𝐈 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮

Althea

  The weeks following my date with Aiden were a mixture of chaos and surprisingly excitement. Not that Aiden himself had anything to do with it. Jonesy had somehow persuaded me to go out for ice cream with her, despite me having eaten more calories than I should've. I could just hear my mother scolding me for it in the back of my mind.

  I mainly went because the look in her eyes was pleading even if her words weren't. I knew what had happened in the bathroom before her game was not the result of pre-game jitters. I had heard enough about Jonesy Claypoole to know that she did not get "jittery" before a game. She was one of the most confident players on the team and everything she did, she did with precision.

  Sitting in that old diner with our cups of ice cream was more fun than my date with Aiden. I felt as if we might actually have a shot at being friends. Friends with weird sexual tension, that is. We talked about our families and pets; my sister, her brother. Her golden retriever, Scooter, and my Doberman, Cava.

  It was easy, being around her; she was such an enigmatic person, and almost everything she said, she said with a smile or a laugh. Loving her would be easy. She even convinced me to hang out with her friends, telling me that Gemma was asking about me again.

"Gemma and Bela are hosting Game Night across the hall, you should come." Jonesy leaned against the counter, her arms crossed.

I looked up from my laptop from my place at the table, remembering what had happened the last time I had gone to a game night involving Jonesy and her friends. I was going over old videos so I could better prepare for auditions on Monday, even though it was two days away. I had already spent the entire past week on the ice after practice, trying to perfect Clara's role.

"Aiden asked to see me again tonight," I answered. He had been asking me every afternoon after practice and while I had enjoyed myself on our date, the idea of having to repeat it suddenly didn't sound all that appealing. But I knew I couldn't keep coming up with excuses.

"Bring him."

"What?" I set my pen down and stared at Jonesy. I knew she didn't like me even mentioning Aiden, she always had this sour look on her face and slightly rolled her eyes whenever I brought him up. The fact that she wanted me to bring him to game night was suspicious.

"Bring him," she repeated, hopping onto the counter and pulling one leg up against her chest. "I mean you two have been going out for what, two weeks now? Pretty sure the gang would want to meet him by now."

I bit my lip, going over her offer. Going out was a bit of an exaggeration since we had technically only been on one date. If I did bring Aiden along, he could mingle with Lucas and Justice instead of being glued to my side the entire evening. I could still consider this a date while actually having a good time.

"Okay, but if we play truth or dare, you can't kiss me again."

  Jonesy jumped off the counter and stretched with a laugh. "If I recall correctly, and I'm pretty sure my memory of that night is better than yours, you kissed me, Beckett."

  Shit, shit, shit. The hem of her shirt rose up as she stretched her arms and I caught a glimpse of her toned stomach. Heat flushed my face, again, and I cleared my throat.

"We kissed each other, I don't remember you stopping me."

"You initiated it."

"You were doing that thing with your eyes and mouth."

"You mean looking at you while speaking?"

"You were doing more than just speaking."

  Jonesy pressed her hands onto the table, her face mere inches away from mine. "What was I doing, Althea?"

  Oh, fuck me. I swallowed nervously, trying not to shrink under her eyes. Her brown eyes were so intense and full of curiosity, I wanted to drown in them. Stop, stop, stop. "You were-you were doing that...thing." Jesus, why couldn't I form a full coherent sentence?