“Sorry.” He winced when my teeth started chattering. “I’ll get you home as fast as I safely can.” Ten minutes later, we were parked in front of my house. I unbuckled and leaned into the heat vents. Without the wind blowing from the movement of the car, the cold wasn’t so bad.
“You don’t have to stay in the car, you know.” Andy laughed as he watched me huddle in front of the heater. “Come on, I’ll walk you to the door.”
“No, wait,” I said. “You still never told me about Sophia.” I hesitated and looked away as I asked my question. I’d already drudged up enough bad feelings tonight, but my insecurity wouldn’t let me rest until I had an answer. “Do you still have feelings for her?”
“Ivy,” Andy said flatly. “Do you honestly think I’d have spent the last twenty minutes kissing you if I had a thing for Sophia?” His smile was warm, and I felt silly for being concerned.
“Well, I’d hope not,” I replied. “But you never know. Most guys would be happy to get kisses from two girls at the same time.”
He reached over and tipped my head so I was facing him, then leveled me with a serious stare. “I thought we’d established that I’m not like most guys.”
“No, you aren’t,” I replied.
“I broke up with Sophia about a month after Rob and I stopped talking, for multiple reasons. The biggest being that Sophia was pretty, but we didn’t have all that much in common. She was always shallow, even back then. I realized that our relationship was more physical than emotional. All she cared about was going to parties and being popular, being seen with the right people in the right places. We never had deep or meaningful conversations. Every time I tried to open up to her about what was going on between me and Rob, she’d brush me off.
“That’s when I decided that I didn’t have room in my life for people like her…fake. I didn’t want to go to the places people expected me to go and do the things people expected me to do. I wanted to do things I enjoyed, like golfing and art class. I wasn’t going to waste my time on friendships that weren’t real. Jake was a good friend, so I held on to him and a few other people who genuinely cared about me, like Summer. I said good-bye to the rest. I don’t regret my decision. Sophia’s hinted more than once that she’d like to get back together, but I figured that was only out of convenience, because our families are together a lot. I thought she’d finally moved on when she started dating Rob. I doubt they’ll even stay broken up for long. You have nothing to worry about. Sophia can’t hold a candle to you.”
“Ok.” I wanted to believe that I had nothing to worry about, but Sophia was conniving. I wouldn’t put it past her to throw herself at Andy, but I tried not to think about that. “One more question, though. Don’t you get bored? Or lonely? I mean, I never saw you out socially before this week,” I asked, genuinely concerned.
“It’s not like I spend my life holed up in my room, Ivy.” He leaned over and kissed me on the tip of my nose. “You’re cute when you’re worried, by the way. And no, I’m rarely bored because I spend my time doing things that are fulfilling. I’m not lonely, either. Especially when I’m with sexy, strawberry blonde, athletic goddesses.” He winked, then stole a kiss from me. Ok, maybe he didn’t steal a kiss, since I let him.
“As long as you’re happy.” I sighed when he pulled away.
“Right now, I’m very happy.” Andy smiled. “And you’re very cold. Get your cute butt inside before it freezes right off. That would be a tragedy.”
“I don’t know about that,” I argued as he opened my door and I got out.
“Honestly, Ivy. If I hear you question how good you look one more time, I’m going to be forced to prove exactly how much I appreciate your body.”
“Ok, should I start complaining now, then?” I teased, and he swatted me playfully on the butt. I yelped, then slapped my hand over my mouth. I didn’t want my parents coming out to investigate. Then I wouldn’t get a last goodnight kiss.
We’d reached the front porch, and he pulled me in for a hug. “Seriously, though.” He spoke softly into my hair. “I think you’re perfect just the way you are. Don’t change anything.”
“Thanks,” I breathed. “You’re not so bad yourself.” I pulled away and smiled at him.
The porch light was on, and Andy peered around me toward the front window. The blinds were closed. “If I kiss you before I go, are your parents going to be peeking through the blinds? Does your dad have a shotgun sitting by the front door or anything?” He asked like it was a joke, but he still looked nervous.
“My parents go to bed early. I’m sure they’re already asleep. Kiss away.”
“In that case, I owe you a real goodnight kiss. Jake stole my move last night, and he butchered it, by the way.”
Before I could ask what move he was referring to, Andy swept me in his arms and dipped me back. Then he kissed me passionately. As Lilly would say, Wowza! Andy set me back on my feet, then kissed me on my cheek, before walking to his car. I pulled myself from my daze long enough to say good-bye.
“Goodnight, Andy.”
“Good? I don’t think it could get any better,” he called back. “Sweet dreams, Ivy.”
He waited until I was safely inside before driving away. I closed the door behind me, then leaned against it as I sighed. I didn’t think it was possible to have sweet dreams. At this point, I probably wouldn’t sleep at all. I was way too worked up. I let a tiny squeal escape, then walked upstairs to my bedroom. I didn’t know where this was headed, but I knew one thing for sure: I was majorly in-like with Andrew Walker.
My phone dinged with a text message alert at eight o’clock on Sunday morning. Since it was so early I assumed that the message was from Lilly, wanting the scoop on my evening. But when I picked up my phone, I found the message wasn’t from Lilly—it was from Andy.
Boobs: Have you talked to Lilly this morning?
Ivy: No… Should I have?
Boobs: Not necessarily.
Ivy: Have you talked to her?
Boobs: Nope. But I talked to Jake.
Ivy: Ok… Am I missing something here?
Boobs: Yep
Ivy: Are you going to tell me?
Boobs: Nope
Ivy: Wait, did they get together or something?
Boobs: IDK ;-) Maybe you should call her.
Ivy: Sounds juicy. TTYL
I fished through my contacts and found Lilly’s number. Then I switched conversations.
Ivy: Andy just texted me. He said I needed to talk to you.
I waited a few minutes, but Lilly didn’t answer. So, I sent another text.
Ivy: Hello? Do you have dirt or what? Because if you don’t text me back in the next five minutes I’m going to come over there and beat you with your phone.
I waited another five minutes, but still no answer from Lilly. Maybe she was in the shower. If her night was as interesting as Andy had implied, maybe she was still asleep. Though if it’d been exciting, normally she’d have called me at the butt crack of dawn. Oh my gosh. I hoped she was ok. Andy made it sound like gossip, but what if she’d been in an accident or something? No, it couldn’t be bad. He’d put a smiley face in the text.
Still, I was freaking out a little. I grabbed my keys and put on my slippers, ready to drive over to Lilly’s house and check on her. But as I opened my bedroom door, I heard my own doorbell ring. Strange, it was awfully early for visitors. I dashed down the stairs to answer it and was greeted by a grinning Lilly, still in her cute flannel pajamas.
“Why the heck didn’t you answer my text?” I scolded. “You had me worried. I was on my way over to check on you.” I dangled my keys in front of her as evidence.
“Sorry,” she said quickly, before rushing on. “I had an interesting night and knew that it was too good of a story to share over the phone.”
“Ooh, this sounds intriguing,” I responded eagerly.
“It is. Please tell me you have an equally good story to share, or I’ll be seriously disappointed.”
I grinned at her. “Depends on how good your story is.”
“So that’s a yes?” Lilly laughed. “Ok. You go first.” She waited expectantly.
“Not here.” I looked up the stairs, then back at Lilly. “Let’s go to my room. It’s Sunday, and I don’t want my mom to kick you out before I get all the details. I think they’re still asleep, so we should have a few minutes if we’re quiet.” We ran up the stairs silently and shut my bedroom door behind us before crawling up on my bed.
“Spill,” Lilly demanded once we’d gotten comfortable. “Please tell me you got kissed last night.”
“It was way better than a kiss.” I sighed before going into the specifics of my night after the basketball game. Lilly listened with intensity, squealing quietly as I recounted mine and Andy’s conversation leading up to our first kiss. I skipped the part about Rob and Andy, though. That seemed too private for me to share.
“Holy crap, Ivy. That’s so hot. Was he a good kisser?”
“Amazing,” I answered, then threw myself back on my bed, staring at the ceiling. “I could have kissed him all night. If he kisses me again, it should probably take place in a freezer. Or else I’ll melt into a puddle of goo.”
“Are you guys, like, dating now?”
“I don’t know,” I answered honestly. “It was only kissing.”
“And hand-holding,” Lilly interjected. “That’s how you know it’s the real deal. Guys who don’t want a relationship skip the small stuff and go straight to shoving their tongues down your throat.”
“I don’t know if I should read into the hand-holding too much,” I countered. “I agree that it’s like a nonverbal declaration, but only if he’s doing it in front of his friends. Andy dropped my hand pretty quick when we walked into the gym.” I frowned.
“Yes, but this is Andy. You guys could be married and he probably still wouldn’t hold your hand in front of a crowd. He did it the other night in front of Jake and me. I say it counts.”
“Maybe, but I don’t need to define the relationship yet. I’ll scare him off. I’m happy to let it be what it is. He can have the talk with me, if and when he wants to be exclusive.” I wasn’t going to be one of those clingy girls. That’d be a sure way to stop things before they’d even started. “Enough about me. I want to hear about your night. Apparently, Andy already has.” I teased.
“Oh my gosh. I saw your text and freaked out. Jake’s such a blabbermouth if he already told Andy what happened. What a girl.” She giggled.
“I still don’t hear you explaining,” I warned.
“Ok, ok. After the game was over, I was walking out with Jake when Sophia came up to us. She totally gave me the crusty once-over like she did on Friday, but I ignored her. I was going to walk away since I’d driven myself to the game, but Jake grabbed me by the arm to make me stay. Then he asked her what was up with her and Rob and why she hadn’t told him that they’d broken up. He wasn’t even being rude, he was being a nice brother. But Sophia’s a wench, so she was way nasty to him.
“She said, I don’t need your permission to dump a god if you don’t need my permission to date a troll. Then she pointed at me, or more specifically, at my hair.”
“Shut up!” I gasped. “She did not call you a troll! Freak. It’s a good thing I wasn’t there, or I’d have thrown down. I’m so sorry, Lilly. What a beast.”
Lilly waved me off, un-phased by the horrible name that Sophia had called her. “Wait, it gets better. Of course, I wanted to scratch her eyeballs out. I lunged at her, but Jake grabbed me by the waist and held me back before I could. So, I spit my gum at her instead.” Lilly smirked.
“You didn’t.” I laughed.
“I totally did. It didn’t even stick, but she was super mad after that. I thought smoke was going to pour out of her ears like a cartoon. Then she got all snarky and told Jake, If you want to spend your time with girls that look like twelve-year old-boys, you should at least find one with good fashion sense.”
My mouth dropped and I growled. “Oooh, what a…” I trailed off, clamping my jaw tightly shut. I was fuming. Lilly saw my reaction and placed her hand on my arm.
“Hang on,” she said. “I haven’t even gotten to the best part yet.”
“I hope the best part is you punching her lights out,” I replied, still seething.
“Nope.” Lilly grinned. “Better.”
“What could be better than breaking Sophia’s nose?”
Lilly shushed me. “If you’d stop freaking out and listen, I’ll tell you.”
“Fine.” I sighed. “Continue.”
“So, after Sophia called me a twelve-year-old boy who dresses bad, Jake was really angry. Like, I’ve never seen anyone so mad. Then he told her, and I quote, Girls who like Star Wars are hot. Plus, Lilly’s an excellent kisser, which I’ve heard is a department where you’re lacking. Rob told me once that you were a five—at best.”
My eyes got wide. “Holy crap. Did he really say that?”
“He did.” She was nodding her head excitedly. “But that’s still not the best part.”
“How could it get any better than that? Your night was like an episode of Riverdale.”
Lilly’s smile got impossibly bigger and her hands became animated, showing me what happened while she was telling me. “Because after he said that, he walked me a few feet to the staircase, picked me up and set me on the bottom step so I was closer to his height, wrapped one hand around my waist and the other behind my neck…then snogged the hell out of me.”
“You’re lying!” I screamed.
“Honest truth.” Lilly laughed and held up her fingers. “Scout’s honor.”
“Holy crap,” I repeated for the hundredth time as I fanned myself. “You thought my night was hot. That’s way hotter. Like a million times hotter. Was she livid or what?”
“Probably.” Lilly shrugged. “Jake kept kissing me until Sophia stomped off so I didn’t really see her reaction. There were a bunch of people watching by that point. A few of them were laughing and everyone was whispering. After she left, Jake pulled me down and dragged me by the hand across the parking lot to my car. When he apologized for his sister’s rudeness, I asked him if he was going to apologize for the kissing, too. But all he said was Nope. Then he winked at me and walked away with his hands in his pockets. All casual, like he hadn’t just caused a giant scene in front of dozens of people.”
For a minute, I was too stunned to speak. “Wow. I have no words.” I shook my head slowly. “So, does this mean you and Jake are together now?” I smirked, turning her question back on her.
“Pshhh.” Lilly scoffed. “Like you said, it was just kissing. Sexy revenge kissing, but still… I don’t know if Jake and I are technically even friends yet.”
“Whatever, he defended your honor by complimenting your kissing, then attacking your lips in a hallway full of his peers. You guys are at very least friends,” I said sarcastically.
There was a knock on my door, and my mom poked her head into the room. “Everything ok in here?” she asked. “I heard screaming.”
“Oh, sorry, Mom,” I apologized. “Lilly was telling me about her crazy night, and I guess I got a little excited.”
“I hope by crazy you don’t mean that you were getting into trouble?” my mother asked affectionately. She loved Lilly as much as I did.
“Nope,” I teased. “Trouble, as in getting kissed. By a really cute boy.”
Lilly punched me in the shoulder. “You’re one to talk. You got kissed last night by a cute boy, too.”
“Shut up, you rat.” I punched her back.
“Is this true?” Mom asked, trying to contain her excitement. I hadn’t had a boyfriend in a while.
“Possibly,” I admitted.
Mom started digging for more info. “So, are you and this boy serious?”
“Not yet.”
“Do you want to be?”
“Maybe.”
My mother appraised me for a moment before making a decisi
on. “I know it’s family day, but maybe you should invite this boy over for lunch. We’re cooking steaks on the grill. I’m sure your father and Nathan would like to meet him.”
“Mom, isn’t it a little early to bring him home to meet the parents? He’s not even officially my boyfriend.”
She gave me an ultimatum. “And he won’t be until we meet him.” I don’t think she was concerned as much as she was curious.
“Fine.” I grinned. “I’ll call and invite him. He might already have plans, though.”
“Well, invite him and we’ll see. In the meantime,” she looked at Lilly, “I’m kicking you out. You know it’s family day.”
“Hey.” Lilly pouted. “How come Andy gets to come?”
My mom gave her a sly smile. “When you and Ivy start dating, then you can stay for lunch on Family Day.”
“All right, all right. I’m leaving.” Lilly stood, hands up in surrender. My mom hugged Lilly as she headed out the door. “Call me later,” she yelled from the hallway.
“This young man’s name is Andy?” Mom asked.
“Andrew Walker, but everyone calls him Andy.”
“Nate and Candice will be here around ten. We plan to eat at one. He can come any time after noon. Call him, then come down for breakfast and tell me all about him.” She smiled and patted me on the knee before walking out of my room and closing the door behind her.
I picked up my phone and sent Andy another text.
Ivy: Talked to Lilly. LOL
Boobs: We’ll have to compare stories later.
Ivy: How about today at lunch?
Boobs: Are you asking me out?
Ivy: I’m inviting you over. Lilly told my mom about you. Now she wants an introduction.
Boobs: Should I be worried?
Ivy: Well… I did tell her your name was Boobs.
Boobs: Please say you’re lying.
Ivy: I’m lying.
Boobs: But are you just telling me you’re lying, or are you actually lying?
Ivy: Guess you’ll find out. ;-)
Boobs: What’s for lunch?
Ivy: Does it matter.
Perfectly You (The Perfect Series Book 2) Page 12