I Teased His Kidney, He Kissed Me

Chapter 4

I stumbled back to the line, dazed, and let out a long sigh.

Guess there was no escaping that 800-meter run after all.

And of course, just when I thought nothing else could go wrong, something did.

I tripped and went down hard on the track. My knee hit the ground, skin scraped raw, and it stung like hell.

I'd been a total baby about pain since I was a kid, and my eyes were already burning.

Holden got to me before I knew what was happening, and I could see it in his face, plain as day. He was rattled.

"It's okay," he said, crouching down to wipe my tears.

That only made it worse.

Something about him being there just made me feel sorry for myself, and the tears started pouring.

He pulled me into his arms, scooped me up, and carried me straight off the field.

At the infirmary, Holden knelt down beside me, dabbing antiseptic onto my scraped knee.

He looked so focused, like he was handling something precious, something fragile.

I couldn't help it. I sniffled.

"Still crying?"

He looked up, and his eyes, so close to mine, were dead serious.

My heart skipped a beat, just like that.

I shook my head.

"Good girl. I'll buy you chocolate later. How about that?"

My face went hot. I bit my lip, a little embarrassed.

"Thanks."

Holden didn't say anything. He just kept working on my knee, all concentrated, and I couldn't stop sneaking glances at him.

Under the fluorescent light, his lashes cast faint shadows across his cheeks.

I swallowed. Hard.

In that quiet little room, it was embarrassingly loud.

My whole body went stiff. I froze.

'Oh God. Kill me now!'

A low chuckle rumbled from his throat. He tilted his head and shot me a look.

"Don't read into it," I blurted, way too fast. "I was just hungry, that's all."

"Yeah, I know," he said, but his eyes were smiling.

Later, he added me on Insta. His excuse was that I'd gotten hurt on his watch in class, so he bore some responsibility.

I didn't bother checking his feed until the next day.

And holy crap! Holden's entire Stories were nothing but... videos.

Dated today.

In the clips, his abs kept flashing in and out of frame, and his eyes were all dark and teasing, practically begging for trouble.

My nose went warm. A drop of red bloomed across my phone screen.

OMG!

How come Piper never told me her brother posted thirst traps on his socials?