Studying Boys (15 page)

He grinned and nodded, looking much more cheerful. "Okay."

"Okay." I left him on the couch and wandered into the kitchen. A lot of kids were in there playing that Jeopardy-like game Theo had explained to me, and each time someone got an answer wrong, they had to do something silly that the other team told them to do. Cracking an egg over your own head was the one I got to see.

I almost said something when I saw the food come out of the fridge, but I stopped myself. They were studying, right? Let it go, Frances.

Impressed with my restraint, I walked through the kitchen to the living room. Music was on, Nerf hoop was up, a couple kids were dancing. But the kids shooting hoops were quizzing each other, and only when they got an answer right could they shoot a basket.

And there was a huge debate going on by the coffee table about something that sounded rather juicy, but it was current events, so that was good too.

Then I looked at the dance floor. A couple kids were dancing, and didn't look much like they were studying. Unless it was sex ed.

Theo was leaning against the wall on the other side of the dance floor, his arms crossed over his chest, looking like he was in a rather foul mood. I could tell the moment he saw me. His eyebrows sort of lifted, and he jerked his chin at the room, no doubt pointing out that people were being fairly studious.

I nodded.

Then he levered himself off the wall and started walking toward me.

My heart started going faster, and my stomach got into knots.

Until some girl got off the couch and wrapped her arms around his waist, cooing about dancing with him. Theo grinned at her, and just when I was ready to walk over there and knock her out with a dictionary, he peeled her arms off and set her back on the couch.

And then kept walking toward me.

Okay, so now I was glad I'd turned down George.

He came to a stop in front of me, so close I could almost feel the heat from his body. "So."

I looked up at him. "Seems to be going well."

"Not too fun?"

"More fun than I would need to have, but it seems to be working."

He grinned.

And I smiled back.

"Come here." He took my wrist and led me back toward the kitchen, stopping in the small hallway between the rooms. From where we were, no one in either room could see us. It was as if we were alone.

He put his hands on my shoulders and pushed me so my back was against the wall, in the corner. He was going to kiss me? Again? With all these people around?

No. I wouldn't let him. I didn't want to kiss him. Not here, in front of everyone. Not with George, the boy I was supposed to like, in the other room. Not so soon after the first kiss, or I might be falling into his list of abandoned conquests all too soon.

And then I got tired of all the noise in my head. I got tired of the effort of trying to think too much. I just wanted to follow my heart. So, I put my hands on his waist, stood up on my tiptoes, and I kissed him.

He froze, and I froze. Had I really done that? "Sorry, I—"

Theo didn't let me finish another word, kissing me back instantly, his hands around my lower back. The kiss was amazing, every bit as magical as at the dance club, and I didn't even bother to pretend I wasn't loving it. I kissed him right back, matching him with everything I had. It was the most perfect moment, a kiss in the middle of study hall. Could you get a more romantic setting?

"What are you guys doing?" Allie's shocked voice jerked me back to the present.

I pushed Theo away and spun around. Allie was standing in the doorway, her mouth open in shock. "Allie, I can explain—"

She recovered instantly. "Oh, no, Frances, you don't need explain. He does!" She shoved him away from me. "Are you insane, Theo?"

Theo didn't look too sheepish or embarrassed. He actually looked pretty pleased about being caught kissing me, which made me grin. I liked that he wasn't embarrassed that she knew. I liked it a lot, actually.

"Hey, Allie," he said cheerfully. "What's up?"

"You can't kiss Frances!"

His grin widened. "She kissed me."

I shot a mutinous glare at Theo, who looked completely entertained. Hello? Shouldn't he be taking the heat here? "I didn't kiss you." But it was a total lie, and Allie clearly knew it.

"You kissed him?" Allie sounded faint. "But it's Theo."

"What's wrong with me?" Theo sounded a touch offended.

"You're a jerk," Allie explained. "Frances needs a nice guy."

Theo scowled. Good. Let him feel bad. "Why does everyone keep calling me a jerk?"

"Because you can be one," Allie said. "Frances, what were you thinking? What about George?"

Theo folded his arms across his chest and looked at me. "Yeah. What about George?"

"He's much more my type," I said.

Theo snorted, and Allie nodded. "Yes, he is," she said. Then her eyes widened. "Was it Theo you went out with on Friday night?"

"Maybe."

Allie spun around, her hands on her hips as she gifted Theo with another glare. "Theo! What are you doing to her? Corrupting her?"

"She's quite corruptible," Theo said, flinching only slightly when I toed him in the shin. "You really think I could make her do anything she didn't want to do? I fear for my life when I'm with her."

Was that the sweetest thing ever? A guy as tough as Theo respected me. I shot him a smile, and he smiled back.

"You're coming with me." Allie grabbed my arm and pointed at Theo. "You stay away from her."

"No promises," Theo said, giving me a special smile until we were out of sight.

Allie dragged me straight through the living room and up the stairs to her room, where she slammed the door behind us. "What are you doing?"

I just grinned, still thinking about how cute he'd been when he said he was afraid of me. Talk about female power!

"He'll break your heart, Frances. Haven't you been listening to us? Have you had your head under a snowbank for the last ten years, not noticing the string of girls Theo has left behind him? You're too nice for him."

I grinned at Allie. "He's a great kisser."

"Of course he is! He's kissed about a thousand girls!"

Well, when put that way, it didn't sound so good. My smile got a little smaller.

Allie sat down next to me on the bed and sighed. "Frances, he doesn't study. He doesn't treat girls well. He's not right for you."

There was a distinct possibility of that. However, there was also the possibility that maybe he was exactly right for me, or that I was exactly right for him. "He's coming to my house for a study date tomorrow night."

"So?"

"So, my whole family will be in and out of the room. No way is he going to have a chance to kiss me. It'll really be about studying."

"So?"

"So, he's taking me on a date that's studying, Allie. That's not something Theo would do if he was planning to ditch me tomorrow." Was it? God, I hoped not. I was definitely starting to trust him, maybe too much. "Maybe there's another side to him you've never seen."

She cocked an eyebrow. "You really like him, don't you?"

I sighed and picked up a pink glittery scarf from the end of her bed. I had never even held anything so girly and pretty in my hands, let alone worn it. "Sometimes."

"And the other times?"

I wrapped it around my neck. The fabric felt so soft and luxurious about my neck. "I think he can be a bit of a jerk. But when I tell him that, he shapes up pretty well."

Allie studied me, then reached over and helped me arrange the scarf. "He did say he was afraid of you."

"Of course he is. I think I'm the only girl he's ever met who doesn't want to climb in the backseat of a car with him." Or at least, not yet. The idea did hold some allure, now that I thought about it. I grinned. "He's turning me into a deviant."

She frowned. "And that's good?"

I thought for a moment, and then nodded. "He makes me laugh. And have fun."

Allie pursed her lips. "You do have a tendency to be a little too serious."

"So you've said."

"Huh."

We sat there in silence for a few minutes, and then Allie nodded. "Okay, then. As long as you promise to keep him afraid of you and don't climb into any backseats, this might be okay." She put her arm around my shoulder. "I would love to see you happy, Frances. We all worry about you, and how hard you work all the time."

I grinned. "I don't even know if it's going to go anywhere."

She looked at me thoughtfully. "And you're okay with that?"

"Sure. Why not? It's not like I even like him half the time." That was part of the fun. "I'm afraid I don't want to go out with George anymore, though."

Allie winked. "I wouldn't want to either."

I smiled back, relieved that she wasn't trying to force him onto me anymore. "So, um, do you think we should tell Blue and Natalie?"

Her smile faded. "Blue will freak."

"Like you did."

"Maybe we should wait until we see whether there is something worth freaking her out about."

Phew. I was relieved to hear that. For some reason, I wasn't ready to share Theo with everyone yet. It was too tentative and too fragile, and I wasn't sure it would survive a bunch of outside interference. "Sounds good."

"But I don't like lying to them."

I sighed. "Me neither." That was the problem with my life right now. It was filled with deception. Lying to my parents about The Homework Club, about Theo, sneaking out at night, not telling my friends stuff, getting into a club through the back door. It was all fun and exciting, and it made me feel terrible at the same time.

Something was going to have to give. I couldn't keep this up.

It was at dinner on Tuesday that I finally told my mom that Theo was coming over. I had less than an hour until he showed up, and I couldn't put it off anymore.

Mom set down her fork and looked at me. "Theo is coming over to study?"

"Yes." Uh, oh. She didn't look very happy. What if she said no? But how could she possibly object to me doing homework at my house?

Mom carefully wiped her mouth with her napkin, her movements too precise and too careful. "Isn't he a senior?"

That hadn't been a casual question, had it? Okay, so maybe inviting a senior boy to study was a little different than having Allie over to study. Not that I could let her see that. I had to convince her it as purely academic. So, I shrugged as calmly as I could and took another bite of my chicken stew. "Yes."

"At another school?"

Oh, I was starting to get nervous now. My mom was leaning toward me, watching me so carefully. I glanced over at Dawn, who was sitting next to me, listening carefully. The rest of my brothers and sisters were arguing with each other, so no one else was paying attention. My mom was supposed to have been so occupied with all the chaos that she had no time to actually analyze the situation. So much for that. Clearly, I was on her radar right now. "Yes, he goes to Mapleville High, with Blue and Natalie." Subtle reminder that perfectly nice people go to Mapleville High.

She caught a sippy cup that was on its way to the floor and set it back on the table without ever turning her head from me. "So, what homework could you possibly have in common?"

Uh... Good question. I hadn't prepared an answer to that question.

"And don't even tell me that he's tutoring you." She handed one of the twins half a banana. "You get straight A's."

My mind was totally blank.

She was picking up momentum now, and I was utterly without an answer. I guess to be a good liar, you need to practice, because I was sure dropping the ball with this one.

"Funny coincidence that it was Theo who picked you up on Friday. And dropped you off."

I felt like I was choking. There were no good answers right now. I truly hadn't expected to be grilled. I really thought she'd been too distracted, and perfectly happy to have me studying at home.

"And that Blue's parents weren't home to confirm you were at Blue's house," she continued.

Why couldn't my sisters have a crisis right now? Where were the tears? Help!

"And when I called Blue's house on Sunday, you were studying with Theo, according to Blue's mom. Not with the girls. With Theo." My mom folded her arms across her chest and eyed me. "So?"

Then I blurted out the only thing I could think of. "I'm tutoring him."

My mom narrowed her eyes. "Really." Could there be more skepticism dripping from that word?

"Yes. He's an athlete, and he needs to get his grades up to stay on the team, but he's totally embarrassed. It doesn't do any good for his reputation, you know?" I couldn't believe it. Lying again? What was I turning into? "It's English where he's really struggling. Blue asked me to help him. That way no one at his school has to know."

She just kept looking at me.