Nineteen minutes later, after a significant amount of frantic pacing, hair fluffing in the mirror, and generalized freaking out, the doorbell rang. I bolted out of my bedroom and ran down the stairs, tripping on my own feet halfway down and nearly wiping out.

Not that I was nervous or anything.

Unlocking the front door, I swung it open to find Chase in a white tee that hung off his frame perfectly, paired with a pair of broken-in jeans. He looked like a walking cologne advertisement. It wasn't fair for someone to be so attractive all the time. Everyone should have bad days. I definitely did.

"Hey." He flashed me a smile that did something decidedly non-platonic to my body.

I grinned back at him like an idiot, because suddenly I was incredibly nervous. And oddly short of breath. This entire scenario felt surreal; a little bit like playing with fire while sprinkling kerosene on top to keep it interesting.

Then I remembered to actually speak.

"Hi." My eyes fell to the large brown paper delivery bag in his left hand. "What's...?"

Chase glanced down, like he'd forgotten what he was holding. "Oh, some delivery guy gave me this right as I was coming up the stairs. Then he bolted," he said, expression apologetic. "Said they paid online already."

Oh, so it was a triple dinner date, too. How cute. Vomit.

"There is zero chance I'm delivering that by hand," I said. "I'll yell for one of them. Just come in and give me one sec." I waved him inside and slipped into my leather boots, quickly tying the laces.

Before I could call for anyone, footsteps echoed and Amelia came around the corner. "I heard the doorbell. Is that our—" she stopped short when her eyes landed on Chase.

Not a second later, Satan himself appeared, clad in dark wash jeans and a pale blue polo with his hair slicked back. He came to stand next to Amelia with a gleam of malice in his eyes that made the usual shade of blue seem ten times colder.

"I thought I heard someone." Luke's gaze fell to the brown paper bag and he smirked. "You pick up a part time job, Carter? Always good to have options for later when you don't make the league."

"Yeah," Chase deadpanned. "I applied to be a giant dickbag first, but they told me you already filled the position."

I choked back a laugh, trying to disguise it as a cough. The smirk faded off Luke's face as his cheeks flushed with anger. He opened his mouth to say something, then closed it. He'd never been all that quick on his feet verbally—only when he threw the first punch or had time to plan what he was going to say—which meant that right now, he was empty-handed.

"Fuck you, Carter," Luke snapped, turning and walking away. "Jackass," he muttered.

Chase shook his head as Luke watched him leave, jaw tight. I could tell he wanted to say something but was holding back.

"So." I nervously ran my hand through my hair, undoing all of the tousling and primping I had done in anticipation of his arrival. "We should get going."

Amelia snapped out of her daze and walked over to Chase, taking the bag of food out of his hand. "Uh, thanks," she muttered, not looking at either of us. Without another word, she turned and disappeared back into the living room.

Had my roommates always been this awful and I just hadn't noticed? Or was this a recent development? Either way, they'd done an about-face on me, going from my supposed good friends to acting like they wanted nothing to do with me. We were like strangers now.

Maybe I'd underestimated how much social influence I'd been granted solely due to being the team captain's girlfriend. Which was actually pretty gross.

"Anyway." Chase's tone lightened and he leaned against the doorframe, flashing me a heart-stopping smile. "Ready?"

"Absolutely." I grabbed my olive utility jacket off the hook and pulled it on as we walked out the door. Chase waited while I fumbled with my keys briefly, locking the deadbolt.

"I'm sure they're watching us," I said, glancing back up at him. "The windows in the living room look right out onto the street."

His eyebrows jumped slightly. "Well, in that case." He threw his arm around my shoulders again, enveloping me in masculine warmth and some kind of intoxicating scent that I couldn't quite pin down. A sort of leather-vanilla cologne, maybe, mixed with something else like soap or laundry detergent. Whatever it was, it made me want to bury my face in his neck for a bigger hit.

Then I remembered how up until recently I thought I hated Chase and wondered if I was losing my mind.

We descended the three concrete stairs that lead to the sidewalk. With the size difference between us, his arm fit around my frame perfectly; unlike with Luke, who was nearly the same height as me. Not that it had mattered anyway, since we hadn't really engaged in public displays of affection. Or private displays of affection, for that matter...Unless bad sex counted.

"That was pretty awesome." I laughed. "Did you see his face when he saw you standing there?"

"I've never seen someone turn that shade of red," he said. "If I'd kissed you, I bet his head would have exploded and splattered all over the wall."

Well, there's a thought.

I glanced over his shoulder, back at the oversized bay window. My sense of spite went into overdrive, overruling my common sense.

"Okay," I said. "Do it."

Chase looked at me with a gleam in his deep brown eyes. "What? Really?"

"Sure." I shrugged. "It's just a kiss."

...I think.

Not like I was going to kiss him back.

Right?

His lips curved into a half-smile. "If you insist."

Nervousness tore through me like a bullet. I tensed, expecting him to get it over with right away, but he didn't. He kept his arm around my shoulders, guiding me several more steps until we came to a stop in front of the passenger side of his truck.

Instead of opening the door, he grabbed my hip and turned me the face him in a slow, deliberate motion. My breath stilled as he stepped forward, fencing me in with his arms. His broad frame surrounded me, engulfing me from the front and sides, while my back pressed up against the metal and glass of the door. Trapped. In the best possible way.

Now that I was within his gravitational force field, the pull was impossible to resist. I looked up at him and his dark eyes held mine for a moment before falling to my lips. He paused, pulse ticking in the base of his throat. My heart stuttered as I watched him, waiting.

"What are you doing?" I whispered.

"Kissing you." His gaze snapped back up to meet mine. "Properly."

He reached over, gently cupping my face in his hands. My eyelids fluttered shut as he leaned closer and his lips found mine. Without any even thinking, I parted my lips and he slanted his mouth against mine, deepening the kiss. He tasted like icy mint mixed with heartbreak. Everything else ceased to exist.

I splayed my fingers against his chest, grabbing at the fabric of his grey t-shirt and a small sound of appreciation rumbled from the back of his throat in response. He slid a hand to the nape of my neck and tugged at the roots of my hair, angling my face towards his and pressing me up against the truck.

It was nothing like I'd ever been kissed before.

It was like falling.

He pulled back slightly and I could feel the smile on his lips before he covered my mouth with his, kissing me again. It was playful, questioning. I could have gone on doing this all night—nibbling, tasting, teasing. I'd forgotten why we even started kissing in the first place; didn't even care, just didn't want it to stop.

After another moment, we slowly broke apart. My breath was ragged, heart racing, and I was so lightheaded that the truck behind me was the only thing keeping me upright.

"Well," he said. "I think that was pretty convincing."

It sure convinced me.

I tried to keep my voice level. "Yeah. Ithink so, too."

The look on Morrison's face earlier tonight? Awesome.

Getting to spend time with James? Even better.

Kissing her? ... Fuck me, I'm in over my head.

Moments later, we were in Chase's truck, pulling out from where he'd illegally parked on the street. My brain was still scrambled from the kiss, but I was trying to keep it together for appearances' sake. He probably kissed girls like that all the time. I doubted it meant anything to him.

I wished I could say the same.

"For the record," I said, "I'm not clumsy."

He stole a glance at me, a smile playing on his lips. "Is that why you nearly fell off the curb outside XS?"

"I did a lot of things that were out of character that night." And apparently, I was still doing them. The only difference now was, I couldn't blame the alcohol anymore.

"Okay, where to?" Chase signaled left and shoulder-checked, pulling out onto the main thoroughfare.

Momentarily distracted by his hands on the steering wheel and remembering how they felt on my body, I scrambled for an idea, coming up woefully empty-handed.

"I think it's your turn to decide."

"Pretty sure I decided last time," he said. "I was trying to be nice, but now I'm dragging you around wherever I want. Prepare for a wild night of adventure and crime."

"You're joking, right?"

He shrugged. "I guess you'll just have to see."

*

After another 15 minutes, we pulled into the entrance for a natural park area that I'd never been to. I didn't even know it was there, actually, tucked away just a few minutes from downtown.

Trees lined the parking lot, stretching out far beyond for miles in each direction with their leaves in their full autumn splendor, painting the landscape with burnt orange, umber and gold. It was breathtaking.

Chase parked and killed the ignition, grabbing a grey Carhartt from the backseat before getting out and locking the truck. I stood, taking in the scenery and enjoying the soothing effect the fresh air was having on my frazzled brain. Small talk and physical distance between us on the drive had helped somewhat, but I still hadn't fully processed that kiss.

I wasn't sure I ever would. I suspected it was the sort of kiss that you'd always remember.

Even if it wasn't real.

"This way," Chase nodded to the right.

We started down a paved pathway into a dense patch of trees.

"What is this place, anyway?" I asked, zipping my coat as we walked. It had cooled off significantly since the week before, with a definite nip in the air that promised of winter coming.

"The real name is Hammond Park, but people call it End of the World," he said. "Sometimes I come here to think."

"Ah, so not often then."

He grinned, bumping me with his elbow. "Hey, now."

Moments later, a glass-walled shack appeared in front of us, surrounded by metal bistro tables and chairs. The sign out front read Uncommon Coffee Co.

"Oh no." I shook my head. "If I drink coffee this late, I'll never be able to sleep tonight."

"Cool your jets, grandma. We ain't here for coffee."

Pulling open the door, he let me enter first and followed behind. The heavenly scent of coffee and chocolate filled the entire cafe, which was decorated in reclaimed wood and had a rustic, hipster charm. A chalkboard menu was posted behind the counter, with offerings written in pastel shades of the rainbow.

"We're here for that." He pointed to the left-hand side, where a pink handwritten header read, "World's Best Hot Chocolate." Listed beneath it were original, dark chocolate, white chocolate, peppermint bark, salted caramel, raspberry truffle, peanut butter cup, roasted coconut, hazelnut twist, and spiced gingerbread.

"Wow." It was a lucky guess on his part because I happened to love hot chocolate. It reminded me of skating rinks and bonfires in the winter. Of gliding along the ice in the cold winter air beneath a sky blanketed with stars.

The heavily pierced and tattooed barista at the counter waited patiently while I hemmed and hawed over which flavor to get.

"The salted caramel is almost as good as a blowjob," Chase said.

I shot him a look. "TMI, Carter."

"What?" He shrugged. "Just saying."

"We need to get you a mute button."

"Anyway, it's good. You could get tea or something gross instead, if you want." He waved to the menu board vaguely. "But I don't know how anyone could turn down hot chocolate."

"Hmm." I hummed, still waffling between original and the salted caramel. On the one hand, the flavors did sound good; on the other; it was hard to beat a really amazing cup of classic hot chocolate.

"Know what you want?" Chase asked, stepping up to the register.

I grabbed my tan leather crossbody bag, starting to unzip it. "I mean, I can pay—"

"Yeah, no," he said. "What should I order for you?"

Was this how it was going to be? Maybe I'd actually met the only person on earth more stubborn than I was.

"Salted caramel."

He winked at me. "Good choice."

We collected our drinks before heading back outside. The salted caramel was every bit as good as he said, the sweet milk chocolate perfectly balanced by the slight savory undertone of the caramel.

As we started walking again, the sun began to sink beneath the horizon, casting the sky in shades of violet and pink. Leaves crunched beneath our feet and a slight breeze picked up, rustling through the trees and ruffling my hair.

"This is the second date-like non-date we have ended up on," I said, clutching the red paper cup in my hand. And probably more date-like than anything I had done with Luke in ages, come to think of it.

"It is?"

Oh, sweet summer child. Of course he wouldn't know. Girls just came along and threw themselves at his feet. Or his other body parts. No wining and dining required.

I stole a glance at him. "Let me guess, you don't go on dates."

"Not really." He took a sip of his hot chocolate, dark brow furrowed. "But isn't this something you'd do with your friends? Get drinks, sit around and gossip and shit? You know, chick stuff."

"I guess so," I said. "You want to do chick stuff with me?"

"Why not? My life is testosterone overload most of the time. It gets old. Plus, guys are smelly. Dallas after a game could be a biological weapon."

We came to a fork in the path and he pointed for us to go left. Ahead was a rickety old staircase built into the hillside, its wood grey and weathered with age. It didn't look like it could support Chase, let alone both of us, but I assumed he knew what he was doing. Hopefully.

"Oh my god," I laughed. "This is your ulterior motive? Not to mess with Luke, but so we can get mani-pedis and have pillow fights?"

He cocked a brow, gesturing for me to go up the stairs first. "For the record, you texted me tonight."

"You kidnapped me from the arena before that." I took a tentative step, beginning to climb the steep staircase. Chase followed behind and suddenly I was acutely aware that he had a full-body view of me from behind. My mind ricocheted back to the kiss earlier, knees going a little bit weak at the memory.

"And before that, you cockblocked me at XS."

I glanced back at him. "You came up to me first, Mr. Wannabe Airline Pilot."

"Fair enough." He grinned. "I'll pass on the mani-pedis, but I'm down for a pillow fight any day of the week. Preferably in our underwear."

Oh.

Picturing Chase in underwear wasn't helping me keep my mind straight after that kiss earlier.

He came to stand me beside on the landing, halfway up the stairs, and I poked him in the side. "Don't be dirty."

"What?" Chase said with mock innocence. "I wasn't."

I raised my eyebrows.

"Fine, I was. But the offer stands."

Whew! I've been dying to post that kiss for days.