Dawson:  I fucked it all up.

Me:  Kinda, yeah . . . 

Dawson:  So are we still gonna, um, just kiss?

Me:  Do you still want to?

Dawson:  You know the answer to that.

Me:  You seemed mad at me last night.

Dawson:  Seeing Aiden almost kiss you pissed me off. But I do appreciate you taking care of Braxton, even though I didn’t really act like it. Wanna come over? We can have breakfast in bed.

Me:  Do you have food in your bed?

Dawson:  No.

Me:  I didn’t think so. I have rehearsal then I’m meeting your brothers and Dallas for coffee.

Dawson:  Can I come too?

Me:  Sure.

Step up my game.

11:30am

After practice, I head over to the boys’ dorm. The second I walk in, Dawson scoops me up and pulls me onto the bed with him. But Dallas sits in front of the bed, like usual, so I massage his shoulders while we talk.

Dawson turns to Braxton, who is looking miserable, and says loudly. “Braxton, little bro! How you feeling this morning?!”

“Horrible, thanks.”

“So did you enjoy your first Eastbrooke party, or what?”

Braxton shakes his head. “No. Miss Bossy Pants wouldn’t let me hook up with anyone. It was lame.”

I raise my eyebrows at him. “Then I guess you . . .”

“But super fun,” he interrupts me. “Except for the whole puking incident.”

“Thank god Jake was there.”

“Yeah, what’s up with you and Jake. You fucking him too?”

“Braxton! No, I’m not. He’s my friend.”

“Looked like more than that to me. Looks like you have some competition, bro. First Aiden made her a sunset. Then Jake went all knight in shining armor. You’re gonna have to step up your game.”

“How do you even know that?”

“You told Pressley. She told me.”

“A sunset?” Riley asks.

“It was a drawing on the wall.”

“Guess I do need to step up my game,” Dawson says.

“Why? You pretty much told me the other night that we’re just friends with benefits.”

“You know we’re more than that.” He moves to a sitting position on the bed and puts his hands on my shoulders. “You always massage everyone else. Do you want me to massage you?”

“You know what I really want? I want the school to install a bathtub in my room. Do you know how much I miss taking baths? I had a huge tub at home and all sorts of different bubble baths and oils. I miss that so much.”

“Yeah, sometimes you have to lose something to realize how important it is,” Dawson says, getting off the bed and pulling me with him. “Come with me.”

Shit. He’s going to take me to his room. I look to Riley and Dallas, hoping they will say something, like I can’t leave, but they both grin at me.

They are so unhelpful. “See if I ever rub your backs again,” I tell them as Dawson drags me out of the room.

Riley says, “See ya, baby.”

I try to think of another reason why I can’t go to his room. “I, er, I have to go say goodbye to my student and then work on the Greek weekend clean up.”

“When?”

I glance at my phone. “Five minutes.”

“I’ll take that.”

He pulls me toward his room. I don’t know what to do. I’m not a very good dieter. I have no will power.

When we get in his room, he points to his bed and says, “Sit.”

“I’m not a dog, Dawson.”

He tackles me. “Fine, you can lie down, then.”

Shit.

“Dawson, I can’t. Not right now.”

“I want to talk to you.”

“About what?”

“Last night sucked for me.”

“I’m sorry.”

“I know you think he’s wooing you, but you know his player past. Guys do that stuff to get in a girl’s pants.”

“I gotta go, Dawson.”

Blindfolded.

4:30pm

The prospective students have been picked up. The Greek weekend has been cleaned up. Now, I’m on my way to a mandatory dance meeting. Something about a big school rivalry game that’s coming up.

Then I’m supposed to do dinner and tutoring with Aiden.

But I’ve been worrying all day about what Dawson said. Especially after seeing Chelsea’s body language last night. Did he tell her the things he’s been telling me? Is that why she was upset?

I walk into the field house and head toward the dance room.

“Keatie,” I hear.

I turn around and see Dawson peeking around a corner.

“Hey.”

He stalks up to me and grabs my hand. “I’m kidnapping you.”

“Dawson, I have to go to this meeting, or I’ll get a demerit.”

“Have you gotten any demerits yet?”

“Uh, no.”

“Then you have a few to spare. Come on, we’re going out the back.”

He pulls me down the hall, around the weight room, drags me into the boys locker room, and out the side door.

“Where are we going?”

“I’m not telling.”

I pull back on his strong hand.

“Fine. Maybe I just decided I’m not giving up without a fight.

He picks me up, throws me over his shoulder, and runs with me across the football field and out to the parking lot.

He leans me up against his car, says, “Mhmmm, this feels familiar,” pulls me in tight, and kisses me deeply.

While he signs us out, I hit the right buttons on my phone so no one will think I actually was kidnapped.

After driving off campus, he pulls over, grabs a blindfold out of his pocket, and wraps it over my eyes.

“Dawson, what are you doing?”

“If I tell you, I’ll have to kill you.”

“Very funny.”

“Well, maybe I’ll just have to torture you until you cave.”

“Cave about what?”

“I want you to wear my jersey for the Compass Cup game. All the seniors ask someone to wear their jersey, and I want you to wear mine.”

“Is that the rivalry game that’s coming up?”

“Yeah. The Westfield Cheetahs versus the Eastbrooke Cougars. Everyone calls it the Pussy Bowl though.”

“That’s funny. Both teams are cats.”

“So?”

“No torture required, Dawson. I’d love to wear your jersey.”

“Excellent. That means we can move on to the fun.”

Dawson drives a short distance, parks, opens my door, and leads me, still blindfolded, somewhere.

He leads me through a door, down a long hall, and, I think, into an elevator.

We ride to what has to be an upper floor. That or it’s a really slow elevator.

The elevator dings and I can tell some people get on.

Dawson says to whoever, “I’m surprising her.”

I hear a woman laugh and say, “That’s so cute.”

We ride a little farther up, get off the elevator, walk a short distance, and then I hear the unmistakable beep of a keycard and a door opening.

Are we at a hotel?

Dawson guides me through the door, makes me take a few more steps, and then kisses me.

I don’t know what he has planned, but you can bet it’s going to be damn sexy.

“Do I have to stay blindfolded?”

“Hmmm, that might not be a bad idea.”

 He kisses me deeper and cups my ass.

“Are we alone?”

“We’re very alone. I’m gonna take off your blindfold, but you have to promise to be a good prisoner and do what I say.”

“I didn’t know I was a prisoner.”

“My prisoner of love.”

“Love?”

“You know what? I changed my mind. I think the blindfold needs to stay on a little longer.”

He runs his hands down my sides, unbuttons my jeans, and pulls them off me.

I reach toward him to feel if he still has his clothes on.

He grabs my hand and laughs. “Oh, no, no, Keatie. Don’t think you can use sex to try and get out of this.”

“So this isn’t about sex?”

“Nope. This is all about romance.”

“Dawson, I don’t get it. I’m not the one. You told me I’m not the one.”

“No one can see the future, Keatie. And anyone who claims they can is just blowing smoke up your ass.”

He undoes my bra, slips it off of me, and kisses me.

And being undressed and kissed while blindfolded is pretty freaking hot.