Playing Hooky with the Hottie - Maggie Dallen Page 0,8

one?”

She shook her head. “No. Of course not. But I don’t need a plan because I’m not planning on doing anything about...this.” She wrung her hands in front of her like she was trying to rid herself of a pesky bug.

“You do know liking someone is not optional, right?” I asked.

Emma nodded and pointed at me. “Exactly. We don’t decide who we have feelings for or…” She gave Hazel a mischievous look. “Who we have the hots for.”

“Ugh.” Hazel rolled her eyes. “Would you stop saying that?”

I grinned because...there was that blush again. Emma returned my smile, and I knew for certain that she and I were definitely on the same page even if Hazel and I...not so much.

Emma knew like I did that Hazel was ridiculously fun to tease.

Not all super serious people were, but Hazel was one of them. Her seriousness didn’t stem from anger or bitterness, she just worked too hard and wanted to win. All the time.

At everything.

And that made her incredibly easy to handle. “You think you can’t do it, is that it?” I asked mildly.

Sure enough, her brows came down. “Of course, I can, but why would I want to?”

“Uh, maybe to have a date to homecoming next weekend?” Lulu offered.

“Or to have your first kiss so you don’t go off to college as a kiss virgin?” Emma said.

Hazel stared down at her plate, her cheeks turning that pretty shade of pink that I was rapidly starting to adore.

“Kiss virgin isn’t a thing,” she muttered.

I stared at her. I couldn’t help it.

She’d never been kissed.

This insight felt powerful, like learning that your favorite band was coming to town or that a snow day was about to be called. Not because I was so hypocritical that I thought girls were somehow ‘better’ if they were kiss virgins, but because…

It explained so much.

Actually, it just confirmed my hunch. She didn’t not like guys. It wasn’t that she hated me...she was just inexperienced. She didn’t know how to flirt, and she was probably intimidated by a guy like me, even if she’d never admit it.

I smirked. Okay, yeah. Maybe I was a little cocky. But being insecure never did anything for anyone.

“It couldn’t hurt,” I said. “And at the very least you’d know you tried.” I gave her a fake look of regret. “No one likes a quitter, Haze.”

She frowned at that. “I’m not a quitter. And don’t call me that.”

I leaned back with a grin.

Like I’d said. Hazel was serious. Maybe a little uptight. Definitely driven and ambitious, which was hard not to admire.

So yeah, she was serious, but there was nothing wrong with that. It didn’t make her bad or any less fun than anyone else.

And maybe it was time the world knew that.

She just needed someone to push her out of her comfort zone and make her have some fun.

That was where I came in. I was a pro at having fun. There was very little I took seriously, let alone too seriously. If someone or something became too heavy, I walked away.

Easy peasy.

When I wanted something, I went for it. I didn’t angst, I didn’t struggle. I just went for what I wanted. Like this girl, for instance. I wanted her. Don’t ask me why. I wanted to get close to Hazel and see that rare, fleeting smile aimed at me. I wanted to hear her laugh and make her breathless.

Did I want her mystery man to see that side of her? Nope. But that was a risk I’d be willing to take, because she needed someone to help her loosen up, and I was just the guy.

Why?

Because I had a crush on Hazel Daly.

3

Hazel

My very relevant question was met with entirely irrelevant statements.

“You know you really shouldn’t look a gift horse in the mouth,” Emma said, shaking the makeup brush she’d been wielding in front of my face. My friends had come over to help me get ready for tonight’s party in my bedroom.

“Ooh, make sure he takes a picture of you dancing.” She beamed at me. “You’re a great dancer.”

I just barely held back a sigh as I turned to face the other girls. “But I still don’t get it. Why would Will Lansing offer to help me?” I looked from Emma to Lulu and back again. “What does he want in return?”

My doorbell rang, and I stiffened.

Emma grinned as she pushed me toward the door. “Ask him yourself.”

As I headed to open the front door, I had to wonder...how on