“Exactly, but I think I need to really congratulate you because that scholarship is awesome.”
“Coop…” I didn’t get to finish the sentence because he ducked his head and kissed me again. My pulse rabbited, and I was gripping his shirt as he thrust his tongue against mine. The playfulness had turned demanding. Plastered against his side, all I could think was we had on too many clothes, followed swiftly by we were standing out in the open where anyone could see us.
Then he’d suck on my tongue or press more firmly against my lips, and those thoughts fell away. The sharp blare of a horn jerked through me, but Coop shifted slightly and continued the kiss until I relaxed. Then he lifted his head, and I found him aiming his middle finger at Archie, who stared at us with a bemused expression.
“That was congratulations, by the way,” Coop said, grinning. “Can’t wait to celebrate.”
Wow.
“Okay.” That I managed those two syllables was a credit to me. Laughing, Coop caught my backpack and eased it off of me before climbing in the backseat with his backpack and mine before I climbed in the passenger seat. The air conditioning was a relief as it washed over me.
Archie held out a velvet jewelry box toward me, and I blinked.
“Hey,” Coop protested. “That’s cheating.”
“Giving her a congratulations present? I think not. Besides, Frankie and I have a deal.”
We did?
Then he nodded to my wrist, and I glanced at my bracelet and grinned. “We do have a deal.”
“Yep, and I already owed you one new charm, and I picked up a couple more. We can get those added on after school today. I’ve got the tools to do it, or we can take it to the store.”
A little thrill zipped through me as I popped the box open. Archie kept the car idling as he watched me flip it open, and Coop leaned between the seats. Four charms nestled together in the velvet box—a stylized J that matched the A and the F. For Jake. That was both embarrassing and desperately sweet.
A boxed present with a ribbon charm sat next to it, because the bracelet had been one of my very first real jewelry gifts. A movie reel—cause Jake took me to the drive-in. I laughed. The last one was a pair of boxing gloves.
“Why boxing gloves?”
“’Cause you’ve gone a few rounds the last few days, and you’re still standing.” The steady gleam in his eyes made me smile. “I gotta get you one for the scholarship. You’re achieving things fast, babe. I love it.”
“Thank you, Archie,” I said, then leaned over and kissed him. It wasn’t quite the tense, pulse pounding and almost a make out session kiss I’d been sharing with Coop, but there was a thrill and an effortless sweetness.
Through the insane rollercoaster of the last three weeks, Archie had been right there, throwing his hands up in the air and howling alongside me. I leaned back, biting my lip as Coop grinned at me then Archie and back.
“You need a C for that bracelet.”
Archie snorted, but I laughed as I closed the case. I was pretty sure I knew why he’d given me a J. “You do have a birthday coming up,” I teased Coop.
“Hey, you’re right. How could I forget?” He stretched his arms wide. “Eighteen. Woot. Still have to go school.”
Then we were all laughing as I passed the box back to Coop, he secured it in my backpack for me while I pulled on my seatbelt.
“Unfortunately, only Ian got to be born outside of the school year.”
“Eh,” Archie said. “Jake got Christmas break, there are worse times.”
“Yes, but that means everyone gave him combo Christmas and birthday presents.”
In unison, Coop and Archie groaned. “That’s a crime,” Archie declared. “That’s why we make a point tonotgive him dual presents.”
True.
“And your birthday is in four weeks,” I reminded him.
“Seriously?” Archie pressed a hand to his chest. “You mean it really is on the same day every year?”
Snickering, I slapped his arm, and he grinned. “Ass.”