by Amanda Ashby
He’d expected Piper to protest, but she didn’t. Just threw up her hands as her character blew through the map, sweeping past cluttered groups of players. She scaled a wall, revived a teammate, and snatched the flag. All within a couple of minutes.
Norah gave back the controller. “There. Now you’ve finished.”
“You game?” Zac’s mouth opened. The last time he’d played, it had taken him an hour to do that.
“Shows you don’t really know her.” Gareth snorted, and Norah gave him a sharp glance.
“Sure, sometimes. Why?”
“No reason.” Zac shook his head. Apart from the fact it was hot. Seriously hot.
Piper reluctantly put down the controller. “Fine. I’ll go out into the cruel harsh light of day while you two stay inside. Though I’m not sure what I’ve done to be punished like this.”
“Maybe it’s the fact you volunteered.” Gareth snatched an armful of posters. “You know real life won’t kill you, right?”
“No, but your moaning might.” Piper shrugged on her army jacket and gave Norah an apologetic grimace. “If I strangle him, it won’t be my fault.”
“No one’s killing anyone,” Norah said in a calm voice. “Oh, and don’t forget to ask at the organic shop if you can put one on their noticeboard.”
“I’ve got the list,” Gareth said. “At least one of us won’t let you down.” This was directed at Zac.
“Come on.” Piper hooked her arm through his. “Let’s go. And it’s your turn to buy ice cream.”
“It most certainly isn’t,” he retorted as they disappeared out of the den and through the front door. As soon as they were gone, Zac turned to her.
“Are they always like that?”
A half smile tugged at her mouth. “Yup. Gareth moved into the house next door to Piper when we were in sixth grade. First weekend he crashed our tea party with his Nerf guns. Piper was furious and refused to give back the bullets. It was their first argument. But instead of stopping him, it kept happening until we finally invited him to play. It’s been the three of us ever since.”
“Except now Gareth has a crush on you.”
Her cheeks went pink and she frowned. “It’s not like that. He doesn’t like change…and I guess you’re change. Speaking of which, I’m sorry about volunteering your services to be auctioned off. I know I should have backed you, but G’s right. With you there, we’ll get loads more bids.”
“It’s fine. I do dumb things all the time. Might as well make some money from it,” he said in a light voice, a little stung she was so happy for him to go on a date with someone else. “So, what’s the plan, boss?”
Her eyebrow lifted. “Boss?”
“Too much? I could go back to honey if you want,” he said, and she wrinkled her nose. A strand of long straight hair fell across her face, half covering the pale scattering of freckles along the bridge of her nose.
His gaze drifted back to her mouth. She had really great lips. The color of berries, full and soft. He should stop looking. Problem was it was like having candy in the house and not eating it. In other words, impossible.
“Here’s a list of more potential businesses.” She flipped through a large folder and extracted a sheet of paper. “I’ve added in some more information about the education program that’s run before the toilets are built, since you’re comfortable talking about it.”
“Sure.” He reached for the paper. Her mouth was parted, and if he leaned forward he could kiss her.
His mouth on hers.
Zac stiffened and the paper fell to the ground. Hell. Get it together, Mackenzie. He bent to retrieve it.
“You okay?” she asked when he straightened.
Yup. Just having inappropriate thoughts. Don’t mind me.
“All good,” he lied, walking over to the couch. He stabbed the first number into his phone and reminded himself he was there for toilets, not for making out.
An hour later, he put down the phone and rolled his shoulders. Four more donations in the bag. His stomach rumbled and his legs were cramped from sitting still for so long.
Norah, who’d been leaning over her laptop, glanced up. Her cheeks were flushed and her eyes were bright.
“How did it go?”
“Great.” He stood and shook out his legs. “Though I’m not sure how you manage. I feel exhausted.”
“I find that hard to believe. You play for ninety minutes, and I read some midfielders run up to nine miles during a game.”
He stopped his walking and spun around. “You read up on soccer?”
“I know you said not to bother, but I was curious,” she said, then wrinkled her nose. “Though the offside trap made no sense.”
“Yeah, you’re not alone,” he admitted, still trying to figure out what it meant that she’d looked up the rules. He gave her a smile. “I’ll show you.”
Her eyes fluttered with uncertainty. “You’re going to show me how to play soccer in Piper’s den?”
“Don’t worry. I stopped breaking windows when I was twelve,” he said before rolling his eyes. “Fine, fourteen. But I’m a reformed character, I swear.”
He walked over to the low coffee table. There was a scattering of magazines. He pushed them to one side and reached for the two soda cans Piper and Gareth had left behind. He found a collection of ornamental cats. Wouldn’t be the first time a backline of defenders had had sharp claws.
He dropped down onto the carpet, leaning against the table as he lined the cats up in front of the stack of magazines that were the makeshift goal. He nodded for her to join him. Indecision flashed across her face, then she dropped to her knees on the other side of the coffee table.
“You’re giving me a soccer lesson with cans?” Curiosity danced in her eyes as she leaned forward, her elbows propped up on the table.
“Yup, why not?” He put one can further down the field and put the second one closer to the goal, in line with the cats. Finally he reached for her packet of jellybeans. He plucked one out. “Sorry, dude. You’re about to become a ball.”
A smile tugged at her mouth. “You know it can’t hear you, right?”
“Shhhh, don’t listen to her,” Zac informed the jellybean and put it at the base of the can. “So, here we go. Our handsome midfielder, whose name might start with Z, decides to kick the ball to his forward, who is lurking in between the defenders. But, as he kicks, our cats all move away from the goal, in a straight line.” He bumped the cats further up the field, leaving the forward on the wrong side of the defense. “And when the ball reaches our poor guy, he’s suddenly in an off-side position. Caught in the trap!”
When he finished, he took the jellybean and put it in his mouth. Norah tilted her head, staring at the cans.
“Still makes no sense?” he asked.
“Sorry, I guess the dark arts of soccer are not to be mine.” She picked up one of the cats and toyed with it. “You seem to really love it.”
“You got all that from soda cans and candy?”
“Are you ever serious?” She leaned forward.
“Sometimes on a Wednesday.” He shrugged, but her mouth was still set in a frown, as if waiting for an answer. He sighed and rested his elbows on the table. “Okay, yeah. I’d be bummed if it wasn’t part of my life.”
“How did you get into it?”
“You might have noticed I’m not great at sitting still. By the time I was six, I’d broken my arm twice, not to mention busted some ribs and sprained my ankles more times than my mom can remember. I was forever climbing and jumping on things and driving the whole family crazy. My folks finally booked me into a soccer camp. I think they wanted to wear me out for a few days,” he said, returning his gaze to the cat in her hand. “Turns out I was finally good at something. Not just Via’s dumb brother.”
Her head shot up. “You’re not dumb.”
“Yeah, yeah. Zac’s got street sense. Drop him and he’ll always land on his feet.” He shrugged, rubbing the back of his neck. “You do
n’t need to give me the speech. I’ve heard it enough times over the years.”
“I didn’t know you felt that way,” she said in a soft voice.
He dragged in a breath.
Probably because he didn’t tell anyone. Apart from Via. Tension built in his jaw.
“Now you do. It’s why I can’t be benched. My only shot at getting into college is with soccer. Which won’t happen if I sit out a season.”
“There’s more to you than soccer, Zac. Besides, would it really be the end of the world?” She leaned forward, dark silky hair falling over her shoulder. They were closer now. At eye level.
“If I didn’t get into college? Yeah, kind of.”
“Why?” Her eyes blazed with curiosity.
“Why?” The ache in his jaw disappeared and he blinked. “What do you mean?”
“I don’t know.” She studied him. “Just the whole going to college thing. It’s a big debt, and the job market isn’t guaranteed when you come out of it. It’s not for everyone.”
He flinched. Did she mean it wasn’t for him?
But her gaze wasn’t on him.
Was she talking about herself?
“Are you saying you don’t want to go to college?”
She shrugged. “Honestly, I don’t know. I’ve been questioning it lately. The more I see of the world, the more I get that it’s a big place. There are plenty of different ways to do things.”
“Like what?”
“There are some volunteer programs I’ve been looking at,” she said, peering up at him through her lashes as if expecting him to laugh.
He rubbed his chin.
Norah was scary smart, just like his sister, but Via had always been on the college track, and despite his bad grades he’d always assumed he should be too. But the idea that someone like Norah didn’t think it was the be all and end all?
It was…liberating.
There’s more to you than soccer, Zac.
The tension gathering in his limbs faded.
“Thanks,” he said.
“For what?” She blinked. “For telling you not everyone needs to go to college? It’s not a revolutionary thought.”
“Yeah, but somehow you make it sound like a normal option.”
“I do?” She still looked uncertain. “I mean that’s good, but I didn’t say it to try and change your mind. It’s something I’ve been considering,” she said and then groaned. “Please don’t tell your folks. They might think I’m a bad influence.”
“Now who’s making jokes? You’re in the process of saving the world. Basically you’re the role model for evolved teenagers. The 2.0 version.”
He walked around the coffee table and reached for her hand to help her up. She was silent as she slipped her fingers into his. Electricity skidded up his arm and she stumbled forward. His other arm wrapped around her waist to steady her. Her curves were warm and soft, and he swallowed hard.
“You falling for me, Norah Richmond?”
“Zac—” she said, her voice breathy. She was cut off by the sound of the door banging.
“Please. You so did that on purpose,” Piper complained from somewhere down the corridor. Norah jumped back and gave him a shy half smile.
“Thanks for showing me the offside trap.”
“Thanks for reminding me there’s other options out there.”
“Thanks for—” Her gaze travelled around the room before landing on the white paper bag. She made a grab for it and grinned. “Not eating the last jelly bean. And yellow. My favorite.” She shook it out and chewed it.
“They’re all your favorite,” he reminded her as he busied himself returning the ornamental cats to their spot on the windowsill. A ripple of warmth flooded his chest and he swallowed. Dating might suck, but fake dating was turning out to be fun.
9
“Good surf?” Via looked up from her laptop perched on the kitchen table.
“Not bad.” Zac headed for the pantry. Salt and sand still clung to him, and he needed a shower, but food first. He foraged behind the jars of pasta to where his sister always hid the spare Pop Tarts. Bingo. He grabbed the box and turned around. “Holding out on me, Vee?”
“Living with you is like being on a permanent diet.” She sighed as he shoved a couple into the toaster and jumped onto the counter to wait. “Where have you been? I’ve hardly seen you.”
“Just helping with the auction.” He shrugged. He usually loved playing soccer—it helped get rid of his excess energy—but he’d been discovering that hanging out with Norah seemed to have the same effect. They’d spent most of Sunday afternoon gaming. She was now so relaxed around him she’d purposely nudged him to make him drop his controller. She’d then stolen the bonus quest he’d been about to receive. It was a power move.
“Oh, speaking of that, I want to buy a book of tickets.” Via reached for her purse and extracted her wallet.
“You have nine friends?” He held her gaze, and she poked out her tongue.
“Ha-ha. You’re hilarious. It’s for me, Hudson, Frankie, and Jackson. There are a few others who want to come, and of course Mom and Dad.”
The toaster popped, but he ignored it, leaning forward. “Mom and Dad, seriously? Why do they want to come?”
“You’ve been working your butt off on this thing. They’re proud of you. Why are you surprised? They watch your matches.”
“That’s different. Soccer’s my thing. The auction is Norah’s. I’m only helping out.”
“Yeah, and you’re doing a great job of it, dumbass.” Via pulled out some bills and put them on the table. “I’ve gotta go. Hudson will be here soon. You won’t forget about the tickets, will you?”
“No,” he promised as she scooted out the door. Sure, his parents went to a lot of his matches, and the award ceremonies at the end of each season, but anything to do with school was strictly Via’s territory.
There’s more to you than just soccer, Zac.
He reached for a Pop Tart and took a bite. Jam burned his tongue, but he ignored it. Maybe Norah was right.
xxxx
“I need to see a man about a sound system and collect the bidding paddles,” Gareth said as they walked out of the library. He was wearing a pair of tight black jeans and scuffed Doc Martens, while his tangled curls hung over one eye. A couple of girls eyed him as they walked past and smiled. He didn’t notice, so Norah nudged him.
“You have a fan club.”
“What?” He frowned then shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“Yeah. Who’d want to date this guy?” Piper said in an affectionate voice as she scuffed his hair. Her own hair was now a soft gray that matched her eyes.
“Like you can talk. SageKnight194 doesn’t even know what you look like.”
“Our connection is deeper than that. Soul deep. And—”
“Time out,” Norah quickly said, regretting she’d even brought it up. Gareth’s jaw was clenched. She still didn’t believe he had a crush on her, but he definitely wasn’t happy. “I’m almost too scared to let you both go home in the same car.”
Piper let out a sigh and hooked her arm through Gareth’s. “It’s fine. We’ll be on good behavior. Go see your guy kick a ball.”
Heat crept up her neck.
“He’s not my guy.”
Even if they’d spent the last week sitting in the cafeteria together—sometimes with his friends, sometimes with hers. Not to mention working on the auction together. The more time she spent with him, the easier it had become to talk. She even managed full sentences without breaking into a sweat.
And he’d told her he hated being known as Via’s dumb brother. She wasn’t quite sure why he’d even think that. He was gorgeous, popular, and funny. And surprisingly sensitive. The fact he kept insisting he and Myles were friends despite the punch. That he wouldn’t rat out what had really happened between him and Kennedy. That once he knew about how people in other parts of the world lived, he seemed to care about it as much as she did.
All these new sides she kept discovering.
“Whatever,” Gareth muttered as she left them and headed toward the playing fields. Crisp fall air danced around her and the sky was a muddy gray color, dotted with clouds. She went over to a patch of grass.
As usual, Kennedy and the rest of her crew were draped over the bleachers like they were on a photo shoot, their eyes fixed on the guys on the field.
And right in the center of their gaze was Zac.
His blond hair was tousled, and his mouth was set in an intense line as someone kicked the ball to him. He brought it down with his left foot and then ran past Pete and Max, who both tried to stop him. It didn’t work and it looked like he was going to pass the ball to the guy on the right, but he actually kicked to Myles on his left. She blinked. She had no idea how he did it, but it was impressive.
No wonder the girls in the bleachers were drooling over him.
Coach blew the whistle, and Zac’s head immediately shot up as if he was looking for someone. His eyes locked on her, and he grinned.
Looking for me.
“Hey.” He jogged over. There was a light layer of sweat on his brow, and his cheeks were flushed from the exercise. Heat danced around him as he dragged her into a hug.
Oh, yes.
It had gone from hand holding to hugging. Again, totally insignificant.
At first she’d been alarmed about her scars, but after taking extra care to make sure she never wore anything that could ride up, she’d begun to relax. He had that effect on her.
“Hey,” she managed to say when they broke apart. Her voice was breathy. “That last pass was cool.”
His eyes gleamed. “I’ve been working on getting my left foot stronger. It makes it harder for a defender to know what you’re going to do.” He flopped onto the grass. His legs were sprawled out, and he held his hand up in the air, beckoning her to join him.
