I took a deep breath, and then acted without thought. After all, if I thought too much about it, there was no way I'd go through with this. Putting my hands on Dare's shoulders, I pushed him until his back met the wall, trying and failing not to take in the breadth and strength I felt beneath my palms. In the same moment, I hopped up and wrapped my legs around his waist—or at least, I tried to. Dare hadn't expected that. With his delayed reaction, his palm caught one of my legs while I ended up sliding back down his body, plastered against his chest like a baby koala. Ugh.
His brows rose. "This is your plan?" he said, his face so close to mine. "You want Coach to find us like this?"
"No," I hissed, pulling back a bit so I could look him in the eye. "I wanted him to find me in your arms. But unfortunately, you foiled my plans when you didn't catch me."
Dare's eyes went wide. "How was I supposed to know to catch you?"
"It was obvious what I was doing," I said.
"It wasn't," Dare argued. "Did I miss something? Did you say you were going to jump me, send the thought through telepathy?"
I huffed, the movement making me aware all at once of every single place we touched. Dare seemed to realize it at the same time I did. He cleared his throat.
"So," he said, "what now?"
"Now, we wait," I said.
"Cool," Dare said. "I'm good with waiting."
His hand flexed against my thigh—yes, he was still holding my leg for some reason—and I gasped at the feel of it, the warmth of his palm seeping right through my jeans into my skin.
"You okay?" he asked.
Before I could answer—or faint—my father appeared.
"Viola," he called out. It took me a few moments to disentangle myself. Fainting became a real possibility again as Dare's hand trailed down my leg, but once we were standing a good distance apart, my father had sidled up next to us. "Frost. What are you two doing?"
I shrugged. "Oh nothing, we were just practicing some dance moves. For theater class."
"Theater? I didn't know you were taking that." Dad blinked. I imagined his mind going through everything he'd just seen, analyzing it, but a second later, he shrugged. "Good thing you and Dare are friends, so you can be partners in the class."
"Yeah," I said, slightly disappointed. He hadn't even batted an eye, just accepted my lame story. This was the thanks I got for never lying to my parents—until now anyway.
"Well, Frost, I'm glad you're helping my daughter." Dad tossed me a smile and then went on. "But I better see you out on the field in five. We've got a lot to do. Have to be ready for the game coming up. Don't be late."
"I won't, Coach," Dare said.
Dad looked to me. "Love you, Viola. I'll see you at home."
"Yeah, sure, love you," I said back.
He was gone a second later, leaving Dare and me staring after him.
"That went well," Dare said.
My gaze went back to his. "Are you being sarcastic?" I asked.
"It was a joke," he said. "But next time, maybe let me know you're going to attack me. That way I'll be prepared."
"I think attack is a pretty strong word."
"Okay," he said. "What about climb me like a tree?"
"I didn't—"
Dare laughed. "So easy, flower."
I realized then he was trying to get a reaction and crossed my arms. "If you're done, you should go on to practice. You heard what my father said."
Dare shook his head, that grin still in place like he thought I was the funniest thing.
"What's that smile about?" I asked.
"Most girls aren't usually so eager for me to leave," he said. "Not like you."
I shrugged. "I'm one of a kind."
Dare gave me a nod. "Yeah, I can see that."
I hadn't expected him to agree, and my eyes shot to his, trying to see if he was sincere or just messing with me again.
"Phase two complete," he said then turned away. "Pretty sure Coach caught an eyeful. I'd say the seed was definitely planted. I'll catch you later, Vi."
It was impossible to look away as he jogged out to the field. The words he tossed so carelessly over of his shoulder shouldn't have affected me the way they did. Thinking of how I'd thrown myself at him (all for the sake of revenge, of course), I shook my head. Remembering the feel of his hand as it trailed down my leg, I shivered. What the heck was going on? I thought as the scene replayed in my head over and over.
Ugh.
Snap out of it, Viola.
I needed to stay focused.
For all his sarcasm, Dare was right. My father had seen us together. I just hadn't expected him to totally buy my excuse. Next time, maybe I wouldn't explain at all. Hmm…
My mind was going through all the options when my phone buzzed in my hand.
Looking down, I noticed Dare's name—well, the one he'd input into my phone. Secret Boyfriend. Jeez.
Checking the text, I saw he'd sent me what looked like a little plant emoji along with a watering can. The words that followed made his meaning clear, though I already understood.
Secret Boyfriend: Watering the seed. Get it, flower?
About a second a later, I got another.
Secret Boyfriend: Uh oh, Coach is glaring at me. Got to go.
I couldn't contain my smile if I tried.
#
"You know, I think you should start coming to my games."
Those were the first words out of Dare's mouth once we were both buckled into Buttercup and on the way to school the next day. To say I was surprised would've been an
