Silver Stilettos

12 | kisses always mean something

"Yeah." I felt uneasy under Baron's scrutiny. The wild, hilarious thought entered my head that Baron had figured out my name faster than he'd ever figured out a simple math problem.

"Didn't know you guys were"—Baron looked me up and down—"dating." The sentence held a note of surprise. He ran a hand through his thick mane, ruffling his hipster, quiff hairstyle.

"How'd you find out?" I asked.

Baron blinked at me, almost like he didn't expect me to speak until spoken to. "Uh, Emily. She texted me."

Reed's grin was victorious. He slung an arm around me shoulder, his fingers grazing the top of my chest. It was just a little too close for comfort. I tried to edge away from him, get at least a couple of inches between us, but his arm tightened across the back of my neck and he pulled me even closer. My hip touched his and I froze. When I looked at him, his smile was shit-eating. It seemed to say I was right, wasn't I, Mayuri? My idea worked - everyone bought it!

A smile wobbled to my lips. It scared me how astute he could be.

"I guess Em expected me and her to get together after Dom ditched me for Fen," said Reed.

Huh. That was news to me. I wondered how Reed could still be so close to his best friend after his girlfriend chose Fenris over him.

"Yeah." Baron's eyes were on me again. "She seemed cool about it, though."

Reed made a noncommittal grunt.

"You guys wanna go hang at my place?" Baron offered. "I'm done here."

"Sure," said Reed, not asking me whether I wanted to go or not. "We'll follow you in our cars."

"Cars? Plural?" I could see Baron working it out - again, at a faster rate than he solved math problems. "You didn't pick her up?"

"Yeah." Reed's laugh sounded awkward. "The little lady likes her independence."

Okay, hold up. The little lady? That misogynist pig! I ground my teeth in fury, forcing myself not to shrug off his arm.

It was then that I noticed his thumb was rubbing soothing circles across my breast, almost like he was telling me to play along. Liquid desire pooled hot and heavy in my stomach, and I clamped my mouth shut on the angry retort.

"Cool." Baron didn't spare me another glance. "I'll see you there." He did a salute, a weird flick of his hand against his forehead, and turned around, loping off on his long, gazelle legs.

When his back turned, I scowled at Reed, giving him a taste of my ire.

Reed was unapologetic. "Guys like Baron expect girls to be a certain way."

"Soft, dainty, and helpless?" I asked sweetly, baring my teeth at him.

"He knows you're not really my type. He needed to know you wanted to be there with me. He's not a bad guy," said Reed. "But he's a gossip. Worse than a girl, if you want the truth. If he doesn't buy our relationship, then no one else will, either."

"I don't really want to go to his house."

Reed's jaw dropped. "Didn't you hear me?" he asked incredulously. "It's not an option."

Soundtrack of my life. No options. "Whatever," I said, feeling the need to be contrary. "I have to go home. My mom will be expecting me."

"On a Saturday afternoon? Come on, Mayuri. You can't lie for shit."

"You don't know me," I flared right back, matching his tone, scorn for scorn.

"The fuck I don't." Reed stepped closer. To anyone else we would have looked like any other young couple in the mall, heads bent close together in anticipation of a kiss. "Once you a kiss a girl, feel her breath in your mouth, feel the way her heart beats when it's pressed against yours...it's easy to tell when she's lying." He traced one long finger down my cheek, making me shiver with feelings that I didn't want to feel. Down my neck, past my collarbone, dipping into my cleavage. "Your breathing gives you away. That glazed look in your eye? You're a goner." Reed withdrew, smiling crookedly. "You can't lie to me, Mayuri."

I swallowed past the sahara dryness in my throat. "The fuck I can't." It was the first time I'd ever used the F-word. It sent a horrible, chalky taste in my mouth even as the hair on my arms felt electric with naughtiness.

Reed's eyes appraised me sharply. "Huh. I guess there's a first for everything. Didn't peg you for a potty mouth."

I don't know what made me dare, but I said, "You don't know the half of what I can do with my mouth."

His smile was genuine - or as genuine as I could tell, anyway. "Maybe not," he allowed. "But I'd like to find out."

I felt my blush all the way to my toes.

"Let's go," said Reed. "Baron will be expecting us."

As we began to walk to the parking lot, I thought of a lie I'd been able to get away with. My blog. I'd lied to his face and he hadn't been able to tell. I don't know whether that made me a good liar or a really, really stupid person.

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Would you like to share the story of YOUR first kiss? Was it anything like Mayuri's? 💋