Page 17 of Her Crew

She smacks my arm, and I like how her hand lingers for a moment. “It’s not the same when I lie versus when you lie for me.”

“Get quicker, then. Respond before I have to do it for you. I’m only trying to close the deal.”

“Does that mean I’m not fired?”

The way she looks up at me, so naïve and sweet, does a number on my conscience. Maybe bringing her into the crew was a mistake after all. She’s so innocent.

But then I remind myself that I didn’t chain her to me and force her to come. I gave her a choice, and she chose this. Yeah, maybe she didn’t have all the facts, but she’s not stupid. A van full of young adults would have been her first clue that we aren’t exactly upstanding citizens. If our van had been emblazoned with some sort of religious symbology, maybe she could have pegged us as fanatical missionaries, but it was just a van. She had to have suspected something.

I lean into her to sweep the sweat-damp hair from her face. My eyes are lost in those gold flecks in her green irises. She looks so small. So defeated. I only want to see her smile again.

I forget the heat and the pressure to succeed. I forget about her tender age as I lean closer.

And I kiss her.

She takes my breath away when she kisses me back.

There’s no real hunger in the motions of her mouth. She’s timid, exploring a new sensation she doesn’t fully trust. But the hunger is there, buried beneath a mountain of uncertainty and fear. I want nothing more than to unearth those hidden parts of her, but how?

I break the kiss and lean back to brush more hair from her face. “Pup,” I whisper.

She blinks up at me. “Did you kiss me because you feel bad for me?”

Her question hurts my heart. Is she really so oblivious to how attractive she is? I couldn’t even help myself just now.

“I brought you along because I felt bad for you. I kissed you because I haven’t stopped thinking about it since the shower.”

She bites her lower lip. “I think I like it better when you lie.”

I grab my bag from the grass and dig through it. If I want to ensure her place in the crew, I’ll have to take matters into my own hands. I open my order book and pull a few pages from it. She eyes me as I hold them out to her.

“What’s that for?” she asks.

“Orders to give to Stacks.”

She takes them, but she looks unsure. “What will you give him? Don’t you have to turn in orders too?”

“I saved a couple for myself, don’t worry.” I pat the order book. Another lie. Stacks won’t say shit to me, though. If he tries, I’ll just say I was shadowing the girl to make sure she could handle the job.

“Does your lying know no limits?” she says, and a broad, genuine smile finally graces her face. “Thanks.”

I need her to have some orders. I want Stacks to think she’s doing great before she figures out how to be great.

Which I know she can be.

“You ready to head back to the van, or did you want to give the job a try?” I ask.

She sighs and looks at the neighborhood once more. “I think I’ve had enough for now, if that’s okay.”

It’s more than okay.

I stand and offer her my hand, and we start for the van together.

Chapter 11

Alec

The van bumps along a side street as Stacks makes another turn. Tegan shifts on my lap, adjusting herself, and I am so acutely aware of her body since kissing her.