Spring Fling

by Sabrina James

  So far, Damian had come through for her, spending time alone with Wanda, Vivienne, and Lacey.

  That meant that she was eventually going to have to settle her debt with him.

  The only question was when?

  When was he going to collect his kiss?

  “Why not?” Lacey answered with a smile. “The weather is gorgeous, we’re still in Miami, and delicious Damian is coming over today!”

  “Delicious Damian is coming over to see me,” Wanda reminded Lacey. “Not you.”

  Lacey made a face at Wanda. “Don’t worry! I’m only going to look, not touch! You know, you should learn to share. What’s going to happen once we get back home? You can’t juggle two boyfriends.”

  Wanda gave Lacey a coy smile. “Says who?”

  “I’d like to see that,” Lacey scoffed.

  “You will!” Wanda confidently answered.

  “Think she can do it, Mindy?” Lacey asked.

  Mindy didn’t know how to answer. Wanda juggling two boyfriends? That could only mean one thing. Disaster!

  “Guess we’ll have to wait until we get home,” Mindy said.

  “I guess so,” Lacey said, giving Mindy a secret smile that instantly made her nervous.

  Lacey was up to something, but what?

  Ava was the first one ready to leave for Mindy’s pool party. While Danielle, Lindsey, Jade, and Crystal were still getting into their swimsuits, she was sitting on the steps of the front porch, flipping through a tiny photo album filled with pictures of her and Josh. Each one brought back a memory of a happier time.

  And reminded her that those happy times were over.

  Why are you torturing yourself this way? It’s over with Josh! Over! Throw out these photos! You need to put the past behind you and move on!

  When she heard footsteps on the walkway, she looked up and saw Cooper with his hands behind his back.

  “What are you hiding?” she asked him.

  “Just a little something I whipped up,” he said, presenting Ava with a bouquet of flowers made from colored tissue paper. “They last longer this way.”

  “They’re so pretty!” Ava exclaimed, putting down the photo album and taking the bouquet from Cooper.

  Cooper sat on the steps next to Ava, pressing his knee against hers. “What were you looking at?”

  “Nothing special,” she said, pressing back with her knee.

  “Mind if I take a look?” Cooper asked, reaching for the album.

  Ava shrugged. Unless she snatched the album away from Cooper, she really didn’t have much of a choice. “If you want.”

  She watched as Cooper flipped through a few pages. From the frown on his face, he didn’t seem too happy.

  “I’m guessing this guy is Josh?” he asked.

  “It’s Josh.”

  Cooper flipped through the rest of the pages, then handed the album back to Ava and rose from the steps. “I’m going to go find Ethan. See if he’s ready to go. I’ll see you at Mindy’s.” He started walking away.

  “Cooper! Wait!” she cried, throwing down the bouquet and jumping up off the steps. She could see he was angry, maybe even a little hurt, but he wasn’t going to say anything. He probably wanted to leave so he could cool off. That was just the way he was. He didn’t want to make her feel bad or put any pressure on her.

  “I didn’t thank you for the flowers,” she said.

  He turned around. “You don’t have to,” he said stiffly.

  “I know. But I want to.”

  Ava closed the distance between herself and Cooper. Then, before she lost her nerve, she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulled his face close to hers, and kissed him.

  She didn’t know what she was doing.

  This was all so wrong.

  But if it was wrong, why did it feel so right?

  Danielle watched from behind the screen door with wide eyes.

  Ava was kissing Cooper.

  Ava had made the first move!

  She was shocked.

  Shocked!

  But also thrilled!

  It looked like her best friend was finally over Josh!

  Cooper couldn’t believe what was happening.

  Ava was kissing him.

  She was kissing him!!!

  Only seconds ago she had been flipping through a photo album filled with pictures of her ex-boyfriend. Seeing those photos, he had finally decided to give up. Game over. Josh had too strong a hold on Ava for Cooper to even have a chance.

  But then Ava had surprised him.

  She had kissed him.

  Was still kissing him!

  He never thought this day would arrive. Yesterday, after the Tunnel of Love, he and Ava had spent the rest of the day going on rides and avoiding all talk of romance. They didn’t discuss dating or kissing or ex-boyfriends. They just had a good time. And when they’d gotten home, he’d walked Ava to her front door and given her a hug good night. Like a brother would give his sister. He hadn’t even thought of kissing her.

  Ava broke their kiss. “I shouldn’t have done that,” she instantly apologized, her forehead pressed against his as she stared down at the ground.

  “But you did,” Cooper said, unable to keep from smiling.

  “It was wrong.” Ava went back to the steps and sat down, running her fingers through her curls. “Wrong!”

  Cooper followed after Ava and sat next to her, taking her hand in his and giving it a gentle squeeze. “Why was it wrong?”

  “You’re a great guy, Cooper, but I don’t know what I feel for you. And until I do, I shouldn’t be kissing you!”

  “Maybe this will help you change your mind,” he whispered.

  And then, before Ava could say another word, Cooper pulled her into his arms and gave her a kiss of his own.

  At first, Cooper was doing all the kissing, but then Ava lost herself in the moment, allowing herself to kiss him again as she wrapped her arms around him and pulled him close.

  Danielle didn’t want to spoil the moment—it was so romantic!—but she could hear Lindsey, Jade, and Crystal getting ready to head downstairs. She figured the last thing Ava would want was an audience, so she clomped her feet on the floor and started to open the porch door. At the sound of the noise she was making, Ava and Cooper pulled away from each other.

  “We’re almost ready to go,” Danielle announced as she walked outside. “Oh!” She pretended to sound surprised. “Hi, Cooper! I didn’t know you were out here.”

  “Hey, Danielle,” he greeted as he jumped to his feet.

  “You coming to Mindy’s?” she asked.

  “Ethan and I are going to drive over together.”

  “We’ll see you there.”

  “See you there,” he said as he waved good-bye.

  “Pretty flowers,” Danielle said, picking up the bouquet on the steps. “Where’d you get them?”

  “You know where I got them,” Ava said. “I saw you hiding in the doorway. Real subtle, Danielle!”

  “I didn’t want to spoil things!”

  “How much did you see?”

  Danielle made kissing noises. “Only the juicy parts!”

  Ava groaned.

  “What’s wrong?” Danielle asked.

  “Cooper!”

  “He likes you.”

  “You think I don’t know that?”

  “And from what I just saw, I think you like him, too, right?”

  “Right,” Ava slowly answered.

  “So what are you going to do about it?”

  Ava sighed. “I don’t know. I feel like I’m sending him mixed signals. Kiss me! Don’t kiss me! I need to make up my mind about what I want and then stick to it!”

  Danielle picked up the photo album on the steps. “Why don’t we start by throwing this away?”

  Ava snatched the album away from Danielle. “I can’t! I’m not ready!” She tossed the photo album back into her shoulder bag. “Let’s not talk about me. Let’s talk about you and Ethan. Are the two of you o
fficially a couple?”

  “We’re hardly a couple,” Danielle said. “We haven’t been dating for even a week.”

  “You did lock lips with him yesterday.”

  “That was for charity.”

  “I thought you wanted to kiss him again?”

  “I did! I do! But after the kissing booth, we ran into Steve and Howie, and they spent the rest of the day with us. We could hardly kiss in front of them. And then they rode home with us. I didn’t even get a kiss good night!”

  “Poor Danielle,” Ava teased, making kissing sounds of her own. “Not getting her daily dose of kisses. I guess you’ll have to make up for it today.”

  “You bet I will!” Danielle vowed.

  Chapter Twenty

  “Your party seems to be off to a nice start,” Carmela said as she took a tray of mini pizzas out of the oven.

  Mindy peeked out into the backyard. Ethan, Cooper, and Damian had just arrived and were taking off their T-shirts, getting ready to jump into the pool. Naturally, Wanda, Lacey, and Vivienne had rushed over to Damian and surrounded him. The poor guy! She was surprised he could even breathe!

  “Let’s dance!” Wanda exclaimed, turning on the music and grabbing Damian by the hand, pulling him away from Lacey and Vivienne, who glowered at her behind her back.

  “She didn’t waste any time sinking her claws into him,” Carmela commented, handing Mindy a bowl of potato chips and pretzels. “Take these outside to your guests.”

  Mindy walked onto the patio and put the bowls down on a table, watching as Wanda draped her body against Damian’s while she danced.

  “I thought she had a boyfriend,” Carmela said, coming out with a bucket of ice and cans of soda.

  “She does. Rick.”

  “Then what’s she doing with him?”

  “It’s spring break,” Mindy explained. “Wanda says she’s taking a break from Rick this week.”

  Carmela rolled her eyes. “She can call it whatever she wants, but that girl is cheating on her boyfriend!”

  “You could also say that,” Mindy agreed just as she heard the doorbell ring. “I’ll get it. It’s probably Ava and the girls.”

  Mindy went to the front door and opened it, expecting to find Ava. But when she saw who was on the other side, her mouth dropped open. It was the last person she ever expected to see.

  Rick Cho.

  Wanda’s boyfriend.

  He gave her a smile, his backpack tossed over one shoulder. “Hey, Mindy!”

  She struggled to find her voice. “Rick! What are you doing here?”

  “Why do you seem so surprised?”

  Uh, maybe because you’re not supposed to be here. You’re supposed to be back home! Oh, and your girlfriend is busy cheating on you with another guy only a few feet away from us!

  Mindy’s mind scrambled for an answer, but all she could think was: Danger! Danger! Wanda is wrapped around Damian tighter than a boa constrictor! If Rick gets a peek at that, there’s going to be a major explosion! Must prevent that from happening. If I don’t, I’m dead! Dead! Dead! Dead! Courtesy of Wanda Wong!

  “We didn’t know you were coming,” she said.

  “My dad had to fly down for business and I asked if I could tag along.” Rick looked puzzled. “I called yesterday and left a message. Didn’t you get it?”

  “You did?” Could Carmela have forgotten to give them Rick’s message? But Carmela never forgot to give messages. She never forgot to do anything. “With who?”

  “Lacey.”

  Aha!

  Now everything made perfect sense!

  Lacey hadn’t told Wanda that Rick had called because she wanted her to get caught with Damian!

  “Aren’t you going to let me in?” Rick asked.

  Mindy laughed nervously. “Of course!” She held the door open so Rick could walk into the house, trying to figure out a way to buy more time. She had to warn Wanda that Rick was here.

  If she didn’t…

  She shuddered.

  She didn’t even want to think about it!

  “What’s going on?” Rick asked. “I hear music.”

  “We’re having a pool party.”

  “Where’s Wanda?” Rick asked. “I want to see her.”

  “Wanda’s in the pool.” Mindy steered Rick in the direction of the stairs leading to the second floor. “Why don’t you change into a pair of swim trunks and then join us? There’s a guest room at the end of the hall with extra swim stuff.”

  “Sounds good,” Rick said.

  Mindy waited until she saw Rick reach the top of the stairs. Then she ran out into the backyard. She needed to do major damage control. She had to warn Wanda that Rick was here.

  As soon as she saw Wanda, who was still dancing with Damian, she grabbed her by the arm, pulling her off to one side.

  “Hey!” Wanda complained, trying to shake off Mindy’s grip. “What are you doing?”

  “I need to talk to you,” Mindy whispered. “It’s important.”

  “Later,” Wanda hissed. “I’m busy with Damian.”

  “Now!” Mindy insisted, yanking Wanda into the kitchen.

  “This better be important,” Wanda warned, snatching her arm away from Mindy.

  “It is.”

  Wanda sighed. “What’s the crisis?”

  “Rick.”

  “What about him?”

  “He’s here.”

  Wanda stared at Mindy in disbelief. “What do you mean he’s here?”

  Mindy pointed a finger up in the air. “He’s here. He’s upstairs changing into a pair of swim trunks.”

  Wanda’s eyes widened with horror. “What’s Rick doing here?”

  “I don’t know! He said he called yesterday and left a message.”

  “I didn’t get any message,” Wanda growled. “Did your stupid housekeeper forget to give it to me?”

  “Carmela’s not stupid!” Mindy exclaimed.

  “Then why didn’t I know Rick was coming?”

  It was on the tip of Mindy’s tongue to tell Wanda that Lacey, her so-called friend, hadn’t given her the message. But if she did that, she would be pulled into whatever feud was going on between Wanda and Lacey. And Lacey would think she had stabbed her in the back. After all, wasn’t she also supposed to be Lacey’s friend? The best thing to do would be to keep her mouth shut for now.

  Mindy shrugged. “I don’t know!”

  “Someone messed up,” Wanda hissed, staring at Mindy.

  The message was clear. Mindy had messed up. And Mindy would pay the price if Wanda wound up in hot water with Rick.

  The sound of footsteps could be heard coming down the stairs. Seconds later, Rick, wearing a pair of yellow boxer-cut swim trunks with a black stripe down the side, was in the kitchen, pulling Wanda into a hug.

  “Miss me?” he asked, giving her a kiss.

  Wanda kissed him back. “You don’t know how much!”

  “Glad to see me? You seem kind of stunned.”

  “Actually, I wasn’t expecting you,” Wanda confessed.

  “Didn’t Lacey give you my message?”

  Mindy sagged with relief against the kitchen counter. The secret was out! And it hadn’t come from her lips!

  Wanda’s eyes narrowed dangerously, sending chills down Mindy’s spine. “You gave a message to Lacey?”

  “Yesterday morning,” Rick said.

  “She didn’t give it to me.”

  “No big deal. Why don’t we go join the party?”

  “Let’s,” Wanda said.

  Mindy followed Wanda and Rick back outside, wondering what was going to happen next. Whatever it was, it was not going to be good.

  When they reached the pool, Wanda pointed out Ethan and Cooper, who were swimming. Vivienne was sunbathing on a chaise lounge while a smug Lacey was sitting on Damian’s lap, running her fingers through his hair.

  “Look who’s here,” Wanda said to Lacey, giving her an icy glare. “It seems you forgot to tell me something yesterda
y.”

  Lacey shook her head. “I didn’t forget.”

  Wanda’s eyes widened in shock, and Mindy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Did Lacey have a death wish?

  “You didn’t forget?”

  Lacey gave Wanda a sweet smile. “I knew how much you were missing Rick, so I wanted his visit to be a surprise. That’s why I didn’t tell you he was coming. So, surprise!” Lacey glanced over at Rick. “Was she surprised?”

  “You should have seen the look on her face.”

  “I would have loved to have seen it.”

  “I bet you would,” Wanda muttered.

  “I didn’t know you had a boyfriend,” Rick said to Lacey.

  Wanda laughed and gave Lacey her own smug smile. “She doesn’t. That’s Mindy’s boyfriend, Damian. Lacey just doesn’t know how to keep her hands to herself!”

  What?!

  Mindy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. This day just kept getting crazier and crazier!

  “You’ve kept Damian’s lap warm enough for Mindy. Time to let her take over,” Wanda said, grabbing Lacey by the arm and pulling her away from Damian. “Go on, Mindy,” Wanda urged, giving her a little shove. “Go sit on your boyfriend’s lap.”

  Damian held his arms out to Mindy, his green eyes sparkling with mischief. Oooh, he was enjoying this! “I missed you,” he said. “Did you miss me?”

  Mindy’s gut told her to play along. Wanda wanted Rick to think Damian was her boyfriend, so that was what she was going to do.

  Mindy slid onto Damian’s lap, wrapping her arms around his neck.

  “You know what I really want to do?” he whispered in her ear.

  “What?” she asked, looking down at him.

  “Kiss you!”

  And before Mindy could say or do anything else, Damian gave her a kiss in front of everyone.

  An hour later, Mindy was still remembering Damian’s kiss.

  As she had suspected, he was an excellent kisser.

  Well, that had been no surprise.

  He probably got plenty of practice at South Ridge High.

  Mindy had been kissed before, but Damian’s kiss had been unlike any other kiss she’d ever had.