Read The Perfect Game for Free Online Page B

and turned away.
    “What?” He laughed. “I was going to say heart . The tires are as big as my heart.” He patted his chest for emphasis.
    “You mean as big as the hole in your chest where your heart’s supposed to be?” The verbal jab dropped out of my mouth before I could stop it.
    “Ouch. Can we at least wait until dinner before you decide I’m heartless?” 
    “If you insist.”
    “I do.” His brown eyes softened and he grabbed the wheel, put the key in the ignition, and turned. The engine rumbled to life and my seat vibrated under me. I strapped the old seatbelt around my body and gave Jack a wary glance.
    “You are scared,” he said with concern.
    I shook my head defiantly. “I’m fine, just go.” I gestured toward the road.
    He removed his hand from the stick shift and placed it on my leg. I winced in response. 
    “What did I tell you about the touching?” I asked, giving him a sideways glance.
    “Fifty cents. Don’t worry, I got it covered.” One dimple greeted me before quickly disappearing. “You sure you’re okay?”
    I nodded as he put the car in drive and it rocked forward as he gassed it. 
    “Shit.” He muttered under his breath.
    “What is it?” Suddenly I was concerned for our well-being. We were going to tip over from the massive tires and die.
    “I meant to ask you this before we left, but I got distracted. You’re so feisty all the time, you make me forget things.” His left arm rested on top of his door panel and he leaned his head into his hand. I watched as his fingers made their way through his hair, grabbing fistfuls as he eyed the road ahead.
    “So are you going to ask me, or are you going to make me guess?” I tried to hide the snark in my voice, but failed.
    Jack turned to look at me briefly before returning his gaze forward. “I meant to ask you if you eat meat or not?”
    I felt my face contort into a look of confusion and surprise. “So you want to know if I’m a vegetarian?”
    He let out an exasperated sigh. “Yeah.”
    “Why?” 
    “Because I want to buy you a cow. Why do you think?” He tried to keep calm, but his cheeks were slowly turning a nice shade of red. 
    “I don’t know. Where are you taking me?” 
    “I’m taking you to the best burger joint in town and they don’t have a menu for vegetarians.”
    “Really? They don’t serve salads?” I asked incredulously.
    “No. They don’t.” His tone turned serious as he glanced in my direction again. 
    I couldn’t stifle my laughter as I almost choked on my words. “I eat meat.”
    He raised an eyebrow and eyed me tentatively before I smacked the shoulder nearest me with the back of my hand. “Not that kind of meat!” I huffed before looking away. “I’m not a vegetarian! You’re so irritating.”
    “You keep saying that, yet here you are.”
    “I didn’t realize I had a choice.” I rolled my eyes so he’d notice.
    “What did I tell you about that, Kitten?”
    “How many times do we have to go over this whole ‘Kitten’ thing?”
    “How many times do we have to go over the eye roll thing? It’s bad for you and I’d hate to see anything happen to those gorgeous green eyes of yours.” 
    I struggled to formulate a comeback as his compliment floated in the air. My breath faltered and my mind stopped focusing on anything but the sound of his voice and the look on his stupid, beautiful face. 
    “Cat got your tongue, Kitten?”
    “The next red light you come to, I swear to God, I’m jumping out of this death trap and walking home.”
    He chuckled, clearly amused. “Alright, I’ll stop.”
    I narrowed my eyes, refusing to believe his words. When we arrived at the restaurant, I hopped out of the car quicker than he could turn off the ignition. The place was a converted old ice cream shop. The few items they offered were written in chalk on the wall when you first walked in. An old cash register sported a handwritten note that read Cash Only, and when I got a look at the