Free Another Saturday Night and I Ain't Got No Body (A Page Turners Novel) by Jennie Marts Page B

for her in class.
    In an effort to steady herself and hide her shaking hands, she gripped the playground bar she leaned against. Her heart beat tripled in time and her mouth went dry. Finding it hard to breathe, she felt captured by the look in his eyes as they conveyed a message of want and need.
    Drew’s head dipped toward hers, and his lips lightly touched hers. A rush of desire flowed through her as he kissed her again, this time more insistent. His hands went around her back, and she pressed closer to him. Drew’s knee moved between her legs, and they pressed closer still. His hands moved up and down her back, and Piper had never felt anyone treat her with such care or longing in her life. Hands gripping his back, she kissed him back as if her life depended on it. His lips parted, and she felt his tongue seek hers. He tasted of chocolate cake and smelled of cologne. Piper was in heaven, and could have kissed him for hours. She never wanted this moment to end.
    Bonk!
    Their teeth clashed against each other as a soccer ball bounced off the side of Drew’s head.
    “Dude, get a room!” a male voice called, followed by female laughter.
    Drew looked down at her, mouthed “ sorry ”, and pulled away to heckle the ball-throwing kid. “Troy, you jerk ! What are you guys doing?”
    Piper felt chilled as he pulled away from her. She rubbed her arms and already missed the heat of his body next to hers. He reached down, took her hand and held it lightly in his. Feeling his touch brought some of the warmth back.
    “We’re just walking back from the Tastee Freez and happened to catch you two mashing,” the boy teased. “So, is this the girl you’ve been telling us about who you like so much?”
    Piper froze and looked at her feet in embarrassment. She dropped Drew’s hand. How could I have been so stupid ? Thinking he liked me when he was telling all his friends about some girl that he really liked . The familiar feelings of abandonment crowded into her heart as she chastised herself for letting someone get close to her.
    “Yep, this is her.” Drew beamed and reached for her hand again, proudly holding up their joined fingers.
    “Piper, this is Tara and Troy. You’ve heard me talking about Troy, my best friend and social ingrate. And Tara and I have lived on the same street since second grade. She’s probably the closest thing I’ve got to a sister.”
    “Hi,” Tara said to Piper, who was still stunned over Drew’s declaration of his feelings for her. “I’m so glad we finally get to meet you. Drew has been talking about you non-stop ever since you moved here.”
    Piper looked toward Drew and smiled before she could stop herself. Looking back at Tara, she took in the girl’s jean shorts, low top Converse sneakers, and brightly colored double layered t-shirts. “I really like your shirt,” Piper said, then looked away and silently berated herself for such a stupid comment.
    “Oh, gosh, I have tons of these. You can borrow some if you want,” Tara offered, her smile filled with warmth.
    “Oh, okay, thanks,” Piper replied.
    “Hey, we wanted to tell you Tara’s having a Summer Luau party this weekend at her house to celebrate school being out. You guys should come,” Troy said.
    “It’s a tropical theme,” Tara said. “So dress Hawaiian. And Piper, you can tell your mom that ‘yes, my parents will be there- all night.’ I’m having a couple of other girls stay the night so you can sleep over if you want.”
    “Okay, thanks,” Piper answered softly. She was stunned that this nice, pretty girl had invited her not only to a party, but to sleep over and loan her some of her clothes. Feelings of acceptance warred with her inner struggles of desertion, because she knew she didn’t have to tell her mom anything about the party. Because her mom was gone, once again putting some guy above her own daughter.
    “Well, we gotta go.” Tara dragged on Troy’s hand. “We’ll see you guys on Saturday night.