Page 26 of Chess Not Checkers
That swooping feeling returns. I curl my toes in my sneakers and resist the urge to fidget under his gaze. “It wasn’t hard to compete, given that most of them have had a few drinks.”
Shepherd shakes his head. “I saw you on the field too. You’re definitely the best.”
My skin flushes. He was watching me? That can’t be right. He must be messing around.
“Did you see we got an email from Kelton? He chose the date,” Shepherd says before I can respond to his other statement.
“Oh, uh, I didn’t. What’s the verdict?”
He pulls out his phone and swipes a couple times before showing me. Wednesdays at 4:45PM. I can make that. I hand his phone back to him.
“Are you going to be able to make it?” I ask him.
He slides his phone back into his pocket, then meets my gaze. “Yeah, I should be there for most meetings. What about you?”
I bite the inside of my cheek to keep from smiling. “I’ll be there,” I say, keeping my voice level.
He nods. “Good. It’s been too long since I’ve had the opportunity to beat you.”
I roll my eyes. “Even if you were at every meeting, you still wouldn’t have that chance.”
He chuckles. We both know my trash talk doesn’t hold up. He’s way better than me, but I’m improving each time we play. And soon enough, I’ll wipe that smirk off his face with a devastating win.
“Win or lose, I’m looking forward to it,” he says.
My smile breaks loose. “Me too.”
His eyes meet mine, and something sparks in his gaze. A challenge? My heart skips. Attraction? I don’t look away, trying to decipher it, and not wanting to back down in the process. We stand there for what feels like forever but was likely only a few seconds. He breaks first, looking to the side, his jaw tight.
“I’ll see you in class?” His voice is gravelly, sending chill bumps across my skin.
“Yeah,” I say, unable to come up with anything better.
He walks away, and all I think for the rest of the night is,Whatwasthat?
Chapter fifteen
Friendly Rivals
Shepherd Kingsley
I walk into chess club with a smile wider than the Mississippi on my face. After the party on Saturday, Jasmine and I haven’t gotten to talk much. Now that classes are in full swing and football season has kicked off, there is even less time to talk before and after class. Someone always wants to talk to me about the games, and when they don’t, Jasmine has somewhere to be. But today it will be just us. Professor Kelton already emailed saying today would be a free play meeting, so we’ll have the whole time to ourselves.
The whole world will slip away, the way it always does when we play against each other. And sure, I won’t get to stay the whole time because I have practice in a little while, but thirty minutes is better than nothing at all.
I saunter over to Jasmine. She looks up from setting up the board, and I can tell she’s holding in a smile, her pink lips pressed in a straight line.
“Ready to lose, Chamberlain?” I ask as I slide into the chair across from her.
“Not a chance, Captain.”
My heart jumps in my chest at the nickname. Logically I know I shouldn’t let myself feel this way. The more time we spend together, the more I want. And I’m not allowed to want her.
I watch her delicate hands place the white pieces on my side of the board. The board is Thrasher colors, blue and white, as are the pieces. Jasmine prefers to play with blue. So do I, when I play against anyone but her.
She finishes setting up the board, glancing up and catching me watching her. Her cheekbones turn a pretty pink that matches her lips. The urge to lean across the board and kiss her hits me like a lineman to my blind side. She pulls her braid over her shoulder and toys with the curled end. I imagine undoing it to see her wild curls fall free, then running my hands through them. Drawing her close to me. Our breath intermingling.
I clear my throat.
