I was walking out of the school building when she came jogging up to me. I cocked an eyebrow at her words.
“A date?” I asked.
“Yes, a date. You and me. Let’s do this.”
“I thought I didn’t date people, especially not you,” I spat out.
She rolled her eyes, and that dimple in her right cheek shone so bright in the darkness of the afternoon. “Do you remember everything that was ever said to you?”
“It’s a gift, a curse,” I muttered.
“So…this Saturday?” She wiggled her eyebrows in anticipation.
I narrowed my eyes and gave her a stern glare. “You really want to go out this Saturday?”
“Yes.”
“With me?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
She laughed. “To make you fall in love with me. Duh.”
She was up to something, because she had the goofiest grin known to mankind on her lips. She looked like a damn five-year-old holding the secret that she didn’t brush her teeth before going to bed or something.
“What are you hiding up your sleeve, Gable?” I asked.
She widened her eyes in surprise then rolled up the sleeves on her coat jacket, revealing her arms. “Just skin.”
I studied her smooth, tan color for a second before moving my eyes back to hers. I brushed my thumb across my nose. “What did you have in mind?”
“It’s a surprise. Don’t worry, I’ll pick you up and drive us there. One in the afternoon. Be ready.” She began walking away from me, and then she spun around, holding the straps of her backpack. “Oh, and Satan?”
“Yeah?”
“You did really great today during rehearsal. I hate to say it, but no one could do what you do. You’re that good. Have a good night.” She turned back around, walking to her car, and something happened to my heart in my chest. It tightened? It skipped? It beat in overdrive? I wasn’t exactly sure. I wasn’t used to my heart doing anything other than following its mundane pattern. Then, along came Shay Gable, and she went ahead and messed up my rhythmic patterns, all because of a nice compliment.
Was she being sarcastic? Was her comment genuine? Was she screwing with my head?
Open your damn book for me to read, Shay.
I stared at her—and her sweet ass—as she walked away, my heart still trying to figure out what had happened.
Had my heart skipped a beat over my sworn enemy?
What. The. Hell. Was. That?
What. The. Hell. Is. That?!
I sat in Shay’s car as we pulled up to the location of our date. I should’ve known there would be some kind of dramatic crap when Shay asked me out on a date. I just didn’t think it would have been this.
Of Reps and Men was the clever name of the building sitting in front of us, a place of hell where messed-up humans went to mess around with creatures they had no business messing around with. Through the window, I saw a guy holding a snake around his shoulder blades.
Like a freaking psychopath.
“What the hell is this?” I barked out, my skin beginning to itch from the thought of walking inside that place.
“It’s like a petting zoo for reptiles and things. I thought it could be fun.” Her tone was so matter of fact, and I swore she could see the fear dripping down my forehead. “A little birdie told me you loved reptiles.”
“A little bir—” I stopped my words and groaned. “I’m going to kill Raine.”
“Oh, come on. She owed me after she told you about the auditions for the play. It’s only fair that I get a fact about you, too.”
“Well, good for you. You know I hate reptiles. Awesome.” I slow-clapped. “But there’s no way in hell I’m stepping foot inside of that place.”
“What’s the matter, Satan?” she cooed, pursing her lips together. “Scared?”
“No. I’m just not an idiot who finds enjoyment in playing with creatures that aren’t meant to be played with. That’s not a damn black poodle in there; it’s a boa constrictor, an animal that can physically squeeze a person to death if it pleased.”
She smiled. “Sounds exciting. Come on, let’s go.”
She opened her car door, climbed out, and I stayed exactly where I was. There was no way in hell, heaven, or any other made-up location that I was going to unbuckle my seatbelt and climb out of that car.
Shay laughed when she saw me. “Are you telling me the bad boy of small town Raine, Illinois, is really deathly afraid of a little spider?”
“Those are tarantulas! There is nothing little about a freaking tarantula, Shay!”
She giggled. “You’re sweating.”
“I’m not,” I replied, knowing it was a lie. The backs of my knees were sweating, my toes were sweating, and my balls were pretty much sitting in a puddle of my damn nerves.
“You are. I’m just a bit amazed, I guess. In an odd turn of events, it turns out I’m not the chicken in this hateful relationship, after all—you are.”
“I’m no chicken,” I barked.
She leaned in toward me and puckered her lips together before saying, “Cluck, cluck, cluck…”
The hairs on my forearms stood straight up at her clucking.
She drove me mad, but—so annoyingly—she still kind of turned me on.
Okay, Chick.
Game on.
I unbuckled the seatbelt, climbed out of the car, and slammed her door shut. “You really want to do this? Fine, but don’t come complaining to me when you need a tetanus shot in your ass because you decided you wanted to pet a damn tiger-striped spider.”
She smiled and walked in front of me toward the building. It seemed like lately, she was swaying her hips even more than normal in an attempt to hypnotize me.
It was working, too—right up until we walked inside the building and I felt an instant need to turn around and run. But I knew I couldn’t punk out in front of Shay. That was exactly what she wanted me to do.
“Laffy Taffy?” she offered, holding a piece of candy out toward me. I went to grab it, and she paused. “Just don’t chew it up and put it in my hair again.”
“I remember your hairdo from back then. Trust me, I was doing you a favor.” I snatched the candy from her hand, ripped the package open, tossed it into my mouth then chewed it quickly and swallowed it whole.
Her mouth gaped open. “What was that?!”
“What was what?”
“The animalistic way you ate that candy. You don’t stuff the whole Laffy Taffy into your mouth like that. You savor it. What you did was very beastlike.”
“Well, I’m sorry, Beauty. Please, show me how to eat a piece of Laffy Taffy properly.”
She pulled out another piece of candy from her purse and opened it slowly, peeling back the wrapper from the yellow candy. “Banana is the best flavor, so I like to take my time with it,” she explained. “And then, you nibble at it, taking small bites so it’s not gone in an instant. You don’t rush the process. You take your time.”
“You’re insane. Just shove it into your mouth and eat it.”
“No. You have to take your time with it. The best things in life are worth taking your time with, like Laffy Taffy.”
“Just swallow it, Chick. I’m sure you have some experience with that,” I joked.
She rolled her eyes and playfully shoved me in the arm. I liked that. I like when she touched me even if it was followed by the words, “You’re such a pig.”
“Yeah, but I’m sure you like bacon.”
She smiled, that dimple deepened, and she nibbled at her Laffy Taffy like a gerbil.
“Come on. Let’s go meet some friends,” she said, walking up to the front desk. Before we were able to go into the back area with the animals, we had to sign waivers.
Red flag number one.
We were also led into the room with all the creatures and were told to never reach for the animal on our own due to their temperaments.
Red flag number two.
Then, we wer
e told to take off all jewelry due to some animals grabbing onto certain items.
Red flag number freaking three.
“This is a terrible idea.” I grimaced.
Shay kept nibbling at her banana Laffy Taffy. “You’re being dramatic. This is going to be great.”
I snatched the Laffy Taffy from her hand, balled it up, and popped it into my mouth.
Without any hesitation, she reached into her purse, unwrapped another piece of candy, and began nibbling again.
Nibble, nibble, nibble. Bite, bite, bite.
It seemed she was Willy Wonka, and her purse was the chocolate factory with unlimited supplies.
Our tour guide for the afternoon was Oscar, and he seemed a bit too excited to wrap a snake around my neck. “Don’t worry,” he said, patting me on the back as we headed toward the snake cages. “They don’t bite, and if they do, you’ll probably be dead so quick you wouldn’t even feel a thing.”
It was meant to be a joke, but I didn’t laugh.
I was too busy being tensed up.
Oscar grabbed one of the creatures, and without thought, I took a step back. Shay laughed at my retreat, but she didn’t step any closer to the creature herself. She seemed as nervous as I was. Good. Equal playing field. She was acting all confident up until we were finally in the room with the creatures. Now, she was more wide-eyed and concerned as she slowly chewed her candy.
“Ladies first,” I offered, gesturing toward Charlie—the garter snake.
Shay took a deep breath, balled up her Laffy Taffy, and shoved it into her mouth, swallowing it whole.
Thatta girl.
She was quiet as she walked over to the snake. I watched as she flinched a few times as Oscar moved the creature in her direction, but she allowed it to be placed in her hands. She shivered and wiggled, I guess from the odd feeling of the thing.
My mind couldn’t even wrap my head around what it felt like. I was still eyeing the exit.
After a few different snakes, and me passing on holding them, Shay started clucking again. She even added in the chicken arm movements, flapping her arms.
“Fine,” I groaned. “Give me the snake.”
The last one we met was Greta, and she was a freaking giant monster of a ball python.
Oscar had me hold my hands out.
“Shaking won’t help the situation,” he warned.
“Listen, this is the best you’re going to get out of me, so just put the snake in my palms, okay?”
I snapped at the dude and I felt semi-bad about it, too. My nerves were getting the best of me. Sweat was dripping down my forehead, and my vision was blurring over. But still, I wasn’t going to punk out—not with Shay watching. That would’ve given her too much joy.
He lowered the snake into the palms of my hands, and within seconds, everything went black.
“Landon…hey, Landon. Wake up, get up,” a voice said as my head stirred. I opened my left eye to see Shay’s face hovering over mine. “Oh, thank goodness. I thought I killed you,” she exclaimed.
I pushed up on my hands to come to a sitting position. I rubbed my arm up and down. “What just happened?”
“Well, it didn’t just happen. You blacked out for five minutes,” she explained. “I was already planning out your funeral, but then, like the Satan you are, you rose from the ashes.”
I groaned and went to stand up. As I stood, I got extremely dizzy. I began stumbling, but Shay caught my arm, making me balance a bit more.
“Easy,” she said, her voice low and almost sounding like she cared. “You should probably get checked out. You fell face first.”
“I’m fine. Perhaps we should leave the reptiles alone, though.”
“Oh…” Shay nodded slowly and raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, we’re not really allowed back in this place, seeing how, when you fell, you tossed Greta into another cage, and…yeah, we’re not welcome back.”
“Oh, man. That’s too bad. I was really hoping to come back and spend money on this crap.”
“It’s not your lucky day, I guess.”
I studied her lips as she spoke to me. The longer I stared, the more focus I was able to retrieve. My head was still foggy, but I knew a few more seconds of staring at Shay would clear it right up.
“We should probably get you home, so you can ice your forehead,” she commented. I ran my fingers across it, and there was a big knot. Great. I had Pinocchio’s nose growing out of my forehead.
I didn’t argue with the idea of going home. The sooner I was away from those animals, the better.
We drove in silence, and every now and then, Shay would find herself in a giggling fit.
“What is it?”
“Nothing, nothing…” More giggling. “It’s just…when you went down, you looked like a tree that was being cut down in the forest. Stiff and awkward, face down. It looked like something out of a movie. Timberrrrrr,” she called out.
“Well, I’m glad I could entertain you.”
“You really did.” She nodded. “Your butt in those jeans as you went falling forward…” She began giggling again. I wanted to call her out on talking about my butt, but her laughing was annoyingly adorable, and I didn’t want to interrupt that sound. I hadn’t known you could love a sound you hated.
“Thanks for an awful first date,” I told her as we parked in front of my house.
She smiled bright. “Anytime! Have a terrible night.”
“Yeah, yeah, you too.” I climbed out of her car and slammed the door shut. I began walking toward my front door but turned around when I heard Shay calling my name. “Yes?”
“That comment about your butt?” Her grin spread wide as her dimple deepened. “It wasn’t an insult.”
I almost smirked at her, but instead, I nodded once and walked toward my house, shaking my goods from left to right. That’s right, I was shaking my ass for Shay Gable after completely blacking out due to a snake in my hands.
And a part of me wasn’t even mad about it.
“Oh, no, no, no,” Raine exclaimed, shaking her head as I stood on her front porch that night. “I’m not getting involved again,” she told me, crossing her arms. She knew I was there for more information on Shay, and by her stance, it appeared she had no desire to give it to me.
“I blacked out from a snake in my hands, Raine!” I argued, rubbing the huge knot on my head.
“Yeah, I heard.” She smirked a little then began giggling. “Timberrrrr.”
Of course Shay had already told Raine about what had happened. I shouldn’t have been surprised. Even though I was close friends with Raine, I knew she and Shay were just as close—if not closer. Girl code and all.
“Come on, Raine. You have to give me something.”
“Sorry, I can’t. Hank said he was going to ban me from watching rom-coms with him if I got involved with you guys anymore, and my favorite pastime is watching him cringe while we watch rom-coms.”
I sighed. “I can’t win this bet if I don’t have anything to use against Little Miss Perfect,” I said.
“Perfect?” Raine arched an eyebrow. “You think Shay’s perfect?”
“Of course. Her life is too perfect. She doesn’t have anything wrong with her, no flaws. Me, on the other hand? I have too many, and she can see them. She can somehow see me, and it’s not fair.”
“That’s Shay for you—the master of reading people. So, maybe you need to do that…maybe you have to read her back.”
“Trust me, I’ve tried. Her pages are clean.”
“Oh, Landon…” Raine shook her head. “Nobody’s pages are clean. Everyone has ink that stains. I know for a fact Shay has her own struggles, too.”
I gave her a wolfish grin. “Oh yeah? Like what?”
She parted her lips to speak but then caught herself and pointed a stern finger my way. “Nope. Nope. I’m Switzerland. I’m fondue. I’m Swiss cheese. You’re going to have to figure it out on your own without my help.”
“How do I do that?”
“Just look at her, Landon, and I mean really look. Try to figure out her love language.”
“Her what language?”
“For the love of…ugh. One second.” She marched into her house and then came back to the porch with a book in her hand. She shoved it toward me.
I looked down and read the title: The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman.
“What the hell is this?” I asked.
“This is the key to making Shay fall in love with you. It’s a book that makes you understand the different ways people love. It saved mine and Hank’s relationship a few years ago. You see, I thought he was being all sexist and old school and stuff when he was always trying to pay for our dates, and I’m all, ‘Psh, please. I am an independent woman, and I can pay for myself.’ And we got into a heated fight over it, and it was actually kind of cute. The night of the fight, he was wearing that button-down flannel I hate, the one with the—”
“Can we fast-forward to the point of all this?” I cut in, knowing Raine could turn a short story into a full novel with her roundabout way of talking.
“Oh. Right. What was I getting at? Oh yeah! The languages. There are five love languages: receiving gifts, acts of service, quality time, words of affirmation, and physical touch. Each person has a love language. Mine is quality time—rom-coms with Hank for example—and Hank’s is acts of service, which is why he always changes my oil and carries my books at school and stuff, or buying me dinner. That’s how he shows his love. Now, all you have to do is read this book and then read Shay. Shay’s story is there, you just have to do some digging to unlock it. And who knows? Maybe at the end of the day, you’ll realize you two have more in common than you think. Maybe you have the same love language.”
Hard to believe, but whatever. I knew Raine wasn’t going to give me any more details outside of a cheesy book—not with her rom-coms on the line—so I had no reason to stay any longer.
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