“I have full faith in you, Stella. You’re the smartest fucking girl I know.”
And of course, there went my damn cheeks again, my face probably redder than a cherry tomato.
For the next hour we worked on social studies, went over the wars, the revolutions, the rises and falls of empires, how society handled it all as a whole. By the end of our study session, I felt like I could’ve aced his test.
I closed the books and exhaled, looking at him expectantly. “So you think you got this?”
He ran a hand over the back of his head. “I think I got this,” he finally said. “At least I hope I do.” He chuckled.
I reached for one of the books at the same time he did, our hands brushing together and this shock of electricity slammed into me. “Sorry,” I murmured and pulled my hand away a little too fast.
“Sorry,” he said as well, this awkward little laugh in his voice.
I shoved my books in my bag. “I should probably get home. My mom starts to get a little worried, even when she knows I’m over here.” I glanced at him. “You know how she is.” I stood.
He nodded and stood as well. “I’ll walk you to your car.”
We left his room and I saw his mom’s bedroom door partially closed, the lights off but the glow from the TV peeking through the crack. Cannon took my bag from me and I looked over my shoulder to smile my thanks.
Once outside and standing by my car, I took the backpack from him and tossed it on the passenger seat. “Listen, if you need to study this weekend, let me know. I’d rather drill it until it’s boring than you not understand and all this studying be wasted.” He stood there in just a pair of jeans and a white T-shirt, his hands shoved in the front pockets of his jeans, his feet bare.
God, he looked good with all that raw power on display. Who knew a guy could be so attractive in just a pair of distressed jeans and a worn-in shirt?
“It’s not like I have anything going on this weekend anyway,” I said softly, awkwardly for some reason. He smiled and I felt myself grow loose, a little nervous even.
His short blond hair was messy around his head, an after product of him running his fingers through it during our studying.
“Do you actually want to hang out with my dumb ass and help me study?” He gave me a lopsided smile and my heart jumped in my throat.
I grew serious, all those strange but wonderful feelings I was starting to have leaving. “You’re not dumb,” I said genuinely. “You don’t give yourself enough credit. Look at all the other classes that you’re acing. Look at all the other stuff you excel at. You’re smart, Cannon. You’re really smart.” The air around us grew thick at this moment becoming a little more serious than I had anticipated.
He cleared his throat as if my words had caught him off guard.
We stood there and stared at each other, and I felt my emotions start to turn into something deeper, more alive for him. They had started off slow and easy, but were now racing toward the finish line.
I wondered what it would be like to be with him, be with him in more ways than study buddies, than a confidant.
I wondered what it would be like to be more than just friends.
4
Cannon
I caught the ball and stood there. I should have been looking for Landon, our wide receiver and passing the ball off to him, should have been focused on this fucking game.
But my mind was not on practice. Even though I heard the sound of Coach yelling plays, something he only did during practice for obvious reasons, I still wasn’t focused.
The only thing I could think about was Stella.
How in that moment as we stood by her car and I stared into her eyes, heard her say how I wasn’t stupid, the scent of her had filled my head, making me drunk. She’d talked about things that would otherwise have bored the hell out of me, but she somehow made it interesting as fuck. Or maybe it was just because it was her there with me, speaking, spending time with me?
Maybe it was the fact she was the only person I knew who would be by my side no matter what. If I wasn’t the quarterback, popular, or had the high school status I had, she’d still have my back. Stella would always be there for me and that meant more to me than anything else I went through in life.
All I could think about was her.
Someone tackled me from behind, propelling my body forward and slamming me face first into the field. The air was knocked out of me, the football flying out of my hands. The heavy weight of a team member behind me, pushing me into the ground, had me snapping into focus. A second later, he rolled off me.