She wasn’t sure if she returned the greeting. All of her blood seemed to be going straight to her face. What the hell happened? She snuck a peek at Beckett, who was eating cereal and looking at his phone like nothing happened. She had to get out of here.
Luckily, her phone buzzed in her hand and she raised it and turned toward the door to meet Pepper.
Just as her hand was reaching out, Beckett stopped her. “Greer.”
She took a breath and looked over her shoulder, directly at his chin. “Yea?”
“Text me your dress color,” he said, casually, but she could hear the steel behind it.
She nodded and opened the door breathing the morning air like a jogger dragging in air.
Lexi and Pepper were in the front seat chattering non-stop. Greer was sprawled across the back seat, not even attempting to keep up with their conversation, it was like white noise. Her head was still buzzing from the kiss.
Her body felt like she had just come down from an adrenaline high after being so close to Beckett. Just remembering how easily she had given in, again, had her questioning her sanity. Why was Beckett so determined to go to the dance with her? She would have thought he would have grabbed her refusal with both hands and run.
“Greer, are you okay?”
Greer jolted back to the present to see Lexi’s concerned face. Pepper was eyeing her through the rear-view mirror.
Sheez, she needed to get herself together. Plastering a smile on her face she assured them both. “Yes. I just need my morning coffee.”
Pepper made a sudden lane change. “You got it, girl!”
The warm coffee sliding past her lips reminded her of the heat she felt with Beckett’s lips sliding over hers. Beckett Dawson could definitely kiss. None of her previous kissing experiences had even come close to making her crave more.
The excited squeal of Lexi exclaiming that her favorite song was on made Greer realize she had once again tuned out her friends and was dwelling on Beckett. She scooted to the middle of the seat and dutifully did her best friend duty and belted out the words to ‘The Way’ by Ariana Grande.
They were in a part of Manchester Greer wasn’t familiar with, but Pepper said this was the place to get a dress. The outdoor shopping center had several boutiques within walking distance of each other. Eventually, they parked and entered the first store.
The excitement amped up as they stood just inside the door of the first boutique. They took in the rows and rows of dresses, plush ivory carpet under their feet, chandeliers above their heads, and the classical music sweeping through the store. A store associate greeted them and Pepper took the lead explaining they were here to get homecoming dresses. Each girl was assigned an associate, and Greer dutifully followed to where she was led.
“So, what are you thinking for style?” Cheryl, a lady in her forties, asked as she led them to her size.
“Oh. I guess I don’t know. What would you recommend?”
They stopped at a rack of dresses, all color coordinated, marked size six and Cheryl turned to her. “What have you worn in the past?”
Slightly embarrassed Greer told her the truth. “I’ve never been to a formal dance. This is my first.”
Cheryl beamed and clapped her hands. “Oh dear, we are going to have so much fun! The dresses are all color coordinated by size but in all different styles. You name it, we have it—waterfall, princess bottoms, straight, and mermaid styles. Are there any styles you don’t like?”
Greer thought a moment. “Probably not the mermaid. I want to be able to move around easily.”
Cheryl was nodding. “Okay, we’ll go through each of the racks and pick whatever you like and I’ll take them to a dressing room. After you try them on and decide what style you like the best, we will come back and look more thoroughly.”
When she had ten dresses picked out, all different colors and styles, Cheryl herded her toward the dressing rooms. When they got there, Lexi came out in a light pink princess gown and Greer sucked in a breath.
“Lexi, that is amazing!”
Lexi stepped up onto the platform that faced three mirrors and glowed. “Greer, it’s my first one, but I love it!”
Greer took in the tiny crystals on the skirt and the strapless front. “It’s gorgeous.”
Lexi twisted to swish her voluminous skirts and then turned around to look at the back. Greer wanted to try on her own after seeing Lexi. “I’m going back to try mine on!”
After trying on eight of the dresses, she was starting to get discouraged. She had found a black dress she liked, but it didn’t talk to her. She had decided she liked the straight cuts, so Cheryl was back looking through the racks and promised to return quickly.
Both Lexi, who had settled on her first dress, and Pepper had picked their dresses. They were sitting in the chairs around the mirrors, sipping lemonade. Greer put the black dress back on and was examining herself in the mirror. Greer thought she looked good but was having a hard time convincing herself it was ‘the one’.
“What do you guys think?”
“I think you should keep trying.” Pepper stated.
“I think so too. I like this one, but you don’t have that face yet.” Lexi declared.
Greer didn’t have to ask what Lexi meant and she headed back to try on the last dress. It was emerald green, straight sheath with a slit up to her mid-thigh. It appeared demure on the hanger with the zipper going from the waist, up to the neck and sleeveless arms.
When she slipped it on it fit her like a glove. There were cutouts starting at her hips that spread out like a starburst into the back zipper. Greer stared in awe at herself. She had never owned anything this sophisticated, classy and beautiful. There was a slight train in the back and a straight hem in the front, so with the right height heels, it would still be okay to get around in.
She turned in the mirror and enjoyed the rush of feeling beautiful. With a burst of excitement, she rushed into the waiting area, stepped on the box before the three-way mirror and faced her friends.
Their faces were shocked. She clapped her hands together and declared, “This is the one!”
“Oh my god, Greer, that dress was made for you,” Lexi said, reverently. “Let me take your picture.”
Obediently, Greer put one hand on her cocked hip and turned, so Lexi could see the front and the back.
“Greer, I’m so jealous! It’s like couture made just for you. It doesn’t even need to be altered. You look amazing in it!”
Cheryl came in smiling, “Is that the one?”
Greer didn’t want to take it off and she turned her glittering eyes toward Cheryl. “It is. How much is it?”
“It’s the most expensive of the dresses you tried on, but still a steal at $500. I checked the register and no one else has the dress for Oak High.”
Greer sucked in a breath at the sticker shock and felt her heart plummet. “Oh.” She swallowed back the disappointment and with a barely audible voice said, “That is too much.” She felt embarrassed, but it was the truth. It would take her fifty hours of work to pay for the dress, so that meant a month of working for one dress. Not going to happen. She needed to save all of her money for college.
“Greer, no!” Pepper protested.
“How much was the black one, Cheryl?” She forced herself to ask.
“$150.”
She swallowed her disappointment at losing the green dress. “Okay, I’ll take that one.”
“Greer, I’ll pay the difference.”
Greer spun to Pepper and vehemently said, “No! It is for one dance and I like the black dress.”
“But we agreed it wasn’t the one.” Pepper pleaded.
With less vehemence, but equal determination Greer said. “Thank you Pepper, but no.”
Greer looked at Lexi and saw the sadness and understanding radiating from her. “I’m sorry, Greer.”
Greer wanted to cry, which made her mad. It was a stupid dress. A dress she would wear for one dance and one night.
She had never been a big clothesaholic. Sure, she liked shopping, but she didn’t live for it. In the past, she had been able to easily turn away from things that were too expensive. Not this time. Greer took off the dress without looking in the mirror, got dressed, and met the girls at the counter to pay.
─────────────────
Chapter 22
─────────────────
Despite her continuous self-recriminations to put the green dress out of her head, Greer couldn’t seem to do it. Never again would she make fun of the whining girls who simply had to have that purse, outfit, or whatever it was. She was so close to begging her mom for the dress. Knowing Vivian was only working to pay for her school made her lips stick together.
It didn’t help that the rest of the school seemed to go dress shopping over the weekend as well. It was all Greer heard about while walking the hall or waiting for class to begin. What made it worse was when she heard girls say, “It was only $500, it was only $700. My budget was $1,500.”
More than ever she was feeling out of place in this privileged school. Girls were planning spa days and limos to take them around as they got ready. While she was busy watching YouTube videos on updos.
She must not have been covering up her discontent as well as she thought. At lunch, Beckett leaned across the table. “What’s wrong?”
Her eyes widened and she studied Beckett’s arms crossed on the table and his furrowed eyebrows. He was genuinely concerned. There were conversations going on all around them, but Beckett was focused on her.
“Nothing.” She lowered her eyes and continued to push her food around.
Beckett’s warm hand folded over hers to stop the wandering fork and she sucked in a breath. All she could do was stare at where his hand held hers. With a slow inhale to help control her accelerated breathing, she looked up. Right into Beckett’s focused eyes and clenched jaw.
“Is someone bothering you again?”
“No,” she quickly denied, and then dryly added, “I think with the football team constantly hanging around they got the message.”
She could still feel the stares as she walked down the hall, and see girls critically looking her up and down, but no assaults. She should be happy, but it was just another indication she didn’t fit in here.
Case in point. She surreptitiously looked over Beckett’s shoulder at the table of cheerleaders. A couple of them were glaring at her and Beckett and then whispering to each other. A few others were staring at them with a puzzled look that seemed to say, ‘what is he doing talking to her?’.
“Greer.”
She snapped her eyes back to Beckett. His visible determination told her he wasn’t going to let this go. She wasn’t going to tell him she was feeling sorry for herself, so she said the one thing to make all guys back off.
“It’s just a bad time of the month, okay?”
Greer almost laughed at how fast he dropped her hand.
“TMI, Greer.” He grumbled.
“Seriously, Beckett? You wouldn’t let it go and now you are cringing away like a little girl?”
A wide grin spread across Beckett’s face. “There she is!”
Greer was stunned at how his smile transformed him into a mischievous little boy, versus the intense football play. Mark, who was sitting next to Beckett, looked between them.
“What’s going on?”
Beckett’s grin got wider and his eyes lit up. He might as well have been rubbing his hands together. Greer warned him.
“Beckett, don’t even think about it!”
She didn’t want the entire football team knowing she had her imaginary period. When he opened his mouth, she spoke over the top of him.
“Nothing.” Now the whole table was looking at them. “NOTHING! Beckett is just doing his best to annoy me and succeeding.”
“You guys are looking and sounding more like a couple every day.” After Mark dropped that bombshell he went back to huddling with Pepper, who just giggled.
Her scrambled brain turned back to Beckett who was back to watching her carefully. “Does the whole school think we are a couple?”
“The whole school is confused about us.”
She shook her head. “Why does the whole school care?”
“It’s the mystery, Greer. When I kissed you in the Dining Hall, they thought we were a couple. Since then we haven’t held hands, kissed, or had any other PDA. But we come to school every day, you watch me practice, I walk you to some classes, we sit together at lunch, we are going to homecoming together, but we don’t do the regular boyfriend/girlfriend thing.”
“Oh.” Was her brilliant response. She got it, but she didn’t like it. “How do we stop being the school gossip?”
Beckett eyed her and heat entered his eyes, making her body heat up. “You really want that?”
She didn’t know exactly what he was thinking, but she knew it couldn’t be good with the look in his eyes, but she still said, “Yes.”
Beckett leaned further forward and put one hand on the table and the other hand went to the back of her neck. The butterflies in her stomach became hummingbirds and she whispered furiously. “What are you doing?”
He whispered back. “Getting the attention off of us.” And his hand on her neck tilted her head and his mouth lowered to lightly savor her lips and her whole body froze.
Then her lips started moving under his. Once again, she was captured in the magic of Beckett Dawson. Gradually the pressure and intensity picked up and Greer raised her hands to put them in Beckett’s hair hoping to get closer to him. When his tongue snuck in and caught her tongue, her breath stuttered. The moan working its way up her throat froze when the whistles and clapping around them penetrated her brain.
Mortified, she jerked away from Beckett and picked up her tray. With shaking arms Greer pulled away from the table, feeling the eyes of the school follow her every movement. With her head lowered she looked at everyone looking at her through the corner of her eyes. The cheerleader table was a mix of shock, horror, and anger. Most of the tables were still hooting and hollering.
Her traitorous body felt Beckett’s presence grow closer and when he put his hand on the small of her back, she cursed the small shiver it caused even while she tensed. She wanted to shake it off but knew it would only fuel more gossip. As soon as they cleared the door she stopped and cursed the tears that came every time she had an extreme emotion. And the desire and anger tearing through her were so confusing she didn’t know what to think.
“Are you freaking kidding me, Beckett? Why would you do that? I’m pretty sure that created more attention not less.” She set her wildly gesturing hands on her hips and waited.
««« »»»
He had finally got Greer Smith to lose her composure and quite spectacularly, all over a kiss. Greer was a firecracker under that reserve, and she got his blood pumping. Every time he started kissing her, she was as still as a hunter. It was as if she was absorbing the fire that was always crackling between them. When the shock wore off, every reaction was pure and real. There was no pretense. She never thought about how to react, she just did. Those little gasps and mewling sounds made him hard just thinking about it. Her death stare actually made him want to grab her again and kiss the anger right out of her.
“Well?” Greer screeched throwing her hands in the air, interrupting his thought. Her hands landed back on her hips, and she started glaring again.
He had never seen her so worked up and he made the mistake of grinning. Greer’s mouth tightened. And were those tears in her eyes? That was all he comprehended before she turned on her heel and started stomping down the hall.
Shit, he might be an asshole enjoying her out of control, but he didn’t want her crying. He strode down the hall and realized he was going to have to pick up his pace if he wanted to keep track of her.
“Greer!”
His warning yell only seemed to motivate her to move faster and he cur
sed and started a jog to catch up to her. Right before she went into the bathroom, he caught her arm.
“Greer, I’m sorry.”
She had stopped, but she was still looking at the door. “Why would you do that?”
The subdued question, after so much fire, made him still. “It solidified that we are a couple.” He ignored the tensing of her arm underneath his hand and continued. “Now they can stop staring because they finally have proof that we are a couple.”
What he said was true, but he had been looking for a reason to kiss her again. He wasn’t giving up the idea that she was a gold digger, but he wanted to put his hands on her. He found himself seeking Greer out, wanting to be near her. Especially when he saw the interested looks and speculation from the guys looking at her. They would be after her until he provided the evidence that she was his.
He couldn’t believe she was this upset over a kiss. He tugged her forearm encouraging her to fully face him. She couldn’t play him when he looked into her eyes. Whether she realized it or not, Greer did not have a poker face. He put his free hand under her chin and was knocked back by what he saw.
She was pressing her lips together and sucking them in her mouth. Silent tears ran down her cheeks. He was baffled.
“Why are you so upset, Greer? It was just a kiss.”
An unbelievable, hot kiss.
She jerked herself back a step. “I don’t like being the center of attention, Beckett. Especially when this is all fake. Leave me alone.” Beckett was too stunned to grab her again before she slid into the bathroom.
The door swung closed behind her and Greer slid down it to prevent Beckett from entering. It was just a kiss to him—but to her, it had been mind-blowing, and that scared her.
She was developing real feelings for Beckett and he was only being a good ‘brother’ and giving her his protection from the crazy girl. If she could forget they were in a crowded cafeteria when he was kissing her, what would she do if they were alone? Her body, and slowly her brain, were betraying her. She needed to pound it into her head that Beckett was doing this to simply help her.
Battling Beckett Page 15
