The Hardest Fall

Instead of smiling back at her, or taking a step forward that would bring me closer to her, or saying thank you in a gruff voice, I asked a simple question. This time it was no surprise; I was completely aware of what I was about to ask her. “Do you wanna make a bet with me, Zoe?”

Her smile shrunk a little, and she finally put the spoon down in the bowl to try to understand where I was going with my question. After a few seconds of contemplating, she shifted her weight and leaned her hip against the counter. “Where did that come from? And what kind of bet are we talking about here?”

The sun sent the first shy rays of light through the windows and onto Zoe’s face as I put my water down and faced her. I watched her squirm when my new stance brought me just a bit closer to her. I could see how much she wanted to back up in the way she shifted from foot to foot. If I took one big step, we’d breathe the same air. The glint, the sparkle I could see in her eyes told me she wouldn’t be scared away that easily.

“Let’s bet on a kiss,” I said, deciding to end her misery. “I think we’re gonna end up kissing one of these days, and I bet you’ll be the first one to beg for it.”

She froze. Her bowl was still suspended in air, so I reached forward and gently took it from her hand. When she didn’t release her hold on the spoon, I pried her fingers off of it with my other hand and put her soggy breakfast on the counter—Honey Nut Cheerios from the looks of it. Not a bad choice.

“Correct me if I’m wrong, but did you say I’m going to beg you?”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m thinking.”

“I stand corrected—you are full of yourself,” she marveled.

“You don’t believe me? That’s fine—means you’ll win. Let’s make the bet.”

“Did you forget about the part where I told you I had a boyfriend?”

I hadn’t, and I didn’t like it, but I was still unsure about her dating situation. Hell, I wasn’t even sure if she was telling the truth or not, if I was being honest. She’d said it was complicated, and complicated never boded well for a relationship. He was probably a douchebag anyway. “You said it was complicated. Things change, and again, the worst that can happen is you’ll win the bet. What do you have to lose?”

“Not always. Sometimes things don’t change.”

“I have a feeling about this one.”

“Oh yeah?” She crossed her arms, making her oversized t-shirt hike up a few more inches on those smooth legs. If I looked long enough, hard enough, could I see that hint of soft blue again? “Care to share that feeling with the rest of us?”

My gaze snapped back up, and I lifted my shoulder in a half shrug. “Scared to lose? If you’re so sure of yourself, why not just take the bet?”

“I’m not gonna fall at your feet”—she wildly swung her hand in my direction—“just because I saw you half naked. A lot of guys work out. I’ve watched a lot of guys work out.”

One side of my mouth quirked up. “If you think that’s what makes me special—the fact that I have muscles—you’re definitely in for a surprise. Come on, what do you have to lose? I’m not gonna try to seduce you, I promise. In fact, I promise I’m not even gonna mention this bet again. Just an innocent game between friends. We’ll still be buddies, like you said.”

She started tugging on her lower lip with her fingers, thinking over everything I was saying. “Then why make the bet in the first place? I’m not saying I’d want you to seduce me or anything, not that you could anyway since I’m not even affected by half-naked bodies“—her hands moved in the air to indicate said half-naked body before going back to her pink lips—“and clearly, I wouldn’t want you to—”

“Clearly,” I repeated right after her.

“So, why?” she shot back, ignoring my amused words.

“Why not?”

She huffed. “That’s not an answer.”

I pushed away from the counter and she took a step back. “It’s okay. I understand if you don’t trust yourself around me.”

She raised her chin just a bit higher and gave me a flat look. “Cute. What do I get if I win?”

“Whatever you want?”

“That’s a lot of rein you’re giving me. What if I ask you to…okay forget about it, I’m not gonna give it away. I have to think about it some more.”

I nodded. That was fair.

“What are the rules?” she asked, her fingers finally leaving her lips alone. “The time frame?”

“No rules. Nothing changes. It’s just a harmless bet between two friends, nothing more, promise. As for the time frame…let’s say before I graduate. I don’t think you’ll take that long, but, just in case.”

A saccharine smile touched her lips, surprising a genuine grin out of me. I half expected her to flip me the bird while she was at it, but then she pressed her lips together, her expression turning serious. “What do you get out of this?”

Even though I hadn’t thought that far ahead since kissing her would be a win all on its own, I realized I didn’t even have to think about it. “If I win, I get to have a second kiss…and a third one. After all, three seems to be the magic number with us.”

Instead of making their way up to her lips, her fingers tugged and twisted the tiny charm hanging at the end of her silver necklace, just a little above her breasts. If the color of her bra straps were anything to go by, she was wearing matching underwear, which was a thing that got me going. A sexy set of matching underwear kicked everything up a notch for me.

She squared her shoulders, and I forced myself to snap out of imagining what kind of underwear she had underneath that faded t-shirt before my dick could salute her. “I’m really good at bets, just so you know,” she said eventually. “And I’ve never begged to kiss anyone in my life, Dylan.”

“Are you just as good with them as you are with impromptu staring contests?” I gave her a half shrug and tried to keep my smile at a minimum. “It doesn’t matter. I like the idea of being your first, Zoe.”

One side of her lip quirked up. “Make fun all you want. Better watch out—that’s all I’m saying.”

“See, then you have nothing to worry about. You’ll be safe from my lips.”

Again, as we seemed to do, we stood there staring at each other for a few seconds, both of us sporting a small smile. This time around she was the one to look away first, and I was nice enough not to point it out.

I gripped the towel hanging on my shoulder. “I better get ready to head out. Don’t wanna be late to practice.”

“You know this means if you beg me for a kiss, you’ll lose too, right?”

I did nothing but smile. I could’ve kissed her right then and there, but if she wasn’t lying and really had a boyfriend, that wouldn’t go over well, and I wasn’t that guy. I wouldn’t do what had been done to me. I would have bet money there was no actual boyfriend, but there was football, and it was very much real. I was living the most important year of my life so far, and I already had a brutal schedule ahead of me.

Zoe nodded, like it was decided. Then, suddenly, she had her fist extended between our bodies. I looked down at it.

“What’s that?”