My Know-It-All Nemesis - Maggie Dallen Page 0,26

the way she mashed her lips together to hold back a grin. “I even dressed the part of your date.”

“So you’re my date now, huh?” She muttered something about how Mia and the others would love to hear that.

I ignored that part. “We’re co-hosting, right? That’s normally something couples do—”

“Or friends,” she interrupted.

I tipped my chin in acknowledgement. “And friends. Either way, I think it’s safe to say that you, Kate Andrews, are my date for the evening.”

She blinked up at me, and I could have sworn my heart stopped beating. It only started up again when she glanced away, and when it did, it restarted with a thud against my ribcage.

Somebody cranked up the stereo, and couples started dancing around us, using any excuse possible to get close to each other.

“You know what dates do?” I asked.

She widened her eyes, the answer obviously a no.

“They dance.” I didn’t give her a chance to protest before I tugged her into my arms. She blinked up in surprise, and I couldn’t blame her. I was a little surprised myself. Sure, she looked hot, but this was still Kate. The same Kate who’d been driving me crazy for the past two years. The Kate who’d been challenging me at every turn, not letting me get away with anything…

The same Kate who drove me nuts.

After a second of hesitation, she wrapped her arms around my neck, still tense and awkwardly holding herself at a distance, but technically we were dancing.

The thing was…what I was starting to realize as I looked down into those big, blue eyes with their wicked intelligence and the never-ending drive to succeed…she still drove me crazy.

She made me nuts—always had, and I’d guess she always would.

But right now, that crazy didn’t feel so bad. Holding her close, she didn’t feel like the enemy, she felt...right.

Like she was exactly where she was supposed to be. Like she fit. The perfect piece to an incomplete puzzle.

“Everyone is staring,” she said, not looking away from me.

I glanced around and realized she was right. “Let them stare.”

“They’re wondering why Mr. Popular is dancing with the freak,” she said with a rueful little smirk.

“Or maybe they’re wondering why Miss Perfect is dancing with a screw-up.” It was out of my mouth before I could stop it, and it might have been the most honest I’d ever been with anyone, especially her.

Her brows shot up. “You’re not a screw-up. You’re…you’re…” She sighed. “You’re perfect.”

I held my breath and waited for the weird jolt in my chest to pass. She didn’t mean it like that—in fact, she sounded annoyed at having to say it.

“Perfect, huh?” I aimed for teasing but was pretty sure my tone fell flat. Instead it sounded searching, like I was begging for her validation.

She rolled her eyes. “Don’t make me regret coming here tonight, Miller.”

I laughed, some tension easing inside me at the familiar bickering. This I could handle. Kate calling me perfect? Not so much.

Her lips pursed a bit as she stared straight ahead, her gaze even with my cheesy bow tie. “Tell me honestly, Miller. Why did you invite me to this party tonight?”

I stared down at the top of her head. I found myself missing her typical ponytail because with her head tipped forward, her hair was hiding her face.

“What do you mean, why?” I asked. “You rightfully pointed out that my throwing a party was an unfair advantage, and I don’t want anyone accusing me of cheating when I win.”

Again, I tried for levity, but my teasing went over like a lead balloon.

Her gaze was too serious when she tilted her head back to look at me. “Did you feel sorry for me?”

I jerked back a bit, and the distance between our swaying bodies grew as I studied her to see if she was for real. “Feel sorry for you…why on earth would I feel sorry for you?”

Wrong thing to say. I knew it as soon as I stopped speaking. Disbelief and suspicion clouded her eyes as she eyed me warily. Just like that, we were back to how things always were between us. Kate expecting the worst from me…and me living down to her expectations.

I dropped my arms and let her go with a sigh. “What do you want from me, Kate?”

“I want you to back out of the special election.”

I stared at her with incomprehension for a full minute. “You don’t mean that.”

She met my gaze evenly. “Maybe I do.”

I took a step back, oddly confused