Jack Hammer Read Online Free PDF Page A

wouldn’t have a problem if I did it again?”
    He moved closer, his eyes landing on my lips and turning bluer before my eyes. Reaching out a hand, he ran his finger through the strands of hair beside my cheek. I licked my lips and swallowed hard as he moved closer yet again.
    The bell and tardy forgotten, I met his eyes, and nerves moved up my stomach making me feel nauseated. I open and closed my mouth like a fish out of water as I tried to think of what to say next. He continued to smile at me, obviously enjoying my discomfort. He looked super proud of himself for pulling such awkward responses from me, but before he could get any closer, I found my voice.
    “No. I don’t think that’s a good idea,” I blurted out.
    And then the strangest thing happened. He laughed. Maybe I was all wrong about him. Maybe he was playing around, and he really didn’t want to kiss me again. If his reaction to being told no was any indication, I’d say he was definitely playing around.
    “No. I didn’t think it would be,” he said.
    An expression resembling pride moved over his face, and his lips twitched with amusement. He was confusing me, and I felt totally inept, which I hated, of course. Being confused wasn’t something that happened often with me. I was book smart, not boy smart. I was fluent in six languages, and boy talk was not one of them.
    Before he could speak again, I pulled open the classroom door and fled, almost knocking over Ms. McCants, my English teacher, in my attempt to run away from Blaine.
    When I turned back, I saw his face through the small window on the door. And even though I couldn’t hear him, I could see he was still laughing.
     
    **********
     
    “I THINK I LIKE HIM,” I said over my cafeteria corn dog.
    It tasted like cardboard and fake meat covered in mustard and ketchup, so I tossed it to my tray. The one day I forgot to bring my lunch, was the one day I felt like eating. It was just my luck.
    “I’m sorry? What did you just say?” Lynn’s mouth fell open at my words.
    “Blaine,” I whispered his name like he was an abomination. “I think I like him.”
    A huge smile split Lynn’s face before she threw her head back and started to laugh. The table full of girls beside us turned their heads our way like they wanted in on the joke.
    “What’s so funny?” I asked, feeling anger bubble up my stomach.
    It was rare that I opened up to anyone, and yet I had with her. Being laughed at was the last thing I expected or wanted.
    “Join the crowd, Chelsey.” She covered her mouth and tried to contain her laughter.
    “What’s that mean?”
    “It means every girl in this school likes Blaine Wesley. It sounds to me like you’re finally waking up to the world around you. A crush is a good thing. It means there’s hope for you yet.”
    “I do not… I repeat… I do not have a crush on anyone.”
    I pushed my tray to the side, snatched up my book bag, and left the cafeteria with Lynn’s eyes blazing me in the back.
    Girls who had dreams of going to Columbia University and one day becoming a doctor did not have crushes. They didn’t drool over boys who probably had no future, and they certainly didn’t go around kissing them. My feelings toward Blaine were a minor setback, but something I could definitely move past.
    And then as luck would have it, I ran straight into the one person who seemed to be under my skin lately just as I left the cafeteria. My face collided with his chest, his sweet scent filling my nostrils. He used strong hands to hold me to him until I could catch my footing. And then he continued to hold me to him until I had to pull myself away.
    “Well, well, well. If it isn’t the girl who won’t give me the time of day?” he said with his signature, panty-melting grin. He gazed down at me, making me lose my voice. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, Chelsey. I really do love running into you this way, but if you want to touch me, all you have to do is ask.”
    And there he