you think his dad got the job?” He points at me next, and then comes up to stand on my left while Tobias takes up a spot on my right. Tobias flips over to a section on souffles and taps one with his finger.
“Let's cook this.”
“It says difficulty level challenging,” I say, trying to ignore that sweet-tart scent of theirs. If I were the poetic type, I might say they smell like insatiability. Yum. I mean … no. No, thank you.
“Don't be a wuss,” Micah purrs, whipping the book away from me while his brother goes to the fridge to grab the ingredients. Spencer is staring at me like I'm from a foreign planet, and then … his mouth twitches, and he lets this lascivious little smile take over his lush lips.
“Did you do what I asked? Did you compare my kiss to hers?”
The twins both pause to look at me. Hell, even Church glances my way. Ranger just turns away, dressed in a frilly white and blue gingham apron that makes him look like Dorothy from the Wonderful Wizard of Oz.
“She was cheating with Cody.” And that's the truth right there. They both cheated on me in a way. And I did friend-breakup with Monica, so technically I'm not lying. “Anything else that happened was irrelevant.”
Spencer slams his palms on the counter and makes me jump, smirking at me like a wolf that's just scented prey.
“Bullshit. If you didn't like the way I kissed, you'd tell me. You're a too honest for his own good sort of dickhead, Chuck Carson.” He comes around the counter, handsome as all hell in his blue blazer, champagne colored tie, and slacks. But also … a little bit scary.
Scary because I want him to touch me so bad that I know if he does, I'm in trouble. He'll touch me, and I'll forget to keep my secret, and he'll keep touching me until he finds out.
I back away and use the island as leverage while Church watches on in bemusement, and the twins share a pair of matching frowns.
“Leave me alone, Spencer,” I warn, but he must sense something in my demeanor because he hops the island and grabs me around the waist, yanking my back to his front.
Spencer pulls me close, putting his mouth up against my ear. “I never knew I liked boys before—until I met you.”
I shiver in his arms. If he only knew … I imagine if he ever does find out, he'll be pissed. Now that my plan of sinking into the shadows and hiding until my trip to California has gone down in miraculous, angry flames, what am I supposed to do? I could barely hide my secret from the twins for a handful of months. And now I have to survive the rest of this year and all of next?
“Let go of me, Spencer,” I growl, because even if he does believe I'm a guy, he has no more right to touch me without permission than if I were a girl. Somehow, I imagine he'd treat this situation a lot more differently if he knew the truth. Then again, he is a rich, entitled asshole, so I'm not entirely sure about that. But fuck, he smells good, like cedar and hyssop.
“Why? So you can keep running away? Let's talk about this.” I go to elbow him in the stomach, and he catches my arm. “You're really starting to piss me off.” My voice and body are shaking now. I like him touching me. Too much. But I also don't like being grabbed and held against my will.
Spencer thrusts me forward, and I stumble a bit, turning around to find him watching me with a mix of frustration and want. He shoves his fingers through his silver hair, revealing the dark roots as he turns away with a scowl.
An awkward sort of tension settles over us as I swipe my palms down the front of my jacket, and head back to my stool. Nobody says a word until Ranger turns and gives me a dark, evil sort of glare. Ugh, those silent brooding types are so annoying.
“If you leave the souffle in the oven too long, it'll collapse. Don't fuck this up, Carson.” He hands me a whisk and a mixing bowl, and I spend the rest of the afternoon ruining not one, not two, but three souffles, until the Student Council finally kicks me out of the room … but not before pulling back my shirt