Kiss with Cherry Flavor (Grover Beach #4) (7 page)

Not long after Simone’s call, Alex and Nick entered the café, laughing hard as they scanned the place for us. They saw Tony first and went over t
o say hi. We couldn’t hear what they were talking about, but Simone grunted under her breath, “They’d better not dare tell him about our plan.”

Next, Tony laughed out loud, too. It was an amazingly beautiful sound. One that made me
want him to return my look. But he didn’t. He wiped the counter, then went through a swing door to a connected room, and the other two came over to us.

“Hey, girls, what’s
up?” Alex said as he lifted one leg over the backrest of Simone’s chair and took a seat right behind her, moving her forward to the edge but wrapping one arm securely around her middle.

Nick pulled a chair from a
nearby table and turned it around so he could straddle it backward next to me. “Hey, Finn Girl. What’s so urgent that you had to see me straight away?”

Yeah, what was that again, Simone?

I shrugged. “Umm…nothing important, really. So…you guys been playing video games?”

Simone banged her head on the table.
“Ugh, Sam. It doesn’t work like that.”

“What?” I snapped at her, lifting my shoulders. “I just don’t think this is a good idea.”

“What’s not a good idea?” Nick wanted to know—of course.

Simone lifted her head, shoving her hair out of her face, and fixed Nick with a determined expression. “All right, since Sam doesn’t want to do it, could
you
please flirt a little with her?”

Nick stared back at her for a couple of seconds,
then he tilted his head at me like he was deliberating the idea. But in the end he looked back at Simone, totally clueless. “
What
?”

Simone
moaned. “We want to show Tony that he should take Sam a little more seriously or she’ll be off with someone else. And we need your help.”

“Nuh-uh, baby,” Alex said behind her. “You can’t expect us to betray our pal.”

“I can and I do.” She shifted between his legs so she could look at him over her shoulder. “Last night, you said yourself that Mitchell needs a kick in the butt to work up the guts to ask Sam out. Or
didn’t
you?”

“Well, yeah. But I didn’t mean we should trick him. I mean, he’s our friend
after all.”

“Yes.” Nick sent me a quirky look. “No offense, Sam, but I don’t think he’d like it if I fooled around with you.”

“But that’s the whole point,” Lisa explained. “If he doesn’t like it, he’ll realize that he likes her more than just as a friend. Get it?”

The boys looked at each other for a moment. Eventually, Nick shrugged. Alex reasoned, “Weird girl logic.”

“Folks! Do I get a say in this, too?” I grumbled, because I didn’t want anyone to help me make Tony jealous. I didn’t want Tony jealous at all. Heck, I was done with him. Couldn’t they understand that?

“No!” all three girls replied at once.

Fantastic. I was so screwed.

Nick scooted a little closer to me. “So basically you want me to do what? Sit with you like Simpkins
and Winter?”

I scrunched up my face. “In fact, I’d feel very uncomfortable if you did that.”

He leaned into my ear and said in a very low and almost whiny voice, “I think I would, too.” Sounding far too sweet for his six-foot-something, it made me giggle.

At that moment, I caught a glimpse of Tony looking over at us. He’d come back from the other room and
was wiping the menu boards now. A muscle in his jaw ticked.

Oh my
God
. Did this mean Simone’s stupid plan was already working?

Tony stopped wiping. Our gazes locked across the distance. His brows suddenly pulled to a deep V, but the glare wasn’t meant for me. He
was looking to my right—where Nick was sitting, just as he was putting his arm around my shoulders.

“Hey, Tony!”
Nick shouted. “Can you bring the girl a lollipop? I hear she’s having withdrawals already.”

Next, I felt Nick’s breath against my cheek as he whispered, “If
Mitchell kills me for this later, it’s all your fault.”

“Not mine. Simone’s,” I hissed back.

Tony pulled a lollipop out of the candy jar on the counter and came over to us. He didn’t say a word but tossed a lollipop on the table. It bounced with a hard clicking sound, and I caught it in my lap. It was cherry flavored. Chancing a shy look at Tony’s face, I croaked a hoarse, “Thank you.”

He didn’t reply. As he turned on the spot, ready to head off again, Alex asked him something about their trigonometry class, but I couldn’t listen in, because Nick bumped against my shoulder then.

“Hey, Finn Girl, are you cheering at our soccer game on Saturday?”

I dragged my gaze away from Tony, looking helplessly at the other girls. We
’d talked about it once this week, but apart from Allie and another girl called Teresa, none of us felt ready for it. And then I’d missed the practice yesterday.

“Are you girls going?” I asked them.

Simone shrugged. Lisa shook her head, looking as uncertain as I felt. “I don’t think so,” she said. “I can hardly keep the steps in my mind.”

“I say we skip this one and cheer at the next game,” Simone suggested. “
But we can go watch the game together.”

“Just what I thought,” I agreed.

“Ah, shame.” Nick leaned back and pouted in a very unmanly way. “I really wanted to see you dance. I heard it looks”—his pout turned into a smirk—“
hawt
.”

I laughed. “Who said that?”

His lips sealed for once, Nick glanced at Tony, who still stood next to Alex. I followed his gaze. An awkward silence stretched between the guys. Slowly, Tony’s lips curled in the parody of a smile. “Thank you,
Nick
.”

“You’re welcome,” Nick replied, looking
all smug and happy.

THURSDAY AND FRIDAY were quiet. Thank God. I needed the time to calm my nerves after what
had happened with Tony. Ignoring him—or rather not looking at him at school when my mind seemed permanently fixed on him still—became easier and easier. Susan said he was staring at me a lot during lunch. As long as he didn’t talk to me, I didn’t care. Well, that’s what I told myself anyway.

There would come a day when I would probably speak to him again. Maybe even hang out with him and have fun, like I had with the others. But for now that day was shoved far into the future
, when I knew I could do all this and wouldn’t have to fight the impulse to throw myself at him.

I
was also grateful for a timeout from Chloe. There were no jibes from her for the rest of the week. Whew. I could breathe again.

But she was so silent, it started to scare me. I didn’t trust her one bit.
Especially after what Tony had told me about her—how scheming she could be. I kept a wary distance.

On Saturday, I got up early, because the girls and I had a plan. The Bay Sharks would
go up against the Rabid Wolves at two thirty. And we intended to wear our school’s colors for the game.

Since boring slacks and a blue tee
didn’t seem like enough, we’d decided to first go shopping together, then meet the guys before the game and borrow some old jerseys from them. Shortly before noon, I came back home with stone-washed blue jeans I got from H&M, a brand new pair of dark red tennis shoes, and a matching bandana in my bag. All I needed now was a spare jersey from Nick, which he’d promised to lend me on Wednesday at Charlie’s.

After I showered and dried my hair in a saucy style, making the ends stand out, I slipped into my new clothes, topping them with a gray tee for now. Downstairs, I twirled in front of my aunt.

“You look great. I love those shoes!” she exclaimed. “Did you just get them?”

“Yes. All my friends got the same
ones. To support our school’s soccer team.”

Chloe entered the living room then, already dressed in her soccer
jersey. If she’d been a little more
my cousin
and not my enemy since I’d come to live in her house, I would have asked her if I could borrow one of her jerseys. But she was cold as ever, and I decided I’d better stick with Nick.

“They look rather expensive,” Chloe said with a knowing voice, nodding her chin at my red Nikes. Then she arched one brow at her mom. “I’m wondering now
if we know who took the money from your purse.” After that she gave me a sly smile and walked into the kitchen.

Slowly, I turned to my aunt. “What
’s that supposed to mean?”

Pamela grimaced, obviously at a loss
for words. “The two hundred dollars you gave me from Jack last weekend. I went to pay Jab Jenkins for his work this morning, but the money had disappeared.”

My throat went dry. “Disappeared?”

“I had it in my purse all week. But it wasn’t there this morning. So we think someone must have taken it.”

My eyes grew wide. “And you think that
someone
was
me
?”

Pamela came forward and took my hand
s, her look sincere. “Of course not! I know you’re not a thief, Sammy.” As she sighed, I had the feeling she didn’t even realize she had. “But you would tell me if the money your mom sends isn’t enough for you, right? I mean, if you need anything, you can ask me, anytime. You know that.”

Oh my God. She did think I’d taken it. How could she? If it was Jack who
’d accused me, I would have been more likely to believe it. But
Pam
? I loved her like my own mother. I would never steal anything from her—from anyone,
ever
.

My hands shook. I pulled away and took a step back. My throat constricted with hurt. It took quite an effort to keep my voice steady and cold as I said, “I’ll be at a friend’s party after the game. You don’t have to
wait up for me.” Then I turned around and headed out.

“Sammy! Wait
! Sam…”

Ignoring her pleading, I slipped out the door and strode off. The mistrust of my family cut deep into me. Honesty was one of my main principles, if not the top one. Pamela knew this. She knew
me
. What made her doubt me?

I swallowed against a tight throat.
But, of course, I knew whose doing it was. Clenching my teeth, I walked a little faster. That was the last straw. I wouldn’t take shit from Chloe any longer. I would make her pay for trying to destroy my life.

But not today.

It was sunny and warm, and the day had started out too nice with my friends. I was looking forward to the soccer game and even more so to the party at Ryan Hunter’s house later. I’d finally found a way to deal with the problem called “Anthony J. Mitchell” by not looking at him and staying away. Now I simply refused to let my cousin destroy it all for me.

After a few deep breaths, I could finally shake the anger off and Chloe out of my thoughts. Today, I was going to have fun.
No matter what.

When I reached the soccer field, some of the players were already there and in the middle of stretches while others jogged back and forth between the goalposts
to warm up. I spotted Susan with them, and Sasha and Alex. Allie and Simone sat on the first bench of the bleachers. They both wore bright blue jerseys with a red shark on the back, which they’d gotten from Sasha and Alex.

I joined the girls, settling down beside Simone. A moment later,
Lisa and Ryan came walking toward us hand in hand, Lisa wearing her boyfriend’s jersey, too. Nervously, I scanned the place for Nick. The game was going to start in fifteen minutes, and I still had to change. But he was nowhere to be seen.

Instead my gaze landed on Tony. He was sitting on the
team bench tying his cleats. Once again I was struck by how gorgeous he looked in the light blue uniform. He came over with some of his team mates. As all the girls kissed their guys and wished them luck, Susan leaned closer to me and said in a deep rumbling voice, “How about it, Summers? Want to kiss me for some luck?”

Have
I said that I love Susan? With her unexpected jokes, she could make me grin during the most difficult situations. And just for that, I blew her a romantic kiss, like I was a princess and she the stable lad. Everyone laughed. Even Tony fought against a smile when I sneaked a sideways glance at him. The sight of it eased some of the frustration in my chest from the events back home.

For one impossible moment, I wanted to blow him a kiss, too. However, he noticed my gaze on him and lifted his brows
in question.

Yeah, right. As if I’d tell him I wanted to send him a kiss. I looked away quickly. But warmth sneaked to my cheeks. Fortunately, Nick arrived then and, already in a hurry, he tossed a bundle of blue fabric at me.

“Sorry for being so late. Here’s your jersey, Sam,” he said, slightly out of breath.

I hurried behind the bleachers to trade my gray top for the blue one, but when I looked down at myself, disappointment filled me. “Nick?” I shouted as I walked back to the others. “How old were you when you wore this?”

“Fourteen.”

As I turned the corner,
Lisa sucked in a breath and Simone clapped her hand to her mouth.

“You’ve always been on the tall side, haven’t you?” I
asked Nick with a wry face.

He stared at me, pursing his lips. “Maybe use a belt and make it a mini-dress?”

“Ha. Ha.” I lifted the hem of the shirt from my knees. “A ball gown would be more like it.” The short sleeves almost reached my wrists. Just my luck that I’d asked the tallest guy on the team for his jersey.

Susan coughed into her fist,
saying in a slurred way, “Tony has one.”

“What?” I wasn’t even sure if she was talking to me.

As Tony fixed her with an annoyed scowl, Susan lifted her shoulders and heaved a dramatic sigh. “Now, come on,” she said to him. “I know you have a second jersey in your backpack. You always trade in the middle of the game. Would it kill you to lend it to Sam today?”

Not answering, Tony folded his arms over his chest.

“For heaven’s sake, give it to her already,” Lisa snapped at him, rolling her eyes. “We’re doing this for
all
of you guys. And you don’t want Sam to look like Casper the ghost, do you?”

S
he could be so charming. But it coaxed a smirk out of Tony as he stared at me for a long moment. Then he tilted his head in a challenge. “You want it?”

Ah, shit. I chewed on my bottom lip
because, let’s face it, I needed one.

“Of course she wants it,” Simone cut in.

Tony didn’t take his eyes off me. “I’m not talking to you, Simpkins.” His tone was friendly but determined. He arched a brow. “Now?”

After another deep breath, I finally nodded, mumbling, “Yes. That wo
uld be great.” I rolled my eyes, hating how he’d gotten me to ask him for it.

The corners of his mouth tilted up. As he went to fetch his jersey, I scowled at Susan and
Lisa, who both smiled at me in the sweetest way.

Tony came back with the extra jersey draped over his shoulder. I tugged it down. Before I could head around the bleachers, though, he caught my wrist. Spinning me back to him, he dipped his head and looked me in the eye. I sucked in a
sharp breath. His gaze softened the very next instant. “Don’t put paper shreds in this one when you give it back to me,” he said in a low rumble, so only I could hear.

“Won’t happen,” I answered, fighting against my shaking voice. “I don’t have any more
of your drawings.” I pulled free and strode off behind the bleachers once more, my heart still pounding like a bass drum. Securely out of sight of the others, I couldn’t resist sniffing Tony’s jersey. Oh damn, how I’d missed that scent…

I
took off Nick’s shirt and changed into this one. It was still too long, but the sleeves only reached to my elbows and the hem hung loosely at the middle of my thighs. Shoving it up to my stomach, I wound the fabric around my hand, then made a casual knot at my side. This way, it changed from a nightgown to a nice belly top, showing off my piercing. Far better.

After I tied the bandana around my neck, I shook my shoulders to look relaxed before I strolled back to the others. No one, least of all Tony, should know how excited I was to wear something
of his again.

Avoiding his gaze, I walked up to Nick and
handed him his jersey back. Whistling through his teeth, he gave me a slow once-over. “Nice, Summers,” he purred aloud for everyone to hear.

Wondering if he really liked what he saw or if he still was on that
“let’s make Tony jealous” trip, I offered him an easy smile. Then Simone surprised me as she exclaimed, “Hell, Sam, you look
hot
in that! What do you think, Tony?”

A
ll my nonchalance was lost in an instant. The smile slipped from my face as I turned around. My palms got sweaty. What was he going to say?

He looked at me for a long time. Multiple emotions played out in his eyes, but I couldn’t label even one precisely. Then his expression turned totally blank. “Well, it’s better than before.” He shrugged,
spun around, and headed out onto the field.

Everyone was silent for a couple of seconds.
Finally Lisa nudged my shoulder with hers and said in a low voice, “Ah, never mind. He’s a jerk.”

I took a deep breath
then lied, “I don’t mind.” Fighting for my casual smile to come back, I stepped onto the bench, kissed Nick on the cheek, and wished him good luck for the game.

Wh
ile the guys headed out after Tony, the girls and I found a seat on the bleachers again. The game started a few minutes later.

It probably wasn’t the most interesting
match in the world, but it was the first I’d ever watched from beginning to end. Our team was playing really well, taking the lead quickly. Ryan and Alex each scored within the first fifteen minutes. Then the Rabid Wolves turned the tables on them. It was Chloe who scored next and balanced the score once more.

Susan looked adorable out on the
field, but she didn’t get the ball very often and had even less chances to shoot. It didn’t matter. She seemed to be enjoying herself.

In the second half, Tony and Ryan were on a roll, as both of them scored
another goal, leaving the other team far behind. Lisa, Simone, Allie, and I jumped from our seats each time, hollering and whistling.

The atmosphere among the spectators was amazing.
Intoxicating. Every time the Bay Sharks scored, people started shouting:

Watch out!

Turn around!

The Bay Sharks are on the field
.

We will win and you will yield.

Back off!

Look around!