Forgotten Rules (Rules 4)

My mom is having dinner at an old friend’s house tonight, and my brother is at the kegger. Oh, and Winter is probably somewhere making out with Haze Adams.

Silent, I take a seat on the edge of my bed and swab down my tears with the heels of my hands.

I am so freaking sick of crying. I feel like I’ve been weeping all day.

Luke sits next to me. “Do you… want to talk about it?”

“Nope.” I sniffle.

My phone pings with a text.

It’s Morgan.

Morgan: I just thought you’d like to know I roasted the living heck out of Will, then he went right back to Zoey and dumped a whole beer on her head. Safe to say that girl’s luck with beverages is not improving?

He did what?

I crack a smile at the scene unraveling in my mind. He spilled his drink on her? That certainly doesn’t look like the behavior of a guy who purposefully kissed her. And he did push her away.

Stop, he still let her get close enough to kiss him in the first place!

I’m about to tell Luke about the message when he stops me.

One move is all it takes.

He places a hand on top of mine.

Please tell me this is a friendly gesture.

“You’re amazing, you know that?” He smiles. “Smart, funny, gorgeous. He may not see it, but I do.”

Okay, definitely not friendly.

“Luke, I…” The words leave me.

I can’t for the life of me figure out what to say. How do I turn him down after everything he’s done for me? It’d be so much easier if I felt the same. If I liked the guy who likes me. The good guy.

The guy who’d never kiss my best friend.

Panic takes over my body when Luke zeroes in on my lips, leaning in. Ironically, this is the exact moment my brain decides to take a nap. For the first time in my life, I don’t know what I want. I, Kassidy Kingston, the obsessive planner, have no clue what direction to take. But I know what I don’t want.

And what I don’t want…

Is to kiss Luke Jenson.

He is everything I need: stable, loving, respectful. I should want him. I should want the guy with the good manners and bright future, but what can I say? I’m a sucker for damaged blonds with walls higher than the Empire State Building.

I love myself a heart harder to penetrate than Fort Knox.

And yes, Will is probably never going to give me what I want. He kissed Zoey. Out of all people.

He kissed her.

But kissing Luke would be stooping down to his level.

“Luke, wait.” My hands fly up to his chest, but I don’t get to push him away…

Because someone does it for me.