The Boyfriend Deal (3 page)

“We can watch something else, Hadley. You can’t honestly tell me you care anything about the scores of the teams playing today.”

“No, but I thought you might like it.”

Something flashed in his eyes, a spark that was gone almost as quick as it had appeared. He tipped my chin up. “Thank you for thinking of me, but I want you to find something
you
enjoy. Okay?”

I nodded and he gently pressed his lips to mine. It was a brief kiss, but it was enough to make me tingle from head to toe. Flipping the TV over to Netflix, I put my favorite movie on and snuggled into Tyler. If he had a problem with us watching a romantic comedy, he never said a peep. When dinner was ready, Mom made him sit across from me, which was both a blessing and a curse. I wouldn’t be tempted to touch him if he sat over there, but he could watch me eat. I hoped I wouldn’t embarrass myself.

“We aren’t waiting for Mr. Ryan?” Tyler asked, eyeing Dad’s empty chair.

“Hadley’s father is a police officer, and he’s working second shift today. I’ll warm something up for him when he gets home later.” Mom smiled at him. “What do your parents do, Tyler?”

“Mom is a stay-at-home mom and Dad is an architect.”

“An architect? I would imagine it was hard for him to find work in a small town like this,” Mom said.

“He commutes to the city twice a week, but he has a home office set up for the rest of the time,” Tyler said. “These mashed potatoes are really great, Mrs. Ryan.”

Mom beamed at him.

The small talk wasn’t as uncomfortable as I’d thought it would be, and Mom didn’t grill Tyler as much as I’d thought she would. After Mom excused us from the table, giving me a pass on dishes for the night, I walked Tyler to the door.

“I bet your mom is wondering where you are,” I said.

Tyler shrugged. “She’s used to me being gone most of the time. I usually hang with the guys after school. It won’t be the first time I’ve missed dinner.”

“My mom would go nuts if I didn’t at least call or text after being out so late. You saw how she was after we went for ice cream, and that was only about an hour after school. Can you imagine if I stayed out all night without letting her know first?”

“I see your point. My mom is pretty laid back. Or maybe she’s just given up on me.”

I arched an eyebrow. “Military school doesn’t sound like she’s giving up. I think she cares about you a great deal and wants to make sure you turn into the type of man she can be proud of.”

Tyler kissed me softly. “And that’s why you’re the perfect girlfriend.”

If only he really meant that. It served as a reminder that all of this was for pretend, that the kisses and hand holding were all part of his grand scheme to avoid military school. My heart felt bruised as I realized, that perhaps, I’d gotten a little
too
into character. It had been so easy for me to believe that all of his words, all of his touches, had been because he was genuinely interested in me. He’d only asked me to the after game party because he wanted the school to see us together.

“Goodnight, Tyler.”

He pulled me in for a hug. “Goodnight, Hadley. I’ll pick you up at seven o’clock, and we’ll grab breakfast on the way.”

I nodded and watched him walk out to his car, shutting the door firmly behind him.

Mom came up behind me, drying her hands on a dishtowel. “I like him.”

Really? She’d hated Hunter, but she liked the sluttiest boy in school? Although, in all fairness, Hunter had turned out to be a creep, so I had to give her points there.

“He’s taking me to school tomorrow.”

Her brow furrowed. “You don’t think the two of you are moving a little fast? Didn’t you just meet today?”

“Mom, Tyler is the boy I’ve had a crush on since my first day of pre-K. It’s just, that for some reason, he never noticed me before now.”

“Maybe he’s not as smart as I thought he was,” she muttered. “Anyone who doesn’t notice you has to be blind. And judging by the way he couldn’t keep his eyes off you at dinner, I’m going to assume he can see rather well.”

I snickered.

“Just be careful, okay? I don’t want a Hunter repeat.” She grimaced. “Or worse.”

“What could be worse than Hunter?”

“You, pregnant at seventeen.”

My cheeks flamed. Well, there was no way that was going to happen. Sure, I’d kissed Tyler several times today, and held his hand, but that’s as far as things were going to go with us. If I hadn’t let my real boyfriend get past first base, no way was a fake one going to. With a smile at Mom, I hurried upstairs. My fingers flew over the keys of my phone as I told Amber about having ice cream with Tyler and about the kiss he’d given me at the door tonight. But as I sent the message, I wondered what she would think about it. She knew about the kiss in the hall, and about Tyler walking me to classes and sitting with us at lunch, but would she agree with Mom and think it was too much too soon? If my best friend wouldn’t believe me, would anyone else?

Chapter Four

Tyler

It didn’t surprise me to find Mom waiting in the living room when I got home. She gave me her usual disapproving look, and I knew I’d have to bring Hadley by soon. Setting my stuff down by the door, I sat in the chair beside her.

“You don’t have to lurk in the living room waiting for me to come home.” I’d told her that a million times, but she never seemed to listen.

“Out partying with your friends, I suppose.”

What she really wanted to ask was if I’d been getting hot and heavy with some girl in the back of my truck. If only she knew that the girl I was with now wasn’t about to let me get that far. Honestly, I was surprised Hadley didn’t smack the hell out of me for kissing her as much as I did today.

“Actually, I took my new girlfriend out for ice cream and then I had dinner at her house.”

Mom mumbled something under her breath that sounded like
another tart
.

“I think you’ll like Hadley, Mom. She’s really sweet and completely different from any girl I’ve dated before. She was dating this total loser though, until just a few weeks ago. I figured she’d had enough time to get over him so I made my move today.”

“Do you honestly expect me to believe that? If you’re really going out with some nice girl, I’m sure it’s only because of what I said. If I hadn’t threatened military school, you’d still be with Alicia, and we both know what
that
relationship is about.”

I felt my cheeks burn. Having your mother flat out tell you she knows you’re having sex with someone is uncomfortable to say the least. But she wasn’t wrong. The only reason I was ever with Alicia was because she put out. That chick would do anything I wanted, whenever I wanted. And while there was a certain attraction that couldn’t be denied, she wasn’t good for much else. While being with Hadley was going to put a kink in my usual activities, something told me she might be good for me. Yeah, I’d flirted with her today, doing my damnedest to make her blush, but it had been fun. I couldn’t remember the last time hanging with a girl had been fun.

“You can believe what you want, Mom, but Hadley is the real deal. I’ve never been with someone like her before, and I’m not going to screw it up. I’ll take things as slow as she wants because she’s worth it.”

Mom straightened in her seat. “This isn’t that girl you wrote about in your diary when you were younger, is it?”

My embarrassment was now complete. It was one thing to crush on the geek girl in elementary and middle school, and another for your mother to know about it. Or anyone for that matter.

“Guys don’t keep diaries, Mom. And yes, Hadley is the girl I talked about. As to how
you
know about that…”

She smiled.

“You know, some things are meant to be private.”

“You’re seventeen. You have no privacy in this house.”

All the more reason to go to a college out of state, or at least far enough away I’d have to stay in a dorm. Hell, maybe some girl would tame me between now and then, and we could play house. Getting an apartment didn’t sound so horrible, if there was someone to share it with.

“When do I get to meet her?” Mom asked.

“I’ll bring her around soon. I’m going to try giving her some space between now and Friday’s game, but she’s going to the after party with me. I’m sure she’ll have to be home by midnight or something, so I doubt I’ll be out late.”

“You aren’t going back to the party?” she asked. Her eyebrows shot up and her mouth dropped open.

“The point in going to a party solo is to hook-up with someone, and I’m not going to do that to Hadley, so no, I won’t be going back to the party. Once I leave with her, that’s it for the night. And I promised her mom I wouldn’t be drinking anything but soda or water.”

There was something that looked suspiciously like pride shining in my mom’s eyes, and I decided to get the heck out of there before things became really weird. When I got to my room, I checked my phone for the first time since leaving school with Hadley. I wasn’t surprised to see missed texts from Colin and Robert, wanting to know what the deal was with Hadley.

I wasn’t sure it was any of their business, but I sent both of them a message that I’d asked Hadley to go out with me. Immediately, my phone rang.

“You’re seriously going to date that Hadley chick?” Colin asked. “She’s in band or something. You’re going to lose major cool points if you don’t drop her tomorrow morning.”

“I’m not dropping her. I happen to like Hadley.” That wasn’t exactly a lie. I did like Hadley, maybe more than I’d realized.

“What the hell, man? You have Alicia. Besides, word in the halls is that Hadley doesn’t put out. Hunter said he had a serious case of blue balls after dating her.”

I doubted that very much. Hunter had hooked up with random girls at every party he’d been to without Hadley, which was a lot of them. Every time I’d seen him sneak off with some chick, or watched him paw her out in the open, I’d wanted to beat the shit out of him for cheating on Hadley like that. I’d known it was going to devastate her once she found out, and eventually someone had sent her the proof she needed to break up with the jackass. Just because she’d been beneath me socially didn’t mean I’d wanted to watch some asshole tear her world apart. That little part of me that had always been fascinated by her had wanted to stand up for her and knock the jackass’s teeth down his throat.

“I don’t care about the rumors Hunter is spreading. You and I both know he wasn’t faithful to her. Maybe knowing she has someone that wants her, and only her, will make a difference. Not that I’m trying to get in her pants. I really do like spending time with her. If you got to know her, you’d realize how funny and sweet she is.”

“Who are you and what have you done with Tyler?” Colin asked. “Do you hear yourself?”

Maybe he’d gone a little too far, but if he acted like an asshole with his friends, then they would expect that behavior with Hadley too. And if this plan was going to work, then Tyler really did need to become a different person, a kinder one. Someone who wasn’t a selfish asshole who only thought of himself.

“There’s more to a relationship than hooking up. I can have any girl I want; we both know that, and Alicia is proof that they’ll do whatever I ask. Maybe I like the fact Hadley won’t just fall at my feet and do anything. I liked spending time with her this afternoon, and I even had dinner at her house.”

“You never have dinner with the parents. You’re breaking all your rules with her,” Colin said. “Are you sure she’s worth the ridicule you’re going to face at school? What if your friends decide they can’t hang with you anymore?”

“Then they were never my friends. Is that what you’re saying? That I have to pick Hadley or you?”

Colin sighed. “It’s not like that, but I can’t afford to be seen with her. Besides, you know the girls aren’t going to like having her around. It’s one thing for them to share your attention between them, but adding someone else? That’s not going to fly.”

I really didn’t care what the girls thought, or anyone else for that matter. All right, that wasn’t entirely true. It was still important to me that I was popular, but maybe I didn’t have to rule the school the way I had up to this point. Once I’d become the star quarterback in ninth grade, everything had become brighter. Suddenly, everyone wanted to be my friend.

“Maybe I don’t care what everyone thinks anymore. I’m captain of the football team. Girls want me and guys want to be me. There are countless Alicias in the world, but there is only one Hadley. Maybe I think it’s worth getting to know her.”

“What, like you’re in love with her after one day?” Colin asked snidely. “You are seriously screwed up.”

“No, I’ve been screwed up the last three years. It’s time to make some changes in my life, and one of those is Hadley. If you can’t hang with me because of her, then go find a new best friend. I didn’t realize what we had was so fragile that my falling for a band geek would be enough to destroy it.”

Whoa! Did I just say I was falling for a band geek? What. The. Fuck. I mean, yeah, I liked Hadley and had for a while, but falling for her? Where the hell had that come from?

“Does she know you’ve totally flipped for her?” Colin asked.

“No, and I’m not ready to tell her yet.” Hell, I wasn’t ready to tell myself that. “She knows I’m into her and that I’m serious, but I don’t think she realizes how serious.”

“For the record, I don’t agree with your decision to date beneath you. Out of all the girls in school, why did it have to be that one?”

“I think if you got to know Hadley, you’d be able to answer that yourself. She’s different, Colin. She makes good grades; she’s talented, and she’s probably the sweetest girl I’ve ever met.” Except for when she was puffing up at me with narrowed eyes and a few sharp words. “Hadley is unique. The other girls are all alike.”

“Don’t come crying to me when this blows up in your face.”

“Everything is going to be fine.”

At least, that’s what I told myself as I hung up the phone, but really I wasn’t one hundred percent sure. There was Alicia to deal with, and Hadley was still being tormented by Hunter. I’d like to think my presence would deter him from bothering her, but for all I knew, it would have the opposite effect and he’d come after her even more now. As for the psycho in my life, I knew it was only a matter of time before she would strike. She’d never come after me, but Hadley would be fair game to her. Talking to Alicia never did any good, but if she caused too much trouble, I’d have to report her to the school. It had been funny when she’d tormented the others, but I wasn’t about to let anyone hurt Hadley in any way.

My phone dinged and I read Robert’s message.
The band geek?

Yeah, so Hadley was a band geek. Why was everyone hung up on that? It wasn’t like it determined who she was. She played the flute, and from what I remembered, she did it rather well. Did that somehow make her less of a person than one of the girls on the cheer squad? In my eyes it didn’t, and it never had. No, we hadn’t travelled in the same social circle, not even when she’d dated Hunter, but I would have gladly given up everything in my life for a chance to be with her. Now I had that opportunity, and I wasn’t going to let it pass me by. I just had to find a way to take this fake romance and make it into the real deal.

Me:
She’s more than a band geek

Robert:
She’s kinda hot

Me:
Don’t even think of flirting with my girlfriend

Robert:
LOL it’s been one day and she’s your gf already?

Me:
Sometimes you just know

Robert:
Then she’s okay by me. Alicia is going to be pissed

Me:
Help me keep an eye on Hadley?

Robert:
You got it. When do I get to meet her?

Me:
Tomorrow morning at her locker

I didn’t hear from Robert again, but I assumed we’d see him in the morning. It was nice to have the support of at least one of my friends. Who knew the guys I hung out with were such jerks? I shouldn’t have been surprised by Colin’s comments, but I was hurt he thought so little of our friendship that he wouldn’t even give Hadley a chance. I’d been friends with Colin and Robert since grade school, but it seemed that didn’t mean very much to Colin.

I set my phone aside and stripped down to my boxers. There was an essay I should probably have worked on, but I still had a few days. The same assignment had been given to Hadley’s class, so maybe she’d want to study together one night this week, and we could write them together. I’d never done homework with a girl before. Not really. I’d
said
I was doing homework, but we’d ended up making out the entire time. If Hadley really didn’t plan to let me get past first base, I had a feeling I’d get lots of homework done over the next few weeks, if not longer. And I was okay with her wanting to hold out. I didn’t want her to do something that made her uncomfortable or didn’t feel right. A lot of girls gave it up because they were lost in the moment, but if something ever happened between Hadley and me, I wanted it to be for the right reasons, and not just because she felt good right then. If I wanted easy, I’d stay with Alicia, despite what Mom had said.

I was turning into a sap. If the guys knew how worried I was about Hadley’s feelings, then they would revoke my man card. Not to mention all of the teasing I’d endure. Although, if Colin was right, I was probably facing quite a bit of teasing anyway just for wanting to be with Hadley. And I was okay with that. To me, she was worth it. Of course, I had to make her believe I wanted to be with her when things got bad at school. Normally, I’d say a few more kisses and she’d be eating out of my hand, but not with Hadley. She was different, and different was good. Very good.

Morning couldn’t come soon enough. I couldn’t wait to see what she’d wear in the morning, and I was definitely looking forward to breakfast.