Giving It to the Bad Boy by Jenika Snow Page A

wouldn’t dare mess you with you.” His coarse
    language should have offended her, but he wasn’t really known for his censorship.
    “That’s sweet and all, but they’d eat me alive.” She once again attempted some humor. “I think
    I’ll pass.” She smiled brightly up at him, hoping to camouflage her slight bout of awkwardness, but
    she knew by his expression she failed.
    “Okay, fair enough. I don’t want you feeling uncomfortable, but I still want to eat lunch with
    you. We can go off campus if you want? My treat?” The offer was tempting, but leaving with him
    would only start rumors, ones that probably involved a quickie in his car. She shook her head, and he frowned harder.
    “It’s not you or anything.” And it wasn’t, but then again it was. “I just eat lunch with my
    friends.” It was a lousy excuse, and she knew it, but being called a whore more times than she could count already this week was enough. She quickly added, “Maybe next time?”
    “I’d ask to sit at your table, but I can tell you are feeling a bit uneasy all of a sudden.” He ran a hand through his short hair, and the strands stood on end. It made him even more attractive. “I’m
    gonna hold you to ‘next time’ though.” He still wore that frown. Several more people stopped to talk to him, and no surprise, they didn’t even acknowledge her. Kiera pushed her glasses farther up her
    nose and shifted on her feet. The line moved forward, and she grabbed a sandwich and drink. After
    paying she started for where Ian and Molly were, but Reese grabbed her elbow gently.
    “You want to hang out with me this weekend? Maybe see a movie, or get something to eat?”
    A little bit of surprise flared inside of her because his offer sounded more like a date than
    hanging out. Or maybe that was just her wishful thinking?
    He quickly spoke again when she didn’t say anything after a prolonged moment. “We can do
    whatever you want. I just want to hang out with you, Kiera.”
    She nodded and said, “Okay.” They had already exchanged numbers, but neither one had made
    contact since he dropped her off at her house Monday morning. Maybe he had been waiting for her to
    make the first move, and when she didn’t he took matters into his own hands? His smile was instant,
    and he nodded in return.
    “Cool. I’ll shoot you a text later today so we can set something up, yeah?”
    “Yeah, okay.” She stood there, not moving as she watched him make his way in that sexy stride
    of his to the table where his friends were. Her smile faltered when she saw Andrea’s narrowed eyes
    on her. No doubt the head cheerleader saw everything, even though there really wasn’t anything to
    see. Kiera didn’t want to wait around and see if Andrea would throw herself at Reese when he sat
    down, and if he would reciprocate her actions, so she turned and quickly made her way over to where
    Molly and Ian were. Her tray made a loud noise as she set it down on the table in front of her. Kiera didn’t miss the tension in the air or the fact her best friend and Ian still didn’t speak. Sighing heavily, she grabbed her sandwich and started eating. But her quiet lunch was short-lived when Molly started
    in on the questions.
    “What’s going on with you and Reese Trenton?”
    Kiera lifted her eyes and stared between Ian and Molly. “What are you talking about?”
    Molly’s narrowed her eyes at her. “Come on now. You two looked really friendly over there. I
    mean your smile could have blinded the entire lunchroom.”
    “Leave her alone, Molly,” Ian said, but Molly ignored him.
    “What’s the big deal?” Kiera averted her eyes and went back to eating her sandwich, but she
    knew Molly asked too many questions and wouldn’t stop until she was satisfied.
    “There isn’t a big deal, but I hope you know what you’re doing.”
    Kiera looked at Molly, a spark of irritation building inside of her. “What do you mean by that?
    He helped me a—” Kiera cut