Crave (Harlequin Teen)

think I’m good-looking or insanely hot. Things like that.” And still he didn’t smile.
    “Okay. You’re the hottest guy here. Better?”
    “Much. Savannah, have I told you lately that I love you?”
    I grinned. “Isn’t that a song from the nineties or something?” I expected him to laugh. He was rarely serious. At the moment, he was working on a record for the longest I’d seen him go without smiling. On second thought, he’d already broken that record.
    He frowned at me. “I’m being serious.”
    “Uh, yeah. And it’s a little strange for you.”
    “So you don’t like me unless I’m smiling and joking around all the time?”
    “Umm…I like you to be yourself, remember?”
    “Okay, then. Right now I feel like being serious. And I’m telling you that I love you.”
    Whoa. That sure sounded serious. Was I supposed to say it back, or could I have some time to think about this leap in our relationship?
    “Will you wear my senior ring?” He took it off and held it out.
    “Wow.” Hesitating for a moment, I finally nodded and let him slide the heavy ring onto my right ring finger. But the cold chunk of metal felt all wrong. Maybe because I’d imagined this happening with someone else.
    His hand cupped the back of my head as he ducked his head to kiss me. But Mrs. Daniels had a strict team policy against public displays of affection at any team or school function. Kissing at this dance was definitely PDA. I leaned away from him.
    “Savannah, it’s traditional for a couple to kiss after they say I love you.” Greg almost sounded angry. I must have bruised his ego. Probably not a good time to point out that I had, in fact, not yet repeated those three little words back to him.
    “I know. But Charmers can’t have public displays of affection at team or school events,” I explained, nervous for the first time in months with him. “I’ll get into trouble. It makes the team look bad.”
    He scowled, his eyes darkening to the color of bittersweet chocolate. “That’s a stupid rule.”
    Actually, I’d always thought it was a good one. But Greg’s expression was angry enough as it was; I didn’t want to add fuel to the fire by arguing with him. So I didn’t reply.
    “Maybe you should quit.”
    My mouth dropped open. Had he really just said that? He knew more than anyone how much I loved being a Charmers manager. I glanced around to see if anyone had overheard him, but everyone seemed lost in their own worlds.
    Thankfully the song ended, and so did the dance itself. Time for me to help the other Charmers and cheerleaders clean up. “I have to go. See you in a little while?” He’d driven me to the dance. But if he was too mad, I could grab a ride home with one of the Charmers instead.
    He gave a terse nod and stalked off.
    Wow. Were all boys this weird when they gave a girl their senior ring? I watched him go for a minute, then shook my head and waded through the exiting crowd toward the concession stand.
    By the time the team finished cleaning up the building an hour later, Greg’s strange mood still hadn’t changed. We drove to my house in silence. I was too tired to think of anything to talk about, and apparently he was still mad about the PDA rule. At my house, he walked me to my front porch.
    “Hey, you’re not wearing my ring,” he said.
    Blushing, I searched the pockets of my denim jacket. Wait, this jacket didn’t have any pockets. Then I remembered. “Oh, yeah, I put it on my necklace while I was cleaning. It’s kind of big for my fingers and I was scared I would lose it.” I lifted the chain out of my shirt.
    He touched his ring where it lay along with my gold locket on my chest at the top of my cleavage, his knuckles grazing my skin. The intimacy of his touch made me uncomfortable, but I held still for now, waiting to see what he would do. After a long moment, he nodded. “I like it there. Lets everyone see that you’re my girl.”
    I lifted my face for our usual light kiss goodbye, more than ready to end the night, only to find myself trapped within the coil of his arms. His tongue stroked across my lips, making me gasp. We’d never kissed like that. He seemed to take my gasp as an invitation; his tongue slipped inside my mouth then aimed for my throat. He moaned as his hands rubbed my back.
    This was supposed to cause all those fireworks and stars I’d read about?
    “Savannah,” Greg whispered against my lips before he trailed kisses over my cheek and down the