Operation Prom Date (Tactics in Flirting, #1)(48)

Talk about line crossing.

But I wasn’t sure I was strong enough to refuse, and for once, it had nothing to do with trying to help her out.





Chapter Twenty-Nine


Kate


As soon as the words left my mouth I wanted to stuff them back in. Yet I couldn’t take it back. I needed help, and Cooper had been with me through this entire journey. The fact I’d made it so far only proved he knew what he was doing.

The longer he stared, the tighter my skin stretched, and my heart ceased working correctly, doing a thudding instead of beating thing in my chest.

Then the hand he had on my shoulder slowly drifted up and cupped my neck, his thumb resting against the pulse point underneath my jaw.

My blood rushed there in response, so quickly it left me dizzy.

“It’s really pretty simple,” he said, but his voice was huskier than usual. He lowered his head, his mouth lined up with mine.

I reached up and curled my hand around his forearm, sure I was going to need to hold on to something.

“Ready?” he whispered, his breath hitting my lips.

My voice didn’t work, so I nodded.

His gaze bored into me for one long, intense second, and then he pressed his lips to mine. A thrill shot through me, from where our mouths made contact all the way down to my toes.

He increased the pressure, teasing my lips farther apart. His arm wound around my waist, and he used it to pull me tighter to him. I melted into his embrace and captured his bottom lip between both of mine.

I sucked it lightly, euphoria tingling through me when he groaned.

His tongue swept into my mouth, just a brief taste that set my body on fire.

Oh yeah, this is what kissing is supposed to be like.

I drove my fingers through his hair and he tilted his head, deepening the kiss and leaving the world spinning around us.

Time froze and sped up.

The ground fell out from under me.

And I wanted more.

I tipped onto my toes and ran my tongue across his lips. His fingers dug into my skin as he eradicated every inch of space between us, and when he swirled his tongue around mine, I was grateful for my grip on his arm and his strong hold on me, because my knees buckled.

But he didn’t let me fall.

He never let me fall.

When we broke apart, he looked at me, his eyes dazed. But as soon as he blinked, they sharpened and he cleared his throat. “So, yeah. Something like that.”

I raised a hand and pressed my fingertips to my still tingling lips. I didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t sure I was capable of speech anymore. Breathing pretty much took all my effort right now, and the world hadn’t stopped spinning yet.

Finally I found my voice. “Um, well…thanks. Coach.” Now I sort of wished my voice had stayed lost. Since I couldn’t stop the awkward train once it was in motion, I even added a punch to his shoulder.

Cooper’s eyebrows drew together. He ran a hand through his hair and glanced back at his house. “Guess I better get back before my parents realize I’m gone.”

But the sparks! I needed to know if he felt the sparks, too. They were still shooting through me, laying waste to every tingle and flutter I’d ever felt with Mick, and making me crave more.

Say something…

“I should probably get home, too.”

Not that. But here I was thinking about our kiss, and he seemed to be looking to escape. If he wanted more—if he’d felt the sparks I had—this was the perfect opportunity for him to say so.

Then again, I supposed I could say something. Maybe. I licked my lips, my heart pumping double time, but fear held me back—fear of rejection and of messing up our friendship, and I couldn’t stop thinking about those awful days where he’d needed space, and how hard it would be to get through the rest of the school year without him. “See you tomorrow?”

“Yeah,” he said, his gaze skimming right over me. “Tomorrow.”

A tight band formed around my chest, and I scolded myself for letting my emotions get tangled up in his kissing lesson. I should’ve known this was a horrible idea. Honestly, I hadn’t been thinking clearly at all, and that was the problem. Impulsive emotional decisions never worked out well for me. Carefully laid plans with bullet points were where it was at.

Cooper started away, and my heart dropped to my toes. Then he spun back and gave me a half smile that held a hint of sorrow. “’Night, Kate. I hope all your dreams come true.”

Which meant that he wanted me to take Mick to prom, right?

I didn’t even wish him a good night. I just stood there, beyond confused, wondering when I’d let myself fall for the wrong boy.





Chapter Thirty


Kate


Armed with the knowledge of how to kiss, I approached Mick in the school hallway, telling myself to ignore the people around him.

But at the last minute I chickened out and dodged the other way.

Actually, calling it chickening out was chickening out in its own way. My detour was more about thinking about someone else than being scared to talk to Mick. I was too afraid to dive deep into that complication, though, because I wasn’t sure how the other half of that equation felt about me.

On my way to my locker, several guys smiled at me—including one of Mick’s closest friends, which I thought was weird. Did that mean Mick didn’t tell them we’d gone on a date?