Just One Kiss, Please Daddy

Livia’s POV “You’re the only girl our age who has no interest in boys.” My best friend Nadine’s observation catches me off-guard. I almost stumble on the stands as we settle close to the edge of the soccer field, my chest clenching. The school day is done, and now she’s dragging me here to watch soccer practice. Neither of us has interest in the sport, but ever since she got with the soccer captain Aiden, she’s suddenly religiously watching practices. I think she might be more obsessed than the coach. “How can you say that to me?” I ask, subverting the vibe with a joking tone as she laughs and sits on the bench. “You were like me up until a month ago when you had your little meet-cute with Aiden at the cafeteria.” “Yeah, I said boys are pigs but that didn’t mean I don’t wanna look at them,” she says. “You, on the other hand, have never looked at any boy ever.” I roll my eyes, laughing. But she’s definitely not wrong. “Is anyone worth looking at?” I challenge her. “We’re eighteen. We’re young.” “Yeah, and it’s our last year here!” Nadine shakes her head. “At least try to go out on a date with someone!” I shrug. “I haven’t met anyone that’s my type.” “Jesus, Lils, really?” Nadine drapes an arm around my shoulder. “Look at all these players. All fit, all tall. In their little shorts, shirtless and sweating… does that do anything for you?” “Well, it certainly does something for you,” I say slyly. She lets out a loud laugh, and the players glance at her. Aiden turns, his green eyes lighting up when he sees her. Nadine pretends not to notice, but her eyes are roaming around his tanned chest and sculpted arms. The boys are nudging each other, pointing at her, and I can tell she’s basking in all that attention. “They’re looking at us,” she whispers. “Strike a nonchalant pose and let them all come to us. Who knows, maybe a cutie will come to you.” I let out a small laugh. “I can’t believe this is what you do every time you ditch me in the afternoon.” “Hey, that was one time!” She focuses on me. “Give it a chance. Enjoy the feast!” She lowers her voice. “Also, I think that guy with the red bandanna is checking you out.” I look up to see who she’s talking about, and sure enough, I lock gazes with a boy with a red bandanna. He quickly looks away, though. “Talk to him!” Nadine urges me. “He might be into you!” Thankfully, I don’t have to dignify that with an answer, because Aiden just kicked the ball—deliberately towards Nadine. He snickers with his boys as the ball flies towards her. But being the cool girl she is, she just gets up and stops it with her foot. “Looks like his goal was me,” she murmurs, watching Aiden run up to her just like he planned. But he’s not the only one approaching us. That boy in the red bandanna is coming too. Nadine doesn’t miss this, turning to me and hissing, “Say hi to him!” “No!” I protest, about to crawl up the bench. “I’m not going to do that!” They’re getting closer. Just a few paces now. “If you don’t do it, I’m going to do it for you!” Nadine says, and my heart sinks in horror. Oh, God. This is not going to be good. If she introduces me to that boy, I might as well transfer to another school. She’s going to hype me up and it’s bound to be embarrassing. I have no choice but to do it myself. The boys arrive. I notice that the boy with the red bandanna is really quite cute. I try to smile at him, but my face is frozen and I just look away. Aiden smirks at Nadine, standing in front of her and pressing his body against hers. “Hey, did you see the prehistoric beast who just took our ball?” Nadine shoves his chest. “If you want your ball back, you better be nice.” The tension between them is intense. Bodies pressing, faces close. Aiden’s hand brushes against her side, skimming her waist before finally closing around her hand. “Please give me the ball back, your highness.” Nadine kicks the ball towards him, smiling. I can’t help but grin. “Get a room, you two.” The other boy laughs at my joke. Nadine snaps into attention and widens her eyes, gesturing at him. Before she can say something embarrassing, I blurt out, “Hi.” The boy with the red bandanna steps back like I’m going to wallop him. He glances at Aiden, confused, before walking away without a word. Aiden lingers a little bit, taking the ball without taking his eyes off Nadine. “I’ll see you around,” he says before leaving. “See you around,” Nadine replies. Meanwhile, I’m reeling. The boy didn’t even say hi back. My face is suddenly hot with shame. “We need to leave,” I mutter. “It’s going to rain soon.” Wordlessly, Nadine follows me to the exit. Only when we’re out of the field does she speak. “Hey, don’t be bummed about that. That was on me. I’m really sorry.” “It’s alright,” I say, surprised to find that I mean it. “I’m happy you got to see Aiden. He seems to really like you.” “And I like him too.” Nadine loops her arm around mine. “And someday, you will find a boy you like too.” “Maybe,” I just say. But really… maybe not. Nadine is a blonde vixen, with a curvy figure that she can’t hide even under big sweaters. Those blue eyes of hers can captivate pretty much anyone. Meanwhile, I have mousy brown hair and brown eyes that I have to use glasses for just to see. On top of that, I’m also awkward and shy. I’m just not the kind of girl boys would stare at. Or give the time of day to. Besides, how could I ever trust a man when all I’ve experienced from the men in my life is pain? I subconsciously rub the cigarette burns under my sweater. We’re about to reach the school gate when all of a sudden, thunder rolls in and rain begins to fall in dense sheets. The cold water seeps into the fabric of my clothes. “Dammit!” Nadine curses. “Let’s stay here for a moment. My ride is going to be here soon.” As though on cue, a new shiny car pulls up in front of us, it’s horn honking. Nadine beams and waves, and the window rolls down, revealing the driver. My breath gets stuck in my throat. The man is drop-dead gorgeous. Full black hair, falling in soft waves over his heart-stopping face. Gray eyes brimmed with dark lashes, a striking contrast against the cloudy intensity of his gaze. But he breaks it all off with a soft smile, decorated by dimples on his well-kept stubbled cheeks. When he beckons to us, my heart nearly stops. My body is suddenly on fire. I’ve never felt this way before. Why are my knees weak? Why is heat pooling in the pit of my stomach? Why do I feel… need? “Who is he?” My words come out in a breathy rush. Nadine tilts her head in confusion. “That’s Ford Callahan. My dad.” With that, she runs to the backseat and leaves the door open. Ford turns his stormy eyes on me, motioning me to get closer. “Come on, kid, get in the car.”