Chapter 180

I settled on new jeans and a nice top for my date with William. I never played mini-golf before, but I knew a fancy dress would be out of place.

Jennifer arranged my hair in a messy bun and applied light makeup to my face, and I was ready to go a few minutes before William was due to arrive.

I stopped in the living room to see Alex before leaving.

“I’m going miniature golfing with William,” I told him and kissed his cheek.

“That sounds like fun,” he said. “Have a nice evening.”

I left the room to wait in the foyer for William.

I didn’t have long to wait. The Mustang pulled in front of the house a moment later, and I went outside where William was waiting with the car door open.

“What would you like for dinner?” he asked. “Pizza, another burger, or maybe a steak?”

“I haven’t had tacos in a long time,” I said. I really was hungry for tacos, and I wasn’t dressed well enough to go anywhere good for a steak.

“Tacos it is,” William agreed. “We can drive through the taco place and eat at the park near the school if you like.”

“That sounds great,” I said. “But I’m not hungry yet.”

“Then we can hit the mini-golf course first.” William started the car and began down the driveway. “It’s early, and the greens shouldn’t be crowded yet.”

Mini-golf was fun, yet frustrating at times. But William was only a little better than me, and we ended up laughing hysterically when it took us twenty attempts to get a ball into one hole.

Thankfully, we were the only golfers at the time, and nobody cared if we went over the seven-stroke limit on each green.

William hugged me when he won by ten strokes. “Hungry yet?” he asked.

“Starving, but that was fun,” I replied.

After handing in our clubs, we drove to the taco place’s drive-thru for our dinner. With our bags of food and soft drinks, we went to the park near our school and chose a table in the park's center to eat.

It was a warm, starry evening, an excellent time for a picnic. We sat on top of a picnic table in the quiet park and ate tacos while watching the stars and talking.

“I'm glad Victor’s mom is going to be okay,” William said. “How did the accident happen?”

“Another driver ran a stop sign,” I explained. “They weren’t badly hurt.”

“Graduation is coming soon,” William reminded me. “There are only a few weeks left.”

“This year has gone by fast,” I said.

As I finished eating, I thought of Amy and wished I could talk to her. I hadn’t heard from her since her short text the day after the progressive dinner party.

William finished his tacos and began putting the trash in one bag.

“You look sad, “ he said.

“I was thinking about Amy.” I sighed. “I miss her.”

“I would bet she misses you too,” he said. “Give it a little more time.”

He scooted closer and put his arm around me. I turned my face toward his and looked into his blue eyes.

I knew he was going to kiss me. I wanted him to kiss me. Yet, it didn’t feel quite right. My stomach fluttered as his lips came closer, and I turned away.

“Daisy,” William murmured. “Don’t turn away.”

He got off the table and stood in front of me. “Is there something wrong? Do you not want me to kiss you? Tell me, and I’ll stop.”

I shook my head and looked into his eyes again. I wanted to kiss William. And thanks to Victor, I knew how. Why was I nervous again?

William leaned closer and put his arms around me. This time, I kept looking into his eyes as they came closer, and his lips touched mine.

His lips were also warm and firm, but they were fuller than Victor’s, and he tasted like the root beer he drank while eating his tacos.

It was a nice kiss. William moved his lips softly against mine, and I felt a little of the tingling I experienced with Victor.

I opened my mouth slightly, expecting to feel his tongue. Instead, he backed away and said, “Are you okay? Am I scaring you?”

“No, I'm not scared.” I smiled.

I wasn’t scared … or nervous anymore. I felt happy. William cared about me, but his kiss made me feel a little uneasy, too.

I reminded myself that I wasn’t doing anything wrong and accepted another pleasant kiss from William. I enjoyed it, and I felt connected to him, yet I couldn’t stop thinking of Victor’s kiss.

The sound of others nearby startled us into gathering our trash and putting it into a nearby can.

“I’m tired,” I said. “I spent last night at the hospital. Would you mind taking me home?”

“Sure,” William said. He smiled as he took my hand, and we walked together to his car.

“The tacos were great,” I said, unable to think of anything else to say.

“They were fantastic because I was eating them with you,” William said.

Not knowing what to say, I squeezed his hand.

We got into his Mustang, and he drove us to the mansion.

William helped me out of the car and walked me to the front door. I had the feeling he would kiss me again before he left.

I decided to let him. Maybe William’s kiss wasn’t as good as Victor’s because I was sitting down. We were both standing now, so it might be better this time.

When he stopped in front of the door, I turned to him and raised my lips. It was the sign he was waiting for.

William made an eager sound, and his lips met mine in a more passionate kiss. His arms went around my waist and pulled me closer as I placed my arms around his neck.

His lips moved more urgently against mine this time, and I opened my mouth slightly, allowing his tongue to slide shyly between my lips.

I pressed my body against his hard athlete’s muscles and let my tongue touch his. Again, I felt a tingle, but nothing as exciting as with Victor.

It was like the difference between a thunderstorm and a hurricane.

William sensed my mood and pulled away. “I’m sorry for getting carried away. You must be exhausted after last night at the hospital.”

I nodded. “I am tired. But I had a wonderful time. Thank you for taking me out tonight.”

William grinned. “You are more than welcome.” He started for his car and then looked back at me. “See you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow,” I repeated. “Good night.”

Watching him get into his car, I sighed when he started down the driveway.

I enjoyed William’s kisses, but It was disappointing that his kisses didn’t affect me the same way Victor’s did.

Was he doing something differently? Was I? I needed to know. But who could I talk to about it?

It would be too weird to ask Alex, and I didn’t want him to know I had kissed both Alpha males in my life.

The sound of a door closing reached my ears as I stood in the foyer. Then footsteps were coming my way.

Was it Alex or Benson?

I waited by the bottom of the stairs to say goodnight. After Lana’s accident, Alex has been a little on edge. Perhaps he had been waiting up on me.

But I saw Victor’s dark-haired, incredibly masculine form coming my way.

Maybe I should talk to him about the difference between his kisses and William’s. If anyone knew about these things, it was him.

Victor smiled as he stopped a few feet from me. “Hi, how was your date? I heard you went golfing.”

“It was okay,” I replied. Then I gathered my courage to ask him my question.

“Um …Victor,” I began. “I was hoping I could ask you something.”

“Sure,” he replied. “Ask away.”