Best Kept Lies (Best Kept #3)

Chapter 18: You Have Me Now

Song: Breaking Ground by State Champs

"Am I strong enough now to keep my feet on the ground?
Can I tell you how I'm feeling with out making a sound?"

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"Joey, be careful!" Jasper yells. "Don't eat that!"

Jasper takes off to where Joey is, kneeling in the grass and picking things out of it. Trying to keep Joey inside of the pool proved to be a problem. You turn around and he's already back out of it trying to eat bugs in the grass.

I cover my hand to stifle a laugh while Jasper picks Joey up and brings him back over. He has Joey spit in his hand and then sets him down on the pool steps. Jasper runs inside to wash his hands and I walk over to Joey, who is kind of just floating. He's wearing bright green arm floaties, but he knows how to swim. His little legs just get tired easily.

"Wanna make a deal?" I ask him.

Deals are always on Joey's list. "What's in it for me?"

"How do you feel about three quarters?"

Joey's eyes widened. "Okay, speak."

"If you stay in this pool," I start, "I'll give you three quarters and get you chicken nuggets."

He gasps this time. "Really? All of that?"

I nod. "But we can't tell Jasper," I whisper. "It'll be our secret, okay?"

Joey smiles and nods before swimming to the opposite end of the pool. He stays away from the deep end because he knows better.

Just as I turn around, Jasper's walking back out. Today he's come out of his sweater, wearing a black t-shirt with cut off sleeves that show his toned arms and black jeans to finish it off. I try to be discrete as I'm clearly checking Jasper out, but it flies right by him anyway. "Sorry," he says. "You can't stop him."

"Maybe he just really likes grass?" I offer.

Jasper raises a brow. "Then he's secretly a giraffe or something." He steps around me to get to the pool, checking to make sure Joey is okay. He's still swimming around and he finds a pool noodle to play with.

We stand near the edge and I look up at Jasper. "Are we still on for the Reset Space concert tonight?" I ask him. "I got backstage passes."

"Of course," he replies. "And of course you do. You live with part of the band."

I laugh and shrug. "But you haven't met the rest of the band. You did say you were a fan, Jasper. I'm trying to make a dream come true here."

Jasper fights a laugh, but it doesn't work. "I'll let you believe that then," he jokes.

"Does this count as a date?" I question, mainly as a joke.

And the look on Jasper's face makes me believe that I've succeeded. Wide eyes, rosy cheeks that's not from the heat, and parted lips like he's about to say something, but nothing comes out.

"It's a joke," I tease and start poking his belly. "Lighten up mister grumpy."

Jasper grabs my wrists gently in his hands to stop my movements. "I'm not grumpy," he clarifies.

"I beg to differ," I say.

Jasper smiles down at me. "If I'm grumpy, it's because of you."