V is for Virgin (10 page)

“Yeah, it is,” Cara spoke up. I’m surprised she hadn’t interrupted us sooner. “And Lacy and Devon actually signed up for it!”

Cara just could not get over that.

Isaac’s smile turned very knowing as he asked, “Did they?”

Cara must have noticed Isaac’s look too because she went, “Hey, wait a minute. Isn’t Devon on the baseball team with you?”

Isaac winked at her then, and I’m pretty sure it gave her a heart attack.

“So what’d you have to bribe him with?” I managed to tease when Isaac looked at me again.

“I never said a word to Devon,” he replied innocently. Too innocently. “Must have been your excellent skills of persuasion.”

I willed myself to play it cool and with a deep breath said, “I have excellent persuasion skills, huh?” I picked out an A keychain that I’d sort of made just for him. “So are my persuasion skills convincing you to sport a Virgin Val original?”

Isaac pretended to think about it for a moment but the corners of his mouth curved up into a smile. “No,” he said dropping a twenty into the donation box Cara held. “It’s all your natural charm that’s doing it.”

He ignored the keychain in my hand and instead picked up a leather backpack chain with a silver little V on it that was similar to the one I wore around my neck.

I couldn’t believe it. He really was a virgin. He’d just been giving me a hard time that day. He smiled at my confusion and then sent me a heart-stopping wink of my very own as he walked away.

When he was gone, I stumbled backward, collapsing into a metal folding chair.

Cara gave me a moment before starting in on me, but then she asked—no, more like demanded, “Since when did you become such a vixen?”

“What?”

“Girl you were as smooth as a Ten-Ways-To-Make-Him-Fall-For-You article just now!”

“You think?” A tiny wave of relief washed over me because her exaggerations were usually based on some form of truth. “Because it felt like I was acting like a complete mental case.”

“Definitely not, V. I think you might have a shot.”

“Me? Have a shot with
Isaac Warren
?”

Cara and I were startled from our conversation by a painfully familiar voice. “Is that the douche bag who was just over here?” Kyle asked. I wouldn’t say he sounded jealous exactly, more like completely unimpressed. “You’re blowing me off for
that guy
?”

“He is not why I’m blowing you off,” I said, annoyed that the dreamy, lightheaded feeling I’d been experiencing was replaced with a giant pain in my you-know-what.

“Well that’s a relief, because you could do way better than—”

“Don’t get me wrong,” I interrupted him. “I
would
dump you for him in a heartbeat, but you’ve already given me a million other reasons to do so.”

“Name one!”

I didn’t even know where to start, so instead I asked, “What are you doing here?”

“I’ve got a show to do, remember? You only
begged
me to play for you.”

“
I
did not beg you,” I corrected him, pointing an accusing thumb at Cara. She started to protest, but then frowned because she couldn’t deny it. “I meant, what are you doing
here
.” I held up a keychain with a big red A on it. “Have you come to sign up for the abstinence challenge? You know, if you pledged your abstinence to me until our marriage, I might consider dating you.”

Kyle had such a good laugh at that, that by the time he regained control of himself he’d forgotten what we were talking about. “You’re going to close up shop while we play, right? I’ve got a couple of front row seats for you and the goddess here.” To Cara he said, “Shane’s been asking about you.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but Cara snatched the badges from Kyle’s hand before I could refuse them. “Of course we’re going to watch the show,” she said.

I managed to busy myself with my booth in order to ignore Kyle. Apparently he didn’t appreciate that since he grabbed hold of my wrist. “That means you too, right?” he asked, not convinced that I was included in Cara’s promise to watch him play.

I looked down at where he was touching me, warning him to let go, but instead of releasing me he slid his grip to my hand. I tried to pull away but he was too quick. “You know I’m only doing this show tonight for you, Legs.” He brought my hand to his lips. “I’d better see that pretty little face of yours smiling up at me when I sing.”

“Fine, whatever,” I grumbled, snatching my hand free. It was a lie of course. I was
not
going to go be his little groupie in the front row.

“Good.”

He wasn’t leaving. When I questioned him about that he said to Cara, “You look like you could use a break.”

Startled, Cara glanced back and forth between Kyle and me and shook her head. “V would kill me.”

“I just abandoned Shane in the pizza line. He’s probably feeling pretty lonely right now.”

Cara’s eyes grew wide.

“Do not ditch me!” I hissed.

“Sorry, V, the boy fights dirty. Ten minutes, I promise!”

“Traitor!” I called out as she left me alone with Kyle.

She blew me a kiss. “I’ll bring you back a slice of pizza.”

When I turned around, Kyle had wandered behind my booth and was sitting in my chair like he owned the place.

“That’s my seat.”

Kyle patted his lap. “I’m not stopping you from sitting in it.”

I rolled my eyes and sat down on Cara’s chair. “Cheesy lines like that will get you exactly nowhere with me, but, by all means, keep them coming. You’re so much easier to ignore when you’re being an idiot.”

“That was not me being an idiot. That was me being charming.”

“Awesome. That means this little game you’re trying to play will be a piece of cake for me.”

Kyle shook his head. “Admit it, you find me at least a little charming.”

“I used to think you were charming,” I admitted.

“Used to?”

“Back when you went to Huntington.” Kyle was so surprised by this that for once he didn’t have a sarcastic comeback. “I was a freshman when you were a senior,” I explained. “I remember you.”

“Really? I don’t remember you.”

“You wouldn’t.” I laughed. “I didn’t grow out of that gawky adolescent stage until sophomore year. When we were at school together I was a lot shorter, with a lot less highlights and a mouthful of braces.”

Kyle shuddered. “No wonder. Sounds like I blocked you from memory on purpose.”

I surprised us both when I laughed along with him.

“Did we ever meet?” Kyle asked curiously.

“Not technically. You held a door open for me once when I had my hands full.”

“How chivalrous of me.”

“It was. You saw me carrying a stack of books so you jumped ahead of me, pulled open the door and said, ‘After you,’ with a big, sweeping bow.”

“You make it sound like I was a dork.”

“Are you kidding? I swooned for a year after that.”

“Seriously?
That
made you weak in the knees? If that’s all it takes, then why are we still sitting here? Let’s go find a door already.”

I laughed again and then cursed myself for it. Why was he so easy to talk to? “Back then you were charming and considerate.”

“And what am I now?” Kyle asked. He still had that curious tone.

I shrugged. “Arrogant and slutty.”

I thought Kyle would be offended, but he burst out laughing. “Okay, I’ll grant you that. But I’m also still charming and considerate.”

“You are
not
charming.”

“Say that without smiling.”

I tried to wipe the smile from my face but was unsuccessful. “Fine. You have your moments. Rarely. But considerate? That’s a stretch.”

“I’m playing an entire show tonight for
charity
.”

“Please!” I laughed. “You have ulterior motives.”

“Okay, you’re right. Agreeing to play tonight was selfish, but I fixed the leak in the sprinkler system for my Grammy last week because Pops is too old to be digging in the dirt. You have to admit that’s considerate.” He gave me a hopeful look. “And a little bit sexy.”

An image of Kyle, shirt off, dirty and sweaty, manhandling a shovel, all to help his Grammy and Pops entered my head. It
was
considerate. And a lot sexy.

“You’re smiling again,” Kyle said, which, to my everlasting annoyance, only made my grin stretch wider.

“Fine,” I relented. “You’re, like, two percent charming and considerate, ninety-eight percent arrogant and slutty.”

“That means you like me at least two percent.”

“Not the best odds, Kyle.”

“You’ll be in love with me in a week.”

I rolled my eyes.

“Okay, my turn,” Kyle said. “Do you know what you are?”

“A virgin?” I guessed dryly.

Kyle laughed. “That too, but I was going to say stubborn and blunt. Which, in your case, I find
extremely
sexy.”

One of Kyle’s hands was suddenly resting on my thigh while the other was sweeping my bangs out of my eyes. “Come out with me after the show.”

Kyle’s body was doing that gravitational pull thing again. I hopped up out of my seat, fighting a wave of chills and started straightening a stack of pamphlets. “Can’t, sorry.” I tried to sound indifferent to the offer. “I have to stay until the end of the festival and then I’m on cleanup duty.”

I felt a finger run down the length of my spine, and then Kyle’s breath was on my neck. I jumped when I felt his lips brush over my skin. “Let’s go out after that, then,” he said in a low voice.

I whirled on him, but he didn’t back up. He planted his hands on either side of the booth, trapping me against it. I had to lean so far back to keep his lips off me that I nearly lost my footing.

I scrambled to break up the moment because the look in Kyle’s eyes was doing funny things to my insides. My hand clenched around a bracelet and I thrust it in his face. It was a simple black leather strap with a tiny A dangling from it. Perfect. “Here, why don’t you have this, Kyle? No donation necessary. Trust me, you need it.”

Kyle took the bracelet and examined it for a moment while still somehow managing to keep me pinned against the counter. “Cute,” he said then traced the necklace I was wearing. “But I want this one.”

I knew he was referring to my virginity, and not the actual necklace, but I couldn’t help the way I clutched it. “Okay, Kyle.” I gulped. “This is fun and all, but playtime’s over. I think you need to back up.”

“And I think you want to kiss me.”

I tried to hide the fact that my pulse had skyrocketed. I hated how my body wanted things my mind didn’t. I hated how even my brain was starting to forget what it wanted. I prayed he couldn’t read the truth in my face. “That’s because you’re arrogant,” I said.

Kyle’s lips tugged up into a half smile. “Don’t forget slutty.”

As if the title made it okay, he moved his hands from the countertop to my hips. I gasped when one of his hands grazed my butt and then dipped into the back pocket of my jeans. I smacked his chest hard and shoved him again until he backed up.

“Relax, Virgin Val.” He laughed and waved my phone in my face. He’d pulled it out of my pocket.

I hit him again for good measure. “You, jerk!”

Kyle ignored me and programmed his number into my cell phone. “Call me when you’re done tonight.”

“Ha! I don’t think so.”

“Okay, I’ll call you then.” He used my phone to call himself, effectively stealing my phone number.

“I won’t answer it.”

“Smile pretty,” he said and took my picture with his phone.

I’m sure the look on my face that would now come up in Kyle’s phone whenever I called—not that I was ever going to call him—was neither a smile nor pretty.

“Hey guys.” Cara was back now with Shane, and they were both watching us.

“I see what you mean,” Shane said to Cara.

I didn’t even want to know.

“How’s it going over here?” Cara asked, giggling.

“Great,” Kyle said. “Val and I have a hot date tonight.”

“Not, hardly. He practically just molested me!”

Kyle scoffed.

“It might be wise for you to leave now, Romeo,” Cara said, holding me back like she was afraid I was going to slap him. Since that’s exactly what I was thinking about doing, it’s a good thing he took her advice and left.

“Front and center tonight,” he demanded of me as he walked away. “I’ll be looking for you.”