle Matt had taught us how to play, sans the beer, when we were little. But there had been a big time gap between then and now. And I’d somehow gotten bad at it along the way. Where Jacob had gotten better. I’d played once freshman year and vowed to never embarrass myself again.
“Come on,” Jacob said. “It’ll be fun.”
It was really sweet of him to offer to be my partner. But... “I’ll make you lose. How about I just watch?”
It looked like he wanted to protest.
“Really, it’ll be fun,” I added.
“If you insist.” Jacob put his hand out for me.
It felt like the sea parted as we made our way through the crowd toward the people playing. Sophie always insisted that we were popular. And I always insisted that I was only popular by association. But I felt like Empire High royalty tonight with Jacob’s hand in mine and his jacket on my shoulders.
Worries about kiss thieves and lists disappeared as I cheered for him. This was what I should have been doing at the game earlier. Instead of manning an exploding kissing booth.
Jacob picked me up and twirled me around when he won.
My breath caught in my throat as he slowly lowered me down. I kept my hand on his chest. And I swear I felt his heart racing as fast as mine. “See,” I said. “Much better that I just watched.” I glanced over at the people dancing by one of the bonfires. “Do you maybe want to...”
“Miller!” his teammate yelled. “It’s winner-take-all!”
Jacob looked over his shoulder. “Nah, I’m done for the night.” He turned back to me. “What were you about to ask?”
But a few of his friends grabbed him and pulled him back to the table.
“Sorry,” he mouthed silently to me.
“It’s okay.” I pointed to my cup to show him I was going to go get a refill. I wandered over to fill my cup, but stopped at one of the bonfires. I was pretty sure I’d had enough to drink. The smoke-filled air seemed even hazier than it had earlier. I looked around for Sophie, but didn’t see her anywhere. She was probably off hooking up with Pavel or something. Liam and RJ were nowhere in sight either. And I hadn’t seen Axel since the game. I didn’t think he’d ever missed a party. But there were tons of people here. He was probably just lost in the crowd.
I was good when I was surrounded by my friends. It was when I was alone that I started panicking about my kiss thief.
I pulled out my phone. “I know who you are,” I typed out and hit send.
My kiss thief didn’t respond. Because he couldn’t. He was currently owning everyone at beer pong. I smiled to myself. I was growing more and more sure that it was Jacob by the second. But there were still some pestering doubts in the back of my head. And when I was alone, the doubts grew louder and louder.
I looked around for Sophie again, but I still couldn’t find her. My gaze fell toward the edge of the woods. I set my cup down on a stump. I knew exactly how to clear my head.
I walked away from the smoke and the music. Soon the laughter drifted away and I could hear the crunch of the leaves beneath my sneakers again. The fall air felt crisp away from the fires. I wrapped Jacob’s jacket tighter around my shoulders to chase away the chill. I smiled when the smell of grass hit me. But then I immediately frowned. Why couldn’t I remember what my kiss thief had smelled like that first time?
I kept walking until I made my way into a clearing. I could see my dad’s treehouse in the distance. It didn’t really make any sense, but I felt like I was being pulled toward it. Like all the answers I sought were just sitting there waiting for me.
The yard I was standing in was completely empty and perfectly manicured. And only one house away from my grandfather’s. I kicked off my sneakers and socks and then tucked them undermy arm. I loved the feeling of grass under my feet. It reminded me of playing at Jacob’s grandparents’ house when I was little. I could really go for one of Mrs. Caldwell’s cookies right now.
