Page 7 of TJ Powar Has Something to Prove

“I’ll catch you later?”

Piper makes kissy noises and Chandani slaps TJ’s butt. “Go get it, bitch.”

TJ rolls her eyes. “We’re gettinglunch.”

“Oooh, hope there’s dessert after,” Chandani says, which makes TJ roll her eyes again.

She heads to the washroom to touch up her makeup, then to her locker for her peacoat. Kelowna’s not freezing cold in the winter, but it’s still chilly enough to make her shiver when she steps through the double doors.

Liam’s car is idling when she hops into the passenger side.

“Hey, beautiful” is the first thing she hears, before a handsnakes around her shoulders and a kiss drops against her hair. She scrunches her nose, pretending not to like it, although she definitely does.

Liam leans back. She spends a moment just looking at him, because,damn. He’s tall, athletic, a member of the soccer team just like her; with mischievous green eyes and dark curly hair she loves running her hands through. He looks like bad news, and if TJ’s parents knew about him he definitely would be.

Good thing she’s a pro at this. She grins. “Hi.”

He puts the car into drive. “Did French keep you late?”

It takes her a moment to realize he’s been waiting. “No, I was just in the washroom.”

“I’ll never understand why girls take so long,” Liam says good-naturedly. There have been many date nights when TJ was late with the outfit-picking. The hair-doing. The makeup-donning.

“I told you, I’m running on BST. Brown Standard Time.” She snuggles into the heated seat. “Where are we going?”

“Your pick.”

“No, your pick.”

“Your pick—”

“Justchoose—”

Twenty minutes later, they’re back in the school parking lot, tearing into the bag of fries nestled in the center console between them. TJ has just finished ranting about the soccer practice from hell when he changes the subject. “So, how was Saturday? Your debate?”

She pauses mid-chew. She doesn’t remember mentioning it, but he probably heard about it around school. He alwayssomehow knows. Even though he’s never actually come to watch. “Fine.”

“Did you win?”

“First place as a team. Second individually.” Her loss to Nate doesn’t smart too much, though. He, TJ, Charlie, and Simran continually swap the top four spots between them each tournament. TJ once tallied their standings over the years and it all pretty much evened out. She’d never admit it out loud, but whoever does better on any given day truly depends on the topics and pure luck.

She pivots before Liam can ask more. “How wasyourSaturday?”

“Before or after you rejected me for Piper?” When she rolls her eyes, he grins. “I helped my dad set up an open house. Boring as hell, plus I screwed up my shoulder lifting boxes.” He makes a face.

TJ splays her hand over his broad shoulder, trying not to laugh. Liam’s realtor parents practically see him as free labour. “Aw, you big baby. Need me to kiss it better?”

His green eyes go dark. She has exactly one second to wonder if she tastes like fries before he leans in across the center console. But that thought quickly dissolves when their mouths meet. Who could blame her? The boy knows how to kiss.

She relaxes and draws closer as the kiss deepens. His hand drops to her waist, skims beneath her peacoat, and slides up to brush the underwire of her bra.

She pulls away, and Liam leans back, running a hand through his curls. “Sorry. You’re just... so beautiful.”

He says that all the time, but it never fails to make her heartflip. “It’s okay. I just don’t want to have sex in Northridge’s parking lot.”

His lips curve up. “What, that doesn’t sound romantic to you?”

They share a grin and then—there’s a sticky pause. She knows what he’s thinking because she’s thinking it, too. They’ve only had sex a few times; the first time was at the end of grade eleven, and it’s been... a long time since summer, that’s for sure.