As I’m reorganizing the arrangement of Starbursts on the table, I hear the sound of a car pulling up next to the house. I walk to the long mirror that we have hanging in our hallway and check my reflection one more time. I’m wearing a pair of grey jeans that I borrowed from Kelsey and a white tee that hugs my blue bra in just the right way to show off my cleavage. I stop as soon as a familiar knock comes to the door.
I wipe my palms against my jeans and walk over to open it, finding myself face to face with Liam and a bouquet of tiger lilies.
I look back and forth between him and the lilies. “I thought flowers were only for dates.”
He doesn’t say anything. He just smiles.
“Is this a date, Liam?” I’m starting to panic at the thought or remembering all the things Kelsey’s told me about dates. “At my house? I mean, I know you said we can’t go to too many places right now, since so many press are in town but —” I stop talking the second he presses his lips against my forehead.
“I saw a woman selling these outside of Coach’s gym and thought of you,” he says. “You’re the only girl I know who hates roses.”
“You’re avoiding the question ...” My voice is a whisper. “Is this a date?”
“I’m not sure what it is, since you have yet to let me inside.”
I blush and step back, letting him into the house. He hands the flowers to me and looks me up and down.
“You look really beautiful tonight ...”
“Thank you.”
Silence.
“I’m going to um —” I hold up the flowers. “Put these in water. I’ll be right back.” I rush up the stairs to my room and place the flowers in a vase that’s been vacant for years. I empty a bottle of water into the vase and send a text to Kelsey.
Me: SOS! He brought me flowers! Tiger lilies, at that! Is this really a date?
Kelsey: Yes. :- ) (What are tiger lilies? Do you like those?)
Me: Do I need to change into a dress? (They’re my favorite flower ...)
Kelsey: NO! Unless you want to send him the “wrong” message. (I really hate how you two still can’t see this shit ...)
Me: You promise he’s not going to try and sleep with me tonight, Kels?”
Liam: I promise.
I gasp and drop my phone to the floor. It buzzes again and I stare at it for a while before picking it back up.
Liam: You purposely took all the red Starbursts, didn’t you?
I pull all the red starbursts out of my pocket and toss them into my desk drawer.
Me: Of course not :- )
Grateful he’s not harping on my mishap text message, I decide to ignore my better judgment and change my clothes. I know Kelsey says it might send the wrong message, but it is a date and I don’t want Liam to think that I don’t care.
Quickly changing out of my clothes, I slip into a simple grey sun dress with thin spaghetti straps and matching sandals. Checking my reflection one more time, I head back downstairs and see Liam pocketing all of the orange Starbursts.
“You told me Autumn Falls was a comedy.” He looks up at me. I watch as his eyes travel up and down my entire body and smile. “The box says it’s a chick-flick.”
“Would you have bought it if I told you the truth?”
He laughs. “Probably not.”
“Then I clearly did the right thing.” I plop down onto the couch and he follows suit. I grab the remote and press play — my heart fluttering a mile a minute.
The previews for the film are all terribly acted romantic comedies, and I wonder if I should’ve picked a scary movie instead.
The film begins to play and the screen lights up on a snowy scene of New York City. The main character, a brunette with that typical, “I can accomplish anything” voice is talking to her best friend.
I look at the clock on the wall, mentally noting how much time we have before anyone comes home. I glance at Liam and notice that he’s not looking at the film at all. He’s staring at me.
“The movie is on the TV, Liam,” I say, keeping my gaze forward.
“I’m aware, Mariah.”
“So ...” I grab the remote and hit pause. “You’ll miss the plot if you don’t start watching now.”
“It’s a romantic comedy. There is no plot.”
I turn to face him, narrowing my eyes and he laughs.
“I’m kidding,” he says. “I was distracted. Sorry, I’ll pay attention.”
“Good.” I hit play on the movie and ten minutes into the film, I’m tempted to ask if he’d rather watch Star Wars.
This shit really doesn’t have a plot ...
The girl onscreen kisses the guy and her eyes go wide. “You’re my best friend’s boyfriend and I just kissed you! Oh, oh, no! This can’t happen!” She runs out of her apartment and the scene quickly changes.
I can literally feel my brain cells begging me to turn off this movie.
I roll my eyes at the next scene and notice that Liam is staring at me once again.
“You’re supposed to be paying attention to the movie,” I say.
“So are you.” He smirks. “Is it not holding your attention?”
“It definitely is.” I lie.
“What was the last thing that she said?” He smiles.
“I’m not sure, I must have missed it.” I turn up the volume, but he grabs the remote from my hand and hits pause.
He moves closer to me, locking his eyes on mine. “Mariah, you know you’re not still interested in watching this movie.” Again that amazing smile. “We can just sit here and talk, if you want.”
“Oh?” I can barely hear my own voice.
He sets the remote down, accidentally starting the movie again, but he doesn’t make a move to pause it. Instead, he leans his face even closer to mine.
“Yes, we can just talk. We don’t have to take it further.” He takes my hand into his and gently rubs his fingertips in small circles in the palm of my hand.
“We definitely don’t.” I look down at his lips.
“Then we won’t.”
“We definitely won’t.” He pulls me close and presses his lips against mine, forcing me to shut my eyes. He runs his hands through my hair as he kisses me and I lean even closer to him, wrapping my arms around his neck.
The next thing I feel is Liam pulling me up, positioning me so that I’m straddling his lap. I gasp at the sudden change of position.
“Do you want me to stop?” he whispers against my lips.
“No.”
“Why did you change your clothes?” Liam asks gently, touching the hem of my dress with his fingers.
“I didn’t.” I shake my head.
“Mariah,” He looks into my eyes. “I know what you were wearing. Why did you change into a dress?”
“Because this is clearly a date and I wanted to impress you.”
He smiles.
“You didn’t have to. I liked what you were wearing before. Clearly I like this better, though.” He smiles.
My heart starts beating really fast and once again, Liam’s lips are on mine and my hands are now in his hair, pulling him as close as possible.
Liam kisses me so long, that it feels like I can’t breathe. His hands move to my waist and he gently grinds my hips against his lap.
“Do you want me to keep going?” he whispers.
All I can do is nod.
“Okay, just let me know when you want me to stop.” He gently lifts me up, and the he positions me so my back is against the couch. He comes down next to me and returns his lips to mine, kissing me very slowly.
Soon, his lips move to my neck and then down to my chest. At the same time, I become aware of his hand that moves beneath my dress, slowly inching its way up my thigh.
His hand continues moving up until he reaches my panties. He moves them to the side with his hand and I feel one of his fingers push inside of me.
I gasp from the feeling. It feels good and I don’t want him to stop. I writhe beneath him, wanting mor
e. Liam pushes another finger inside of me, keeping his lips locked on mine the entire time. I can feel his cock pressing against my stomach. I reach up to touch it and rub it through his clothes.
Liam grabs my hand and stops me. “That’s third base.” He whispers, smiling. “I don’t think we’re ready for that yet.”
As he slips his tongue deeper into my mouth, the sound of the side door opening makes us both jump away from each other.
“Um, hello?” Zach walks into the living room, glaring at the both of us. “You might not have heard mom’s van, but I know you two had to hear my car pull up.”
We stare at him in confusion.
“Come help us unload all the bakery shit,” Zach shakes his head. “We honked.” He walks away, and I stand up from the couch, letting out a deep breath. I’m completely mortified that my mom and Zach almost walked in on us fooling around. That Liam and I would be over before we could even get started.
“He didn’t suspect anything.” Liam moves next to me, stopping the movie with the remote.
“What?”
“You were mumbling about how Zach almost caught us,” he says. “It’s okay.” He lowers his voice. “We’ll just be more careful next time.”
“Next time?”
“Yes.” He tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. “As in the next time I kiss you — which will be very soon.”
“Okay...”
We walk through the kitchen into the garage and help my mom and Zach unload the supplies and groceries from both cars. After everything is put away and my mom heads upstairs to turn in, I hang around for a little bit—listening to Zach and Liam talk about their upcoming game against Green Cove.
After Zach leaves to take a call that’s more than likely from a girl, I walk Liam outside.
“I had fun tonight.” He smiles, and I can’t help but blush.
“I did, too.”
Checking to make sure Zach isn’t around, Liam leans in and kisses me slower than he’s ever been kissed me before. I can still taste the candy on his lips from earlier.
“I’ll talk to you later.” He caresses my cheek, and then he walks outside — crossing over our lawn to his house.
I walk upstairs to change into my pajamas and slip under my covers, smiling since I can still feel the pressure of Liam’s lips against mine. I roll over and try to replay the kiss again, but my cell phone buzzes and interrupts my dream before it can begin. I pick it up and look at the screen.
Liam: We should do that again. (By “that” I mean me coming over. And by “again” I mean this weekend :- ) )
18
Mariah
“You don’t have to come to my debate, Liam,” I say on Saturday morning. “You had a game last night and I’m sure you’re tired. My mom is making Zach sacrifice his sleep and take me.”
“Who do you think just called me and begged me to take you anyway?”
I laugh and shake my head. “Okay, well ... I’ll be ready in five minutes.”
“I’ll be outside.”
I end the call and smile. I can’t deny that I’m happy that he’s taking me to my debate today. It’s a thirty-minute drive to Grey Storm County and that means we’ll get some much needed time alone there and on the way back.
I pull my Debate Team hoodie over my head and quickly brush my teeth, making sure my hair is still decent. I send my mom a text, letting her know I’m off to my debate and leave the house, spotting Liam standing outside the passenger door with a cup of coffee and a cinnamon bun.
“You got me breakfast?” I ask, as he opens the door for me. “Or is that for you?”
“It’s for you.” He hands it to me and waits until I’m inside. I notice he’s bought an extra-large coffee and a muffin for himself.
He puts his car in reverse and backs out of the driveway, heading out of our subdivision. The second we make it onto the main road, he pulls the car over into the emergency lane, then he leans over and kisses me for five minutes before hitting the road again.
My cheeks remain red for several miles and his hand covers mine as he takes his time driving.
“Do you think you’re ready for the debate?” he asks once we’re ten minutes away.
“Yeah. I’ve been following this team for two years now, since they’re the best. As long as they don’t cheat, I think we’ll be fine.”
“What do you mean, as long as they don’t cheat?”
“Well ...” I take a sip of my coffee. “I’ve never told Coach, but I’m pretty sure that they use the sick rule to their advantage. I can’t prove it though ...”
He shoots a quick glance over to me, confused.
“Over the past two years, for like four different debates, their lead female debater has gotten sick in the third and fourth round and so by the rules, they have to bring in an alternate. But I find it quite convenient that she always gets sick when the third and fourth round categories are World History. Like, it’s as if they know she’s not that good at it at all, so they sub her out for a senior who, of course has that strength.”
“You really believe that?”
“Yeah,” I say. “I really do.”
He smiles. “I’ll be sure to watch for that conspiracy then.”
“It’s not a conspiracy, Liam.” I can’t help but laugh. “It’s true.”
“We’ll see ...” He laughs and we pull off onto the exit. He pulls up to the front doors of the school and tells me he’ll be “napping” in the back row of the auditorium for two hours, since my time for debate isn’t technically until noon.
He leans in to kiss me again, but my teammates are standing outside and waiting for me.
One of the girls on the team, Wendy, even says hello to him first, before greeting me.
“Thank you for the ride, Liam,” I say, attempting to play this off. “I’ll tell my brother you didn’t get into an accident.”
Wendy laughs and blushes. “Bye, Liam!”
“Bye, Wendy,” he says. “See you later, Mariah.” He pulls off and heads toward the parking lot.
“You’re the only girl I know who doesn’t see just how hot he is.” Wendy shakes her head at me. “I bet he’s one hell of a good kisser, too.”
He is ... “I guess,” I say, quickly changing the subject. “Where’s Coach?”
“At the registration table. Oh, and guess what today’s categories are?”
“Physics, Law, Shakespearean Plays, Geography, and Politics?”
“Three out of four isn’t bad.” She looks impressed. “Law, Physics, Geography, Current Events, and World History.”
My heart sinks and I can tell Wendy feels the same way.
“Maybe she’s read up over the summer,” she says, pulling me inside. “And maybe it’s not true. Maybe it’s just ‘us,’ you know?”
“No.” I shake my head. “I don’t ...”
We find our Coach and take our name badges, listening to him as he gives us his usual positive reinforcement. Then we find our seats in the auditorium and watch the first few rounds, since we’ve earned a pass for the entry level.
As I watch another team get eliminated, I feel my phone buzzing against my lap. Liam.
Liam: Is this the conspiracy round I should be watching?
Me: No, this is the entry level round. I thought you were sleeping?
Liam: I was until you sent me your last text message.
Me: What last text message?
Liam: fwd: Kels ... I feel like if I gave my virginity to anyone, it would be Liam.
OMG ...
Liam: We should talk about this.
Me: I was talking about another Liam. Besides, there’s a big “if” in the text ... It doesn’t mean anytime soon ...
Liam: It could be never ...We’re still going to talk about it. :-)
I blush and glance toward the back of the auditorium where Liam is sitting, smiling at me. I really should’ve changed all the settings when my mom gave me this phone.
A new text comes across my screen be
fore I can tell Kels about how this is the second time I’ve sent him a message meant for her.
Liam: If I did buy your conspiracy theory about the cheating, I’m pretty sure there’s a rule about alternates ...Why not just use that if that happens today?”
Me: What do you mean?
Liam: Section 56.1 of the rulebook (yes, I’ve read it.)
I pick up my registration booklet and flip to page fifty-six, refusing to believe that I’ve missed anything that could’ve prevented Team Storm View from using the sick alternate rule.
If an alternate becomes ill, the team must supply an alternate or the team will be disqualified.
I didn’t see anything. It was the same rule.
I start to text him back, but he texts me again.
Liam: Rule 46.1. Sorry, autocorrect.
I flip through the pages and my eyes widen, noting the slightly updated formatting rules for this school year, rules that I didn’t even bother reading, since they hardly ever change.
“Ladies and gentlemen, that concludes round two of the regional debates. Round three will take place in thirty minutes,” the announcer says. “Also, there will be a slight change in the lineup for Storm-View High. Rachel Weathers will be replaced by Brian Addleston.”
My blood begins to boil at the sudden announcement and our Coach turns around in his seat to face us.
“Alright, you’ve all worked very hard to be here today, so no matter what happens today, I’m very proud of you all. And for the record —”
I stand up from my seat in the middle of his speech and head straight for the Storm-view High team. I tap their team captain on the shoulder and he turns around to face me with a smirk.
“Yes?” he asks. “Do you not want to take advantage of the thirty-minute break? Are you ready to get your loss over with right now?”
“I’m ready to put an end to your team’s bullshit right now,” I say. “If Rachel is so sick, which is utter tripe at this point, that’s fine but you’re not using Brian as an alternate.”
Mr. Popular: A Falling For My Brother's Best Friend Romance Page 13
