“Like us,” she says. “We don’t usually hang out during school breaks, but when we’re at Valley, we always fall back together.”

“Not exactly like that.” I slide my hand up her leg to her hip and bring my lips to hers. She opens for me immediately and I waste no time sweeping my tongue in her mouth and tasting her. Sydney kisses like it’s a competitive sport and she is a gold medal winner every single time.

We’re interrupted by someone coming up the stairs and reluctantly, I stand and we head back down. I really don’t feel like playing quarters or generally being around anyone but Sydney.

“I have an idea. You game?” I squeeze her hand.

Without even asking for more details she agrees, and with a little creativity and fast thinking, I’m able to mostly create the first date I had planned. I grab all the supplies and lead her into the garage. We sit on the workout bench facing one another.

“What is this?”

“Alternate date number one, of course.”

“Date number one was dinner, I take it?” she asks, taking a cheese puff from the bag between us.

“Is dinner. I said alternate, but I meant bonus date. The real one will be much classier. No plastic cups or food that comes from a bag. I did picture it a lot like this though. You in a dress, me looking sharp as always.”

“The smell of sweat in the air,” she says dreamily, holding a hand over her heart and then laughing.

“But it achieves the most important part of my first date—having you all to myself.”

“I know somewhere else you could achieve that.”

I ignore that obvious reference to sex for the sake of my dick who is looking for any reason to pop up and make it about him.

“What’s the best date you’ve ever been on?” I ask.

“Drinks at a little cafe in Italy.”

“Figures fucking Sebastian couldn’t even take you on a real date. Drinks is a bullshit excuse for a date.”

She rolls her eyes and pops another cheese puff in her mouth. “What’s the best date you’ve ever planned?”

“I haven’t.”

“I don’t understand. They couldn’t have all sucked.”

“I’ve never really been on a date like that. Not a real one where I asked a girl out and planned something specifically for her. You know how it is. You make plans with someone and you just sort of show up together at the same place. I’m not counting those.”

“What about Amelia? I thought you guys went to a couple concerts and what about the time you took her to the Diamondbacks game?”

“All her. She planned those or told me she wanted to do them and sent me links with dates and times.”