“Can you at least tell me if he has any songwriting experience?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest. “Does he play an instrument? What are his credentials?”
“I’m sure he’d be glad to fill you in on all of those things himself,” Mrs. Banks said, looking over my shoulder. “Your partner is finally here. Come on in, Mr. Preston. I want you to meet Audrey Black. You’ll be writing and singing the duet together.”
I twisted so fast in my seat that I nearly broke my spine. Collin stood in the doorway. His tattered backpack hung from one hand and his leather jacket was draped over his opposite arm. He hadn’t changed for football practice yet, and was still rocking torn jeans and a t-shirt that stretched tight across his muscular chest. His gaze met with mine and immediately he broke out into that infuriating half-cocked grin that made my whole body flush.
“What’s up, Audrey? Almost didn’t recognize you without that raccoon costume.”
Whipping back around to look at Mrs. Banks, I braced myself with the armrests of my chair. My heart was pounding in alarm. “You cannot be serious. You can’t partner me with him.”
Of all the jokes... Somewhere in this great universe, someone was orchestrating my fate and laughing at me. This couldn’t be happening. It had to be a mistake.
“My decision is final.” She rested her elbows on her desk and her gaze flicked between us. An excited smile lit up her face. “You two are going to perform for the centennial show at the last football game of the season. Find time to work together. See what you can come up with. I want to see some song ideas on my desk within two weeks. You’ve got this, now get to work.”
I knew her dismissive tone when I heard it. Picking up my guitar, I pushed past Collin and out of the choir room. His deep chuckle followed me the whole way. The hallway outside was completely empty. I stopped suddenly, my sneakers squeaking on the waxed tile floor. Never could I remember feeling so furious.
“Why are you doing this?” I demanded, turning around to glare at him.
He stood just behind me, that ridiculous grin still plastered on his handsome face. “What do you mean?”
“Why are you hijacking my one chance to show everyone the one thing I’m good at in this world? You’re the varsity quarterback. One of the most popular guys in school. Why do you need to take this too?”
He arched a single eyebrow and scratched the back of his head, flexing his bicep in a way that made me feel all tingly, despite my rage. “I’m not hijacking anything. I auditioned this summer just like you. We both earned it.”
Pursing my lips together, I took a step toward him and wagged my finger. I knew I probably looked like a ninety-year-old granny scolding him, but I didn’t give a care. All I could do in that moment was try to keep myself from falling into a puddle on the floor and crying my eyes out in front of him. “You didn’t earn this. You went in there with your charming grin and your muscles and your face and you tricked her. You made her give my performance to you.”
He laughed and then grabbed my wagging finger, holding it tight. His smile melted away into a smoldering expression that made my knees quiver. “Audrey, don’t act like you don’t like the idea of us working together, very closely, for the next few months.”
I gulped, my brain suddenly refusing to work. No way was I commenting on that.
“You’re going to be seeing a lot of this face and these muscles pretty soon,” he added, a cocky grin slowly returning to his perfectly shaped lips. I couldn’t make myself look away even if I wanted to. “So you’d better get used to it, raccoon girl.”
He released my finger and turned on his heels to leave, all the while the wheels in my brain turned frantically in hopes of coming up with a retort. But it was no use. Instead, I was left huffing to myself in an empty hallway, furious about the nerve of that guy.
There was no way I was writing and performing a song with Collin Preston. Not in this life or the next. I had to find a way to get him to quit.
And I had to find it fast.
Chapter Seven
“I think I’m going to die.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose, inhaling sharply as a painful sensation filled my head. Brain. Freeze. It was the risk one had to take when slurping Lola’s Icees in the Rock Valley Mall food court. One that my friends and I gladly took every Tuesday after school; sunshine, rain, or snow. It was a tradition that couldn’t be broken.
“Should’ve stuck with the salted pretzel,” Mandy said, calmly taking a sip of her blue raspberry icee. She sat across the table from me, still wearing her cut off t-shirt and running shorts. “You’re in no shape to be drinking, young lady.
“She’s right,” Trina added with a serious expression. She still had a streak of blue paint under her chin and some white in her hair from art class. “This whole Collin thing has you flipped upside down. Why are you letting him get to you?”
Haha. They were so funny.
“Collin Preston has no effect on me whatsoever,” I said, pushing my black cherry icee away from me. “But if he thinks he can come in and steal my show, then he’s got another thing coming.”
I saw Mandy and Trina exchange glances. They were doing that a lot lately.
“But he auditioned,” Trina said softly. “Isn’t it his show too?”
She was right, of course. It never had been my performance. Mrs. Banks could give it to whoever she wanted. And she’d chosen me and Collin. My mom would say that I should’ve been grateful for what I got.
“Whose side are you on, anyway?” I grumped, crossing my arms over my chest.
In true Trina fashion, she pushed her palms together and gave me a sympathetic frown. “I’m not on any side, but you’re my best friend. I’ll always have your back.”
“Maybe I should just drop out of it,” I said miserably, stirring my icee with the straw. “I’ve got enough on my plate with senior year, college applications, and cheerleading. It could be for the best.”
I hadn’t sent out one college application and the deadlines were looming. Sometimes, I wasn’t even sure I wanted to go. It just seemed like the next necessary step in life. Trina had her eyes on California Institute of the Arts and Mandy already had invitations from several track programs around the country. I had nothing. My future had never been so open. And I’d never felt so terrified.
“Don’t you dare drop out,” Mandy growled. “This is the one thing you’re actually doing for yourself this year. You’ve got to stick it out.”
I took another sip of my icee and let the sweet and cold sensation roll around in my mouth as I thought about the coming year. Singing was the only thing that kept me going. If I abandoned it, all I would have was my parents’ messy divorce to stress about. That didn’t seem fair. But neither was having to share my one chance at a spotlight with the football god himself.
As if on cue, my phone dinged and a message popped up on my screen.
Unknown: Hey raccoon girl
It took me a second of staring at the screen to realize who’d sent it, but then my cheeks began to burn. The nerve of him.
“What is it?” Trina asked, watching me closely. “Was it a text from your dad?”
“No, worse.” I held it up for them to see. “Collin freaking Preston.”
How in the world did Collin get my number? And more importantly, what did he want from me?
Mandy snorted and emptied the last of her icee, slurping the very last drop. “Does that boy have some kind of sick sixth sense? It’s like he knew we were talking about him.”
I eyed the food court around us, taking time to account for every single table and its occupants. No jocks in sight. Just a handful of shoppers, three toddlers running wild on sugar highs, and a couple of band geeks on the opposite side. He couldn’t have known what we were talking about.
My phone dinged again.
Collin: Ready to talk about our song?
Or are you still going to pretend I don’t exist?
I know you can’t resist this face.
I choked on my icee, coughing and sputtering it up. Pausing only long enough to glare at the phone, I typed a reply so fast I thought my fingers would break.
Me: How does that motorcycle of yours manage to carry your ego around? I thought those things had weight limits.
Collin: Funny, raccoon girl.
Uttering a groan, I ground the palm of my hand into my forehead. He was impossible.
Me: I realize you think you’re irresistible, but if we have to work together, do me a favor and take the ego down a notch.
There was a long pause before he replied again.
Collin: Not possible. But I’ll keep the muscles under wraps. Just for you.
I sighed and rolled my eyes big time. Was this how this entire project was going to go? Him joking about everything? Never taking anything seriously? If that’s what was going to happen, then I was just going to have to write the song myself. If he didn’t like it, he could quit.
“See? He’s insufferable,” I complained, holding my phone out for Trina and Mandy to read. “How am I supposed to work with that?”
“Actually, I think he’s kind of funny,” Trina replied, her eyes sparkling.
Mandy shrugged, tossing her empty cup in a nearby waste basket. “And you can’t deny, he’s pretty hot. Two thirds of the girls in school want to date him. And the other third would probably go for it if they weren’t already attached.”
I could absolutely deny it to the moon and back. They weren’t getting anything out of me. He might have been hot, but he was messing with my big plan, as if it were all a joke. With a grimace, I typed into my phone again.
Me: Fine.
When and where?
Collin: Kenwood Park. Tomorrow. 6 pm.
My stomach jolted. Kenwood Park was the infamous place for couples to park at midnight. I’d never been there myself, of course, but I’d heard plenty about it. Lexi was always talking about people who’d been spotted at Kenwood Park, as if it were something to strive toward. A badge of honor. I’d scoffed about it, but secretly, had always wondered what it would be like to have a boy take me there.
“Guys, he wants me to meet him at Kenwood Park tomorrow after practice,” I said shakily, looking up at them. “Should I do it?”
Mandy and Trina exchanged looks again. I got the sudden desire to shake them both.
“Yes!” they exclaimed at the same time.
“All right, all right.” I waved a hand at them. “Don’t freak out.”
Swallowing down my nerves, I typed into my phone.
Me: Ok. See you then.
Collin: See you, raccoon girl.
Despite the cheers from my friends sitting across the table, I couldn’t help but wonder if I’d made a big mistake. The last time Collin and I had been alone together had been at the beach house. That little rendezvous had started a vicious rumor and made me the laughing stock of the entire school. And song writing was such a personal act for me. Did I really want to share it with the person who seemed to have nothing better to do than make my life miserable?
I guess I’d already shared one humiliating secret with Collin Preston. Why not bare the rest of my soul? And hope he didn’t stomp on it with his football cleats.
Chapter Eight
Mom would kill me if I threw up on her sheer Prada blouse.
I repeated that thought over and over again as I walked into Kenwood Park to meet Collin, my backpack hanging on my shoulders and my guitar case swinging at my side. My stomach was doing flips inside my abdomen, threatening to dislodge and make an appearance right there on the sidewalk.
To make matters worse, my new song partner was nowhere in sight. I’d walked most of the perimeter of the park, searching the playground, picnic area, and even ventured into the infamous make-out spot at the top of the ridge for a hint of his effortlessly mussed brown hair or even the motorcycle that seemed to complete his bad-boy image. No luck.
Pulling my phone out of my pocket, I checked for the hundredth time to make sure Collin hadn’t messaged me. Nope. It was 6:15 and I was the lone loser at Kenwood Park. The next bus didn’t come for twenty more minutes. I was stuck.
Nevertheless, it was a nice location to play. The sprawling grassy field was still a vivid green and the leaves on the trees had just begun to turn yellow. It was picture perfect and all mine. Not one to miss an inspiring moment, I shrugged off my backpack and pulled my Gibson out of her case. There was a rocky formation near the swings, so I perched up on the highest part and began to strum.
I’d stayed up late the night before, working on a song for our performance. It was my best yet. The bridge still needed a bit of tweaking and there was something missing from the chorus, but if Collin’s range was good enough, we could nail it. That was, if he ever decided to show up.
“He probably can’t even sing,” I grumbled to myself.
Would Mrs. Banks have paired me with him if he was tone deaf? Was this some sort of test? I wouldn’t have put it past her. Maybe that purple hair dye of hers had seeped into her skull and made her batty. That was the only reasonable explanation for my current predicament.
The sound of an engine roaring made me spin around. A motorcycle had just turned onto the parking lot. It was a big, ugly, black thing. Crouched on top of it was a familiar muscular figure in a leather jacket and sleek black helmet.
I gulped and reminded myself to remain calm. Most girls would’ve found the sight of Collin on his motorcycle irresistible. Me? I was immune to its effects.
Mostly.
After parking, Collin pulled his helmet off and looked around, his gaze coming to rest on me. Immediately, my throat tightened and I felt my grip tighten on the neck of my guitar. Resting the helmet on his seat, he strode toward me with all the swagger and confidence of a teenaged boy on top of the world and stopped just short of the boulders.
“Ready to rock?” he asked, arching an eyebrow.
My eyes went straight to his mouth where he was chewing lazily on a toothpick. He had surprisingly white teeth. For some reason, I couldn’t tear my gaze away from that toothpick and those lips. He’d probably planned that on purpose. Used it on all the girls. The minute he could get them to stare at his mouth was the minute he got them thinking about kissing him. And all signs pointed toward Collin being a great kisser.
Not that it mattered to me.
Gulping down my nerves, I cleared my throat and finally tore my eyes away. “You’re late.”
“And now, I’m here.”
He climbed up the rocks to sit next to me. His body was entirely too close for comfort, only a couple inches dividing us. I shifted, as if readjusting my seat, and tried to leave more room. But all I ended up doing was nearly toppling myself over the edge.
“Watch it.” He grabbed my arm and steadied me, grinning as if he knew exactly how he was affecting me.
A thrill went through my body, much like it had the night of the party when he’d brushed his hand up my arm. Despite my traitorous female hormones, I was determined not to fall victim to Collin’s male prowess. Pulling my arm away, I shot him a thin-lipped smile and finally found a position on the rock that felt more comfortable. And most importantly, farther away from him.
“Here’s what I’ve been working on. I’ve already written your part,” I said, handing over a folded piece of paper from my back pocket.
His cocky grin faltered slightly and his gaze met mine. “You’ve already done the whole thing?”
“Yeah, I figured I might as well go ahead. I can show you how the melody goes, but I think it’ll be helpful for you to pick up the harmony on the chorus. It’ll make it sound richer.”
It was time to see just how much of a tune Collin could carry.
“Right.” He frowned and unfolded the paper, his brown eyes scanning over the lyrics and chords I’d written last night in sparkly purple gel ink. Occasionally, he’d make a disapproving grunt or his lips would twitch with a frown.
I wished I could reach inside his head and
know what he was thinking. Boys needed to come standard with a marquee scrolling their thoughts for all to see. Maybe for once, they’d actually make some sense to us women.
Finally, when he got to the end, he folded it back up and flicked his gaze back to my face. “That’s not going to work for me.”
My jaw dropped and I stuttered. “Wh-what?”
“It’s just not me.” He shrugged, leaning back on the rock. “Plus, there’s no real hook. And not every line in a song has to rhyme, you know?”
The skin all the way from my chest up to my ears began to feel splotchy and itchy. I kept a tight hold on the guitar, willing myself not to scratch at the spots.
“Is that all?” I asked through gritted teeth.
He was obviously new at this. I could give him the benefit of the doubt and hold in my frustrated screams until later. That’s what working with a partner was all about, right?
“Yeah, one more thing,” he said, his brow wrinkling in thought. “I thought this was supposed to be a love story. This doesn’t seem like a love song to me.”
I stared at him for a long moment, internally trying to douse the flame of frustration that had combusted in my gut. It didn’t seem to be working. The longer I kept silent, the more I could feel the heat shooting from my eyes. I’d spent hours last night on this song and in two seconds he’d ripped it apart? It wasn’t right.
Collin took the toothpick from his mouth and finally met my flame-throwing gaze, his eyebrows raising in amusement. “What? Was it something I said?”
“Seriously?” He was really going to play it that way.
“What is it, Audrey?” The left side of his mouth twitched, as if he were trying to hold back a grin. “Do you have something you want to say?”
If I were a stronger woman, I would’ve let him have it right there on that rock. He thought he was so much better than everyone. Just because he had most of the school worshiping the cleats he walked in didn’t mean he could just start throwing out critiques about my song. If he wanted me to respect his opinions, he needed to lay down his own skills. But so far, it seemed like he was nothing but another jock pumped up on his own ego.
Dare You to Kiss the Quarterback (Rock Valley High Book 1) Page 5
