Kiss My Sass [Books 1 & 2]

[book 2] chapter eight: i get a mashed potato facial

I USED TO be the type of person who would scoff at anyone who would say they were on cloud nine, but now, I understood that feeling completely. On cloud nine was exactly how I felt with James, a feeling clouds numbers one through eight could never convey. Despite meeting him in my last year as a Stone Creek resident, James felt like home to me.

We were racing each other down the cement pathway of the local park. Okay, maybe racing was a bit of an exaggeration. While my boyfriend glided gracefully, I feebly wobbled after him. Needless to say, I was never rollerblading again.

James turned around to watch me struggle, showing off as he rollerbladed backward. "Don't be scared of falling."

"But I am scared of falling," I said through gritted teeth.

He skated in front of me and held onto my hands to support my balance. "I won't let you fall."

I took a few cautious steps forward, but it wasn't long before I stumbled, nearly bringing Stone Creek's very own roller derby pro down with me.

James chuckled. "See? It's not so bad."

"I have a better idea." I let go of his hands and plopped down on the nearby bench. Without giving him a chance to convince me otherwise, I undid the laces of my rollerblades, ready to give up.

"You're no fun," he chided.

"Bite me."

He simply shook his head and sat beside me. As I fumbled with the stupid double knotted lace, he wordlessly lifted my leg, placing it on his lap as he undid the knot with ease.

"Showoff," I grumbled.

"I wonder where you'd be without me," he mused.

"Probably dead in a ditch with two broken ankles."

James rolled his eyes at my response and undid my other skate. He then opened the drawstring bag on my back and took out my sneakers, handing them to me.

"You're not going to put them on for me?" I teased.

That was how I got a dirty sneaker thrown at me.

"I'm sorry, it was a joke," James said instantly when he saw the murderous look in my eyes.

I slipped my feet in my shoes and stood up, dusting off my pants. "You're lucky you're cute."

Ignoring that we were outside in a public setting, James yanked my arm and pulled me onto his lap. My lips curved up as he leaned in, but before anything could even happen, his phone decided to go off. He took it out of his pocket and looked at the notification, his attention completely diverting away from me.

"Sorry, it's the lab," he said as he skimmed the message he had received. I didn't even have to say anything for him to know I wasn't pleased. When James saw my frown he powered off his phone. "Fine, I'll ignore it just this once." His phone buzzed again, so I grabbed it and slipped it into my back pocket. He held out his hand, palm facing up, indicating I should give it back, but I shook my head.