And…okay, this was stupid.
I had to get myself together.
Indy wouldn’t stand here like a moron,uhingand fighting for breath.
Ally would have probably kissed him by now just so he’d beunder no illusions she was into him.
I jerked my head from side to side to shake myself out of itand replied, “It’s poetry.He gives me stuff to make me think, you know, like,todecipherit.Figure out what it’s about.”
Even though I’d made the mammoth effort to string some wordstogether, I wasn’t sure he was listening to me.
I knew he wasn’t when I saw the expression on his face whenhe looked at me again.
“Who’s cutting you ’til you cry out?”he growled.
Oh my.
I’d never heard a boygrowl.
Hearing it, something was happening in other regions of mybody, not just my legs and my ability to provide it with oxygen.That somethingfelt very good, at the same time it was utterly terrifying.
“No one.It’s just…life.Life will…I haven’t had a good lookat it, and I’m not sure I know that song, but from what I could tell, it’sabout life.You know, standing strong like a boxer when life hits you.Um…Ithink.”
He handed me the paper again, this time letting it go when Itook it.
“No one’s gonna cut you,” he said, staring straight in myeyes.
“Life is life, Darius,” I whispered, then for good measure,shrugged.
Did I look like a dork shrugging?
I looked like a dork shrugging.
I shouldn’t have shrugged.
Someone kill me!
“You’ll never have to be the boxer, Malia.”
It was said soft, but strong, and that did funny things tomy heart.
All I could think to say was, “Okay.”
“Wanna go out?”he asked.
There was only one thing to say to that.
“Okay,” I repeated.
Darius again smiled.
I again almost swooned (now I was getting all that romancenovel nonsense, which apparently wasn’t nonsense at all,shoo!)
I didn’t swoon.
I kept it together.
And smiled back.
