“I can help with that.” I lean in, and Liv closes her eyes.
The past
I never wentto my prom.
Extracurricular school activities were never really my thing. This is a whole new experience for me. And secretly, I’m glad I’m here with Livey. I love watching her flit around and talk to everyone. Smiling like she doesn’t have a care in the world. I know I told her in the car she looked pretty, but really, that was an understatement. She looks beautiful. My breath caught the moment I laid eyes on her, but I had to play it cool. I didn’t want her — or the Bowman— to know just how much I liked what I saw.
She has toted me around the whole room, introducing me to everyone she knows. Truth be told, I was expecting her to dump me in a corner to fend for myself the whole night based on her initial reaction, but she surprised me, like Livey so often does, and hasn’t alienated me yet.
Presently, we’re eating dinner. There is an entire table of girls and me. I’m not complaining. The food is good. The company is entertaining, and the music is upbeat. What more does a guy need at the prom?
“Do you want to kill yourself yet?” Liv leans over and whispers to me.
“No, not at all.” I smile, looking directly into her smoky-green hazel eyes. “I’m having fun. And I still owe you a dance.” I wink.
She rolls her eyes, but I’m being serious. I want the full prom experience.
Once the plates are cleared, the DJ announces, “Ladies and gentlemen, the dance floor is open.”
Moments later, the blank space in the middle of the ballroom is packed with teenagers decked out in fancy clothes. I grab Liv’s hand and haul her right into the middle of the crowd.
“Whoa, you weren’t kidding about dancing.”
“Nope.” We start to move to Flo Rida’s “Right Round.” I grab her hands and keep her near me as we get bumped around. Liv and I have done a lot of things together growing up, but I don’t think dancing was ever one of them.
The happy expression on her face is magnetic, and I find myself loosening up and smiling wider and wider with each passing moment.
Liv does a little turn, stepping away. But I pull her back immediately. I don’t know what it is, but I just don’t want her far away from me tonight. She slams into my chest and looks up at me, a little surprised. Confused. I’m not exactly sure, but a moment passes. Something electric crackles between us. Time stops for a half a second as we stare into each other’s eyes. Then we’re jostled back into the present from the surrounding dancers who have taken zero notice of us.
Liv and I continue to dance the night away, slowly but surely growing closer with each passing minute.
The colorful strobe lights brighten up the room as more of Liv’s friends join the small circle we created. A blonde girl bumps into me, then grabs my waist from behind. I turn to look at her. She has a familiar face, but not one I can place. I’m not interested in anyone else but Liv tonight, so I untangle her arms from around me and step closer to Livey.
Liv’s eyebrow is raised, and her body language is stiff, but I break through the barrier she’s trying to put up. I know I have a reputation. And it’s not a farce. I hang around with a lot of girls. But this is the first time I've ever wanted to hang around with just one. Just Liv.
“There’s just you tonight,” I rasp in her ear. She looks back at me, perplexed. Suspicious, even. But if there’s one thing I can guarantee, it’s that I’ve never lied to Liv, and I’m not going to start now.
She visibly relaxes as the blonde dances around us. I don’t know who she is, nor do I care.Go buzz around some other guy.I expertly ignore her.
Liv and I gravitate closer as the music changes again to “Fire Burning” by Sean Kingston.
Liv turns around so her back is pressed up against my front, and suddenly, she turns on the sexy. Grinding against me with hooded eyes and a seductive smirk. I’m sucked right in. I wrap my arms around her and follow her lead, rubbing every part of my body I can against hers.
Her sweet smell gets me high as the heat from our skin elevates the temperature in the room. I lose myself for a second and skim my lips up the curved line of her bare neck. My blood starts pumping at an alarming speed, and my hands have developed a mind of their own. My control is suddenly wavering. I don’t recognize myself, or Liv. We’re becoming two new people.
When Liv spins around to look at me, I trap her hips and draw her against me. We’re both hot and sweaty and panting, and all we’ve done is dance. Images of Liv I’ve never dreamed about cycle through my mind, and I suddenly wonder if she’s a virgin.
Whoa. I need to slow down. What the fuck is happening?
The music switches to a slow song, and I panic. Twenty minutes ago, I wouldn’t have batted an eyelash at the change, but now? I need a minute.
“Ready for a drink?” Liv asks, and I say a silent prayer.
“For sure.” We head off the dance floor and back to our table where filled glasses of water wait.
We slug them down, the ice helping to cool my internal temperature.
“You’re kinda a good dancer,” Liv comments.
