21 Days (Time for Love 2)

I grinned up at him. “Not as good as you feel.”

That caused his eyebrows to go up, and I could tell I’d taken him off guard. I was beginning to think that he was as aware of me as I was of him.

“I’m gonna go get cleaned up,” TJ said, backing away from me. “Then I’ll hang out in my room until Cal gets here.”

The guys were meeting up to go to a fight that night. The way things were going here, there was a strong possibility that the girls would be passed out before they even left.

I turned on some music and sat back down with Shelly and Gaby. When I realized after a few minutes that my glass was empty, I went to the kitchen to open another bottle. “We should play a game,” Shelly yelled from the living room.

“Okay, what game?” I yelled back as I struggled with the cork.

“How about Truth or Dare?” Gaby said loudly with a giggle. It was probably time to cut her off. If she was giggling and suggesting childish games, she must be drunk.

I walked back in with the bottle and looked at them. They were both struggling to look serious, so I knew they were up to something, and it was probably something to do with me and TJ. Never one to back down from a challenge, I replied, “Sounds perfect.”

“Who goes first?” I asked.

“I will!” Gaby yelled, her hand raised as if she were in class.

“Okay … Gaby, Truth or Dare?”

“Dare.”

“I dare you to kiss TJ,” Shelly said excitedly.

“What?” Gaby and I both asked.

This was not turning out quite how I’d imagined, but Shelly was grinning like the Mad Hatter.

Gaby looked at me questioningly, but when I just shrugged, she walked toward the room TJ was staying in. Shelly and I trailed closely behind her. She knocked on the door and TJ said, “Come in.”

He was sitting on the bed, fully dressed, his hair still wet from his shower, and reading a book.

I blinked.

“You read?” I blurted without thinking.

TJ raised his eyebrow at me and asked dryly, “Are you surprised that I can?”

“No,” I stuttered. “I didn’t mean that. I just didn’t realize you liked to … As a pastime I mean.”

TJ put the book on the end table and looked at each of us warily.

“What’s up?”

“I’m gonna kiss you?” Gaby said eagerly.

A little too eagerly for my taste.

TJ grinned at her.

“Is that right?”

“We’re playing Truth or Dare,” I said sharply as way of explanation.

TJ nodded, as if he saw grown women play Truth or Dare every day. He aimed his sexy grin at Gaby and crooked his finger at her. Gaby paused, then got up on the bed and crawled across it toward him, trying to look sexy, but blowing it when she started laughing. My mouth went dry when his eyes met mine, and I wondered if he wished it were me crawling toward him instead, because I was beginning to. He flicked his eyes back to Gaby, then made a show of kissing her passionately.

I mean … Seriously, I think I came just from watching.