“I shook my head at him. “Unbelievable. You have no claim here,” I said, gesturing to myself. “You have no right to be upset that I’m dating Jack. You had your chance.”“I guess I’m not as okay with it as I thought I was. I don’t like seeing him with you,” he said, and I wasn’t sure if it was because Jack was a known player or if Jack was suddenly playing with me.”

“I like you too, Zack,” I said, leaning my head against his shoulder, so I could look up at him. “You’ve sort of had me . . . enamored, I guess is the right word . . . since we met.”He laughed. “You were enamored with me?”I nodded. “Yeah, I was. It’s sad, but I was completely enamored with you. I blame your eyes, and your stupid guitar playing. I’m a sucker for a guy with a guitar.”“Don’t forget my kissable lips,” he said, as he kissed my neck, trailing his lips down to my collarbone. I sighed, a long, deep, satisfied sigh.”

“Connor suddenly reached out and touched the side of my face with his finger, right near my eye. “You have the most beautiful eyes,” he said softly, and I nearly melted.“I’m not going to sleep with you,” I said softly, feeling the need to clarify that point.“I’m not asking you to,” he said, tilting his head down slightly. Ever so gently, he pressed his lips to mine.”

“I disarmed you with my smile?” I called out when he was a few feet from me, raising my eyebrows.He turned and smirked at me. “You sure did.”“You totally snaked that from a Smashing Pumpkins song,” I said, shaking my head.“The fact that you know that is incredibly sexy.”“I told you, I’m not like most girls.”

“I’m just glad you took me back,” he said, grinning widely. Stupid grin. It made me want to kiss him, and I shouldn’t have wanted to kiss him.”

“You love it, don’t you? Admit it. I got you excited about football.” He was gloating as he did a little victory dance.You got me excited about something, that’s for sure.“I love it,” I said, grinning back at him. I poked him in the stomach while he danced around like an idiot, feeling his taught stomach beneath my fingers.”

“I kissed his forehead. “You don’t have to thank me. I told you, I do anything for someone I care about.”He pulled away and looked up at me. “You said you do anything for someone you love.”I didn’t know how to respond to that. We were in such a precarious place. I didn’t want to say anything that might scare him away or let him know how I truly felt, because at the end of the day, I loved him. It was that simple. Instead I gave him a small smile. “I did say that, didn’t I?”