Resisting the Rebel

by Lisa Brown Roberts

  She shrugged. “If you say so.” She was probably having too much fun with this, but he sort of deserved it, after earning her detention. She took another bite of fry. Mr. Dark Lord of Sexiness worrying about his technique. Now that was funny.

  “So,” he began, then hesitated. “So you’re saying…that uh, me uh…”

  “Selling it,” she supplied helpfully, grinning at his discomfort.

  He grimaced. “Right. You’re saying…me trying to sell it, uh, didn’t…do anything for you?”

  “Nope.” She blushed as she shook her head. This was getting more personal than she’d intended, and he could never know how much it had done for her. And it was bad karma to lie, even when it was sort of fun. She cleared her throat and turned away, staring out the window at a group of toddlers playing on a swing set.

  …

  Okay, this was bullshit. No way was she telling the truth.

  Was she?

  Damn it. This was crazy. What did he care, anyway? This was all for show.

  But it wasn’t all for show, because now he didn’t trust Gus after what the cheerleaders had said. He didn’t want to see Mandy with an octopus asshole. She was sweet. Funny. Feisty. Smart. A whole bunch of things he wouldn’t have guessed after watching her flutter around the school the past couple of years.

  Crap.

  He chewed a bite of his non-veggie burger, thinking. He didn’t want to be an asshole like Gus, forcing himself on her if she really didn’t want it. Or if they weren’t at least in agreement that whatever they did was for show.

  That was it—they needed an agreement.

  Rules.

  Kissing rules.

  “Okay,” he said, his confidence returning. “I’ve got a better idea. I think the problem was you weren’t expecting it. So you couldn’t uh, sell it, from your side.”

  She whirled to face him, eyes wide. “What?”

  He grinned, his confidence rising. “Next time, we’ll have a plan.”

  “A plan? You mean…a…”

  “Kissing plan. Yeah.” He watched her as he chewed a french fry. Her cheeks were pink, her pupils dilated. Didn’t do anything for you, my ass. But he wasn’t going to gloat. Not yet.

  “So let’s work this out. Maybe each time we run into Gus, I kiss you. Your choice where.” He grinned. “Cheek.” He rolled his eyes. “Neck.” He cocked an eyebrow and his gaze strayed to her lips. “Mouth.”

  “I…uh…don’t think…” Her voice was breathy, nervous.

  “And,” he continued, feeling smug, “whenever we see Elle, I think you should kiss me.” He winked at her. “Wherever you want.”

  She leaned forward. “Caleb! That’s…you’re…I can’t believe you…”

  “It’s better this way, Disco. If we’re agreed ahead of time, we can both sell it.” He hesitated. “We’ll both get what we want faster this way.”

  He didn’t have much time to convince her that Gus was the wrong guy for her. But if kissing was part of the plan, he definitely had an advantage over the octopus dork.

  Because kissing was something he was very, very good at.

  Chapter Ten

  Ain’t Nobody (Loves Me Better)

  Saturday, September 23

  “What’s he doing here?” Mandy whispered, catching sight of Caleb in the theater lobby. He leaned against the wall, eyes narrowed as he watched the groups of friends and families out for a fun Saturday night.

  “Maybe he’s on a date,” Cammie said, “with a dominatrix.”

  J.T. snorted. “I invited him.” He paused dramatically. “Technically, I’m here with Liam, and Cammie’s with Jiro, so I guess that makes you his date, Man.” He grin was evil. “It’s Saturday night; you should totally be on a date with your boyfriend.”

  “You what?” Mandy screech-whispered. “J.T.! Why…but he…I’m hardly speaking to him right now! After what he did and detention and…” Her voice trailed away.

  After lunch and Caleb’s ridiculous kissing proposal, she’d avoided him, fueling rumors that their whirlwind romance was already on the rocks. She wasn’t sure if that was good or bad, but she’d needed to get away from him. They hadn’t spoken during detention, and he’d bolted from the room as soon as it was over, surprising her and leaving her feeling…confused.

  Cammie put a hand on her shoulder, and Mandy took a breath, grasping for mantras. Everything happens as it should. There are no accidents.

  “You’re the one who told us to be nice to him. That he just needs some good people in his life,” J.T. said, staring down Mandy. “But I admit, I’m surprised he showed.”

  “I’m not,” Cammie said, squeezing Mandy’s hand. “You are his girlfriend, after all.”

  “Always the drama with you,” Jiro said to J.T., who grinned and pulled Liam in close.

  Mandy swallowed, darting a glance at Caleb, who’d spotted them but hadn’t moved. His eyes locked on hers, and her insides tumbled around like clothes in a washing machine.

  “But you don’t like him,” Mandy whispered to J.T. as Caleb pushed off the wall, heading toward them.

  J.T. shrugged. “He’s not my favorite person. But…since you like him…” He gave her a meaningful look, reminding her that Liam and Jiro didn’t know about the fake routine. He nodded as Caleb joined them. “Yo, Red Ranger. How’s it going?”

  Caleb nodded at J.T. “Good. You?”

  J.T. grinned. “It’s Friday and I’m with my favorite people in the world…mostly. I’m fantastic.”

  Mandy saw Caleb’s face darken at J.T.’s veiled insult, so she stepped toward him, resting a hand on his leather jacket. “Just ignore him. I do.”

  He glanced down at her and his eyes…changed somehow. Softened maybe? She wasn’t sure, but whatever it was, it sent tingles shooting through her body.

  “It’s, um, nice that you’re here,” she managed to stammer. “We were just about to get some popcorn. Want some?”

  He almost smiled. “I’ll get it,” he said. “Butter?”

  Mandy nodded, biting her lip. His eyes shot to her mouth, then he frowned and turned to J.T. “You want anything, Blue Ranger?”

  J.T. grinned. “I’m good.” He patted his jacket pocket. “Smuggled in my own stuff.”

  Caleb arched an eyebrow. “Flask?”

  “No.” J.T. snorted. “Peanut M&M’s. They’re Liam’s favorite.”

  Caleb rolled his eyes and turned his attention to Cammie and Jiro. “You guys want anything?”

  Cammie shook her head. “You just take care of my girl here. Give her anything she wants.” She pinned him with a wicked grin. “And I do mean anything, Torrs.”

  Mandy sighed in frustration. Her friends were enjoying this fake boyfriend thing way too much.

  Sitting next to Caleb in a dark theater was a bad idea. Very bad. Or maybe very, very good depending on how she looked at it, but right now Mandy didn’t know what to make of her predicament. Everyone else had sprinted down the aisle to sit together in a half-empty row, leaving Mandy stuck next to Caleb.

  After she and Caleb sat down, a group of guys sat on the other side of her, laughing loudly and fake punching each other until one of them noticed her.

  “Yo, Red, you need company? I got room on my lap.” He leered at her.

  A swirling vortex of anxiety and anger shot through Mandy. She hated guys like this, who just invaded her space and made rude comments like she was some toy, not a real person. She turned away from the jerk hoping to ignore him, but instead she met Caleb’s stormy dark gaze. Uh-oh.

  Mandy put a restraining hand on Caleb’s arm, but he ignored her, leaning over her to get in the guy’s face. “Shut your piehole, unless you want a taste of my fist.”

  Mandy closed her eyes and sighed. Great. Now she had not one but two cavemen to deal with.

  The other guy tensed up. His blue eyes, which looked glazed, met hers. “You with this asshole?”

  Caleb leaned in close, his spicy scent overwhelming her as his voice rumbled in her ear. �
��Take your pick, Disco. The devil you know or the one you don’t.”

  Holy crap. He was practically smoldering. She grabbed her soda and took a long drink, then glanced at the blue-eyed jerk.

  “Yeah,” she finally said, “I’m with him.”

  Blue Eyes shrugged. “Your loss.” He turned away, saying something foul to his friends that she chose to ignore.

  Caleb leaned forward again but she pushed him back, locking eyes with him. “Caleb. If you hang out with my friends, there’s basically one rule. Don’t be a jerk. And no fighting.” She was suddenly aware of her hands still on his chest. Muscles flexed underneath the fabric of his shirt.

  “That’s two rules.” Caleb’s hands reached up to cover hers. His eyes narrowed. “You’d rather I let that guy harass you?” His grip tightened, flattening her palms against his chest. Cammie and J.T. goggled at them, openmouthed, while Jiro smirked and Liam shook his head, smiling.

  “I—I—um—” How could she possibly form a coherent sentence when Caleb was filling up her senses like this, his heartbeat racing under her hand? The theater darkened and the speakers vibrated with the soundtrack from the movie previews, but Mandy couldn’t see or hear anything except Caleb.

  Caleb released her hands, shifting in his seat to drape his arm over her, his fingers tangling in her hair, then drifting across her neck before setting on her shoulder. Every nerve ending in her body roared to life, and she was pretty sure that fire really was his secret superpower.

  “W-what are you doing?” she managed to whisper.

  In the dim light from the screen, she saw him tilt his chin toward Blue Eyes. “Being an excellent fake boyfriend. He keeps watching you. I want to make sure he gets the message to leave you alone.”

  Mandy glanced at Blue Eyes, who jerked away. Caleb was right. The guy was a total creeper.

  How could she possibly focus on the movie now?

  She stared at the screen. People did stuff, cars exploded, tornadoes destroyed an entire town, but her brain couldn’t comprehend anything except Caleb. Scary hotness draped over her like a protective cloak. She took a deep breath, willing her squirrel brain to focus on the screen.

  Caleb leaned in close, his voice tickling her neck and making her shiver. “Want to switch places with me? Then I won’t have to hold you against your hippie will.” She heard the teasing in his voice and shot him what she hoped was a withering glare. But based on his smirk, he wasn’t about to wither.

  Mandy glanced at Blue Eyes, who slumped in his seat, eyes closed. “I think he passed out,” she whispered back.

  Really, it would be disruptive to move now that the movie had started. And she always got cold in theaters. It would be a shame to lose the warmth of Caleb’s arm wrapped around her. She darted another sideways glance at him.

  “It’s, uh, okay. I’ll just…stay here.”

  He tossed a piece of popcorn in his mouth and winked at her. “Up to you, Disco.” But his arm tightened around her shoulders, pulling her closer, and he stretched out his legs, resting his thigh against hers, marking her as effectively as a wolf in the wild.

  …

  After the movie, as the posse stood chattering in the theater lobby, Caleb debated whether to head home by himself, offer to drive Mandy home, or stick around. A real boyfriend would choose option two or three. Preferably option two.

  “Anybody want ice cream?” J.T. asked.

  As everyone debated where to go, Caleb caught Mandy’s eye. She stood farther away from him than a real girlfriend would, but he reminded himself that she’d chosen to stay next to him during the movie, and his arm was still a little numb from being wrapped around her for two hours, because she’d been okay with that, too.

  Suck on that, tool, he wanted to say to Octo-Gus.

  “Ice cream?” he asked Mandy, and she nodded. She stepped closer to him, and he held out his hand. She hesitated, then glanced at her friends and tentatively put her hand in Caleb’s. Her skin was warm and soft. He ran his thumb over her fingernails, smiling as he thought of the rainbow manicure.

  They walked behind the posse, their clasped hands swinging between them. He wasn’t an ice cream date kind of guy. Or much of a hand-holder, either, because somehow holding hands felt way more intimate than other stuff. Which was weird.

  But doing this with Mandy was…good.

  “So does ice cream melt instantly when you touch it?” Mandy asked, shooting him a cryptic smile.

  He frowned, then shook his head when he realized what she meant. “You still think I’m a demon? I’m disappointed, Disco. I thought we’d moved past that.”

  “Well, I’m still trying to figure you out. Maybe you’re right and I’ve misread the clues.” She paused as they waited for everyone else to file into the ice cream shop. “Maybe you’re some other type of villain.”

  Surprised, he glared down at her. “You think I’m a villain? Seriously? Just because a guy wears black…”

  “And gets expelled for fighting—”

  His hackles rose. Time to quash that misconception right now. “One, I only got suspended, and two, I had a good reason for fighting, but no witnesses.”

  Her eyebrow raised. “A good reason? What—like you were saving someone from a bad guy?”

  “Yeah, I was.” He’d saved two someones, in fact—two scrawny middle-schoolers who’d been jumped by an asshole on their high school parking lot after school. Caleb had only been a freshman, but he’d been in good shape even then. Unfortunately the middle-schoolers had been so worried about their own butts they hadn’t stood up for him when questioned by the principal and security guards.

  Mandy cleared her throat and crossed her arms over her chest. “Okay…well, I’ll give you the benefit of the doubt on that one.” She narrowed her eyes. “But you still sit in a corner by yourself all the time, glaring at everyone. And don’t do any teams or clubs or—”

  “But I do go out with a girl who prances around like a Rainbow Pony. And her weird friends.”

  Mandy’s sparkling lips split into a grin. “I used to love Rainbow Ponies! You should have seen my collection. It was amazing. The best in town.” She tilted her head. “How do you even know about Rainbow Ponies?”

  He rolled his eyes. “Believe it or not, I was five years old once. But I was smart enough to collect Power Rangers, not freaky psychedelic horses.”

  “Oh!” She let go of his hand to put her hands on her hips. “You did not just diss the ponies.”

  He stepped close, catching the scent of her perfume. “I did. Rangers trump ponies every time.”

  She glared at him, making him laugh. He reached out to brush a stray hair off her cheek, and her skin instantly flushed. She was such a liar, saying that his slurping hadn’t done anything for her. He could kiss her right now and prove it. The ice cream shop was full, and as usual they were attracting an audience.

  “Wanna practice selling it, Disco?” He stared at her sparkly pink lips and tilted his head toward the tables full of people from school.

  She glanced at the tables, then back to him, her cheeks flushed and eyes wide. “But nobody’s here. I mean, you know, not Elle and Gus.”

  He put a hand on the small of her back, steering her back in line to place their order. He leaned down to whisper, making sure to brush his lips across the tip of her ear. “Right. But it’s obviously our date night. Lots of people here who can report back to both Elle and Gus that they saw us together.” And just to prove his point, he kissed her temple, inhaling her perfume as his lips imprinted the soft skin above her ear.

  He heard her small gasp and smirked with satisfaction. Then he gave her a little push toward the counter where a senior citizen who clearly disapproved of PDA waited to take their order.

  …

  Mandy’s skin burned where Caleb had touched her, so she had a hard time focusing on the frowning woman asking her what flavor ice cream she wanted.

  “I’m guessing she wants the rainbow one, right, babe?” Caleb’s voice wa
s low and teasing, and way too close. She swallowed, trying to regain her composure. He had to stop doing this…this…selling it or whatever.

  It also wasn’t fair that he’d guessed her favorite flavor. She took a breath and straightened her shoulders. “Yes, one scoop of rainbow sherbet in a waffle cone, please. And he’ll have a scoop of the black ice cream.”

  The woman frowned. “We don’t have black ice cream.”

  “Then make it the—”

  “Bubble gum.”

  She spun around to stare at him. “Bubble gum? Seriously?”

  “Rainbow and bubble gum should mesh really well. In case we have to sell it later.” He winked, sending her heart rate skyrocketing.

  Fake. Fake. FAKE.

  She had to remember that.

  “This fake situation is sure looking real to me,” Cammie whispered a few minutes later, nibbling on her ice cream cone. The guys were engaged in a heated debate about the movie and not paying attention to them, so Mandy scooted her chair closer to Cammie.

  “It’s not. I mean, it is still fake. We’re just, um, working really hard to sell it.”

  Cammie snorted. “Uh-huh. Well, consider me sold. There’s enough pent-up chemistry between you two to blow up a building.” She licked her cone. “And I’m talking real chemistry, not fake.” She narrowed her eyes. “Watch yourself, girl. He’s trouble. Hot trouble, for sure, but still…be careful. I don’t want you getting your heart accidentally broken.”

  Mandy frowned. “I know he’s trouble. That’s why I’m going to fake dump Caleb as soon as Gus makes his move…”

  Cammie rolled her eyes. “Yeah, about that. We need to talk about the Octo-Gus.”

  “The what?”

  “The Octo-Gus. It’s what some girls are calling Gus. Because apparently he fell into some vat of villain juice and has like eight different hands when he’s with a girl and he doesn’t like hearing no.” Cammie leaned forward, her voice full of intensity. “I know you think he’s all sweet and dorky, Mandy, but I’ve been hearing something totally different.”

  Mandy crunched a piece of her waffle cone and scowled as she chewed it. Why would anyone say bad things about Gus? And him being a groper? She couldn’t see it. She glanced at Caleb. Now him, she could see justifying that kind of nickname. But as she thought about it, she realized his reputation was more dark and broody loner than gropey man-whore.