Cruel Prince (Royal Hearts Academy, #1)(14)

He shakes his head.

I take a step toward him. “Do you like being with me?”

He nods. I take another step.

My pulse is beating so hard it echoes in my ears. “Are you happy when we hang out? Do I make your day a little better?”

“No.” My lungs freeze…until he peers down at me. “You make it a lot better.”

If that’s true…it could only mean one thing.

“Am I not pretty enough for you?”

I’m not gorgeous like Britney. Much like my height, my features are perfectly average. My nose is a standard size. My cheekbones aren’t carved from stone. My eyes are blue, but they aren’t piercing blue. A handful of freckles sprinkle the bridge of my nose and cheeks, but they’re inconspicuous things and only come out when I spend time in the sun.

Unfortunately, my most noticeable feature is the dimple in the middle of my chin.

The one that made Britney call me stupid names like butt-chin.

Even on rare occasions when I dabbled with makeup, I was never a drop-dead knockout.

My aunt once referred to our similar looks as girl next door cute. She claimed it was a good thing, but I disagree.

I’m a mediocre girl with small boobs and a skinny, almost curve-less frame.

Mediocre doesn’t equal sexy. It’s basic and boring.

Embarrassment twists my guts. “That’s it, isn’t it?”

Jace isn’t attracted to me. My ordinary looks are a deal-breaker for him.

The ass is more superficial than I thought.

Then again, his mother was a former Bollywood actress. I’d seen a few pictures of her…even before her death, she looked just like an angel.

Heck, Jace’s entire family—with the exception of poor Liam who had a few scars from the car accident that killed their mother— is flawless.

No wonder he doesn’t want someone like me. We’re not in the same league.

“That’s not it.” His voice is so low I can barely hear him.

I inch closer. “Then what’s wrong with me?”

I hate sounding so desperate, but I need my best friend to make me understand how it’s possible for me to feel so much for him…while he feels nothing for me.

The small space between us tightens as I place my hand on his chest. His heart is beating even faster than mine.

“Nothing.” A heavy breath lodges in my throat when his hand grazes my hip. “You’re perfect.”

Tension hangs in the heavy silence between us. It’s obvious Jace is fighting this, I just don’t know why.

Heat rises to my cheeks and my palms grow sweaty. It’s now or never at this point, and if I’m going down, I might as well go down swinging.

“I never gave you your dare.”

Jace and I have a stupid game we play. Every Friday before school ended, we exchange notes with dares on them that have to be completed by the end of the upcoming week.

Usually, they’re harmless and gross challenges. Things like eating an insect, or finishing an entire pizza pie and two glasses of milk in ninety minutes.

If you refuse, you have to clean the other’s room and answer a personal—usually embarrassing—question of the other’s choosing.

Lucky for us, we’re both competitive, so we rarely ever lose.

For the last three months, I’ve had a certain dare burning a proverbial hole in my pocket…but I always chicken out.

Not today.

With shaky fingers, I reach inside my pocket for the folded note.

The hand on my hip tightens. “Don’t do this, D.”

Too late. I unfold the paper and hold it up to him.

I dare you to kiss me.

His features twist in pain, despite his grip on me tightening. “No.”

“If you’re so adamant that all we’ll ever be is friends, a stupid kiss shouldn’t be such a big deal.”

Silence.

It’s hard to argue with logic.

It’s even harder to argue with jealousy.

“If the thought of kissing me disgusts you so much, I’ll just ask Tom—”

I stop breathing when his hands frame my face. “No.”

“Why?”

“Because you don’t belong to Tommy.” His nostrils flare. “He can’t have you.”

“So, you don’t want me, but no one else is allowed to have me? Is that it?”

Long fingers wrap around the back of my neck, pulling me closer. “I never said I didn’t want you.” His face grows taut as he dips his forehead to mine. “I said we could never be more than friends.”

He’s talking in circles. Putting us through turmoil for no reason. The solution is simple. Literally right in front of us.

“Kiss me, Jace.”

“No.”

Irritation ripples through me. I’m growing tired of these stupid mixed signals that are impossible to decode.

“Then let me go.”

His gaze falls to my lips and he leans in. “I can’t.”

Before I can blink, his lips feather over mine in a whisper of a kiss.

They’re gone just as quickly.

“Got it,” Jace declares, taking several steps back.

“Got what?” Cole questions, taking the words from my mouth.

Jace holds up his finger briefly then wipes it on his pants. “Dylan had an eyelash in her eye. You know what a baby she is when it comes to eyeballs.”