He froze while Maizie kept dancing.
“W-what?” He gulped, and his arms tensed around her.
Maizie picked an imaginary piece of lint from his collar, making sure to brush his neck with her fingertips.
He tightened his grip at her waist.
“I know I can be stubborn.” She paused for effect. “But only when Ireallywant something.”
“Really?” He cleared his throat.
I’m so taking him down.
“Yeah. You were right. That first day on the farm. I really wanted you. I haven’t stopped.” She bit her bottom lip, attracting his gaze to it like a fly to honey.
“And you waited until now to tell me?” His voice was low and rough, and if she wasn’t so good at pretending, she’d be afraid she’d fall for him for real.
She looked away for a moment before turning back. “I was scared.”
His blue eyes held a depth of emotion she couldn’t pinpoint, and her heart stuttered in her chest. “As long as we’re being honest, can I tell you a secret?” He leaned closer, until his lips grazed her ear, sending a whole flurry of unwanted firecrackers down her neck. “You are stubborn and beautiful. But you’re a terrible actress.”
Maizie whipped her head back in time to see his smirk. “I’m not acting.”
He nodded, holding her tight when she resisted. “You thought you could make me miserable by playing me, right? Well, that’s not going to work, princess.”
Maizie pursed her lips and tried once again to break free, but he only pulled her closer. “Yeah, and why not?” She needed to get away from him. He was all sorts of confusing, and she hated it.
His jaw hardened, and a storm brewed in his eyes. “Because I won’t fall for you.”
She swallowed hard. “Well, I won’t fall for you either.” Great. She’d just turned into Turner.
“Looks like we finally agree on something.” His eyes were fixed and hard, and Maizie pushed away from him.
“Hey, Maiz. Want to dance?” Rob came from out of nowhere, and Maizie jumped at the chance to dance with someone she didn’t hate.
Lindsay tapped her on the shoulder just as she and Rob started dancing. “Did it work?”
Maizie shook her head. “Crash and burn.”
* * *
Apparently in small towns,everyone dances with everyone, even if they came with a date. Or at least everyone seemed to be dancing with Christian’s date. He still wasn’t sure what had prompted him to tell Maizie off so harshly, but it had to be done. He knew what kind of game she was playing, and he’d be a fool to fall for that.
Any girl who had come up to him, he’d asked to dance. If only to get back at Maizie. He didn’t dare go ask for his date back when she seemed so happy with every guy but him. The first part of the night had been fun. But Maizie had been right, the rest was miserable.
When he’d first caught onto her plan, he’d been tempted to see how far she would go. But then she’d tried to get all sultry, and it only frustrated him more. That wasn’t her. He liked—no—he tolerated the girl that played pranks on him. But that game she was playing was the most dangerous one because if he didn’t watch himself, he might actually fall for it.
“Hey, man, I think your date is leaving,” some kid with long blond hair and a pointy nose said beside him.
“What?” He looked around, just in time to catch Maizie leaving through the back door with some people he vaguely recognized. He sprinted through the crowd to catch up.
“Where do you think you’re going?” He stopped to regain his breath once he’d caught her.
Maizie arched an eyebrow. “Whoa, chill Dad. I’m hanging out with my friends.”
His eyes narrowed even further. He didn’t like the reminder that he didn’t belong here. But he wasn’t letting her go with people he didn’t know. He was her date after all.
“Guess I’m coming too.” He held the car door she was attempting to shut.
