The Perfect Game by J. Sterling Read Free Book Online Page B

thoughts.
    “Honestly?” 
    “Honestly.”
    “That I don’t trust myself with you.”
    He folded his arms across his chest. “And why’s that?”
    “Because I can’t tell whether or not you mean the things you say.” 
    He uncrossed his arms and leaned into the table again. “What does your heart tell you?”
    “Who cares? My heart’s dumb! It believes anything,” I said, clutching at my chest above my left breast.
    He laughed, his eyes glued to my hand. “Fine. What does your head tell you then?”
    “My head questions everything and believes nothing.”
    “So your head wants proof and your heart wants reassurance?” A small line appeared between Jack’s eyebrows.
    “Pretty much.”
    “I think you just made life a thousand times more difficult.” He grabbed his head with both hands and squeezed.
    “That’s why I came up with my boy test…to protect myself.”
    “Protect yourself from what?” he asked, reaching for another quarter.
    “Guys like you.”
    Our conversation was interrupted by the sound of plates being set on the table. “Here you go, two Titan specials with fries. You two need anything else?”
    “I’m good. Kitten?”
    I rolled my eyes so hard it hurt. “Can I get a side of ranch dressing, please? Thanks.” 
    My eyes widened at the sight of my burger. It looked like it could feed the entire football team. And the mound of french fries that sat next to it had to consist of twenty potatoes.
    “Please tell me you can’t actually finish this?” I looked at Jack, my face shocked.
    He laughed. “I can. And you better clean your whole plate.”
    “Clean this?” I pointed to the plate with an incredulous look.
    He laughed again before lifting the burger to his face and taking a mammoth-sized bite. Sarah dropped off the dressing and I dipped the hot fries in, biting carefully. “Holy crap, these are amazing.” 
    “Told you,” he managed to say, his mouth stuffed with food. 
    I hated how cute he was. Even with a mouth full of food, he was still irritatingly adorable.
    “So tell me about your boy test.” He picked up his napkin to swipe at a smear of ketchup on his chin.
    “Forget I said anything about it.” I waved him off with my hands.
    “Come on, Cass. I want to know.” He eyed me curiously.
    “Fine,” I relented. “But you can’t make fun of me.”
    Both dimples appeared on his cheeks and my heart fluttered quickly. “I won’t. Promise.” 
    I didn’t believe that smile, but I gave in anyway. With a deep breath I rattled off, “They’re more like rules. Rule number one: Don’t lie. Two: Don’t cheat. Three: Don’t make promises you can’t keep. And four: Don’t say things you don’t mean.”
    “That’s it?” he asked in disbelief.
    “They may not mean much to you, but they mean everything to me.” I sighed, slightly embarrassed that I’d shared my list with him.
    “I don’t mean any offense, Kitten. It’s just…well, those seem like pretty normal expectations to me.”
    “You’d think so,” I agreed, taking a bite of my monstrosity they called a cheeseburger.
    “But?” 
    “But most guys can’t seem to do them. They lie. They cheat. And most people in general can’t keep their promises, or stop themselves from saying things they don’t really mean.”
    “What about you?” 
    My forehead creased. “What about me?”
    “Can you follow your own rules?” he asked, his tone serious.
    “I try to live my life following those rules. Otherwise you hurt people.”
    He took a quick, short breath. “So did people lie to you a lot or something? Some guy break your heart in high school?” 
    “It’s more like my dad can’t seem to follow through on anything he says. He always tells me a lot of things, but he never actually does them.” I hesitated.
    “Like what?” Jack leaned forward, intrigue written all over his face.
    “I don’t know, like everything. He promised he’d be at my graduation, and then he didn’t show. He says he