Flirting With Maybe Read Free Page B

himself a single.
    After the game Ryan walked casually to the parking lot with the other guys, pretending not to notice the girls waiting for them. He kept a straight face when Brooke jogged up.
    “Hey. Good game, Ry.”
    He felt the eyes of his teammates on them. He gave a nod and put his bat bag in the trunk of his car. He was afraid if he looked at her, she’d turn him into a grinning ball of mush, and they’d all be able to see exactly how he felt.
    She leaned toward him and whispered, a trace of humor in her voice. “You’re welcome, tough guy.” Then she walked away, high-fiving the other guys as she went and spouting off ball talk that they responded to as if she was one of them. No other girl could be taken seriously like that. She even complimented J.J. on his four-inning no-hitter, earning a respectful nod.
     
    Ryan purposely didn’t look at Brooke the next day in the halls. Things had cooled down, but he didn’t want to give J.J. a reason to talk any more shit. He didn’t want trouble on the team, but most of all he didn’t want any drama to spill over and affect Brooke. Any time he spent with her would have to be without prying eyes on them.
    Brooke surprised Ryan after school by waiting next to his car.
    “Too cool for me now?” she asked. Her smile was small and not as confident as usual, stirring bad feelings in him. Ryan suddenly felt like a complete ass. He’d only done it for her own good. Hell, he didn’t think she’d care that much.
    Now he wanted to reassure her. “You know you’re the cool one, Brooke.” His cheek pulled to the side in a grin. “Wanna ride?” he asked. In the pause before she answered, he felt the familiar stretch of nervousness and excitement in his stomach when he didn’t know if she’d accept or reject.
    Brooke bit her bottom lip and nodded.
    From that day on, Ryan drove Brooke home after school. Some days he drove a couple of his sophomore friends, too, but Brooke always had shotgun. The other guys were just as enamored in her presence, hanging on her every word, smiling like a bunch of geeks and goofing off to impress her. She laughed at all the right times and actually seemed to like their attention.
    But when it was just the two of them they never went straight home. He would drive her for fries and a Coke. Or they’d go back to the state park and just talk. As the weather got warmer, they walked down by the Potomac River together, putting their feet in the water and trying to catch frogs. Ryan never knew there was so much to talk about with a girl. Some nights when they came home from practice, they’d chat online for hours about nothing and everything.
    She’d call him, crying, when her stepdad, Ron, made dick comments. She’d talk about the drama among her friends. They’d talk about baseball, her being an Orioles fan and him a Braves guy. He ragged on the O’s mercilessly, because they sucked, but she took it like a champ. And he had to admit, it was a total turn-on when she recited batting stats.
    He knew Brooke only thought of him as a friend, but that didn’t stop him from wishing and flirting every time he worked up the nerve. She always laughed it off like he was joking.
    But he wasn’t joking. And he couldn’t help but hope.

CHAPTER THREE
    O n a Friday in April, Brooke called Ryan after practice.
    “Hey! Can you come over for a minute? I want to show you something.”
    She sounded excited, piquing Ryan’s curiosity. “Yeah, sure.”
    Ryan took a speed shower and was in his car ten minutes later. He was surprised to see Brooke’s friend Jackie’s car and two others parked outside Brooke’s house. Her mom’s car wasn’t there; she must have still been at work. Brooke let him in and led him to her bedroom in the basement. He’d never been down there before. They’d hung out only in her living room and kitchen because her parents had strict rules about boys.
    Ryan felt light-headed when he entered Brooke’s room and was surrounded