How to date a Nerd

Chapter 20

Always bring a compact when you go out to eat.

"Mmm." Damn those uncontrollable moans, but the mandarin chicken from Panda Express is made by gods. Lauren leans back against the windshield of my car, rubbing her flat stomach and gazing at the surrounding trees. "I think I might explode."

Even after stuffing herself silly, she's so damn hot. I smile and move the chicken into my cheek so I can talk. "Well, if you didn't eat so fast, you probably wouldn't have eaten so much. Did you even save me any chow mein?"

She pinches her fingers leaving a tiny bit of space between them. I laugh and continue chewing my food, letting the cool mountain air brush over my face. It's lucky we live so close to spots like this, where we can escape the city and park on the side of the road, listening to the rapid water kissing rocks in the stream—smelling the pine and maple trees, and tasting the fruit filled air.

Totally like Lord of the Rings. Which is perfect for us.

After I finish my chicken and the two bits of chow mein she left me, I grab the bag with the fortune cookies in it. Hey! "Did you eat yours already, cheater? You know it doesn't come true until everyone has finished eating." I say.

"No." She leans up on her elbows. "Did they only give us one?"

"Looks like it." I pull it out and hand it to her. "You can have it." Smiling, she takes it from my hand, which surprises me. I expected us to argue over the stupid thing. "This is perfect. Now it can be like a wishbone." She bites off the wrapper and sticks one side of the cookie out to me.

"Cheesy," I tease in a sing-song voice, but I take the other side and pull. It splits down the middle and the paper lodges in her half.

"That's what you get for making fun of me." Lauren winks, sticking her piece of cookie in her mouth and pulling out the fortune.

I play with my own half, fingering the edges. We used to do this. All. The. Time. Split our cookies open and add silly crap on the end, always something to do with Harry Potter. Gosh, how could I have given up something so awesome? I totally ruined our friendship.

"Geez, I didn't know you'd be so torn up about it." She chuckles as she sticks the paper in between her fingers and holds it out to me.

Guess I'm transparent today. "I don't want the stupid fortune." I shove her hand away, smirking. "I was just thinking."

"About?"

 "You." Ugh. Here comes the word vomit. "What about me?" She slides closer, pulling me down next to her on the windshield. Her hands shake a little on my arm. "That I'm so incredibly sexy eating my cookie?" She sticks her tongue out so she can show me her "see food."

"You caught me," I say, shoving her. We laugh, our bodies moving in tune with each other. That totally gives me the good kind of chills. When our amusement subsides, she wraps her arm around me. "Really, Camz. What were you thinking about?"

"What a crap friend I've been." I think I've pulled her up short. She doesn't speak, but it looks like she wants to. I drop my eyes, knowing she can't say anything reassuring without lying to me.

Clearing my throat of all the gook that suddenly appears there I say, "I'm sorry. I know you don't believe me, but I am sorry for hurting you." She coughs and I glance at her from under my eyelashes. Her head's turned the other way.

"I'm starting to," she says.

"Starting to what?" She looks at me. "Believe you." I think I may pass out. Her face moves closer and my heart pumps in my head. She reaches her other arm across my body and tucks the fortune in my hand.