That Boy (That Boy, #1)

by Jillian Dodd

The three of us have been best friends ever since.

Phillip looks at her and then at me. He takes the neck of the bottle and moves it, so it points straight at me.

And I can’t help but fall a little in love with him.

“Oh, I am definitely in love with you,” he replies with a big smile on his face

Please, please, please don’t give up on me, when he pulls me toward him and covers my mouth with his.

Danny high-fives me. “We’re a good team.”

He continues with a sly grin, “It might take many more long, grueling hours of practice for you to get it right. But”—he raises his hand to his heart—“I can tell you’re committed to learning, so I’ll just have to take one for the team and give you some more private lessons.”

I stand there and grin at that boy. “Chilly, honey?” “Absolutely not, darling. You?”

We always pretend to love each other after a fight because it makes Phillip happy.

Then, he does the sweetest thing. He says, “Here, Princess,” and takes his own warm sweatshirt off and pulls it over my head.

Phillip grabs my hands again and says in that smooth, adorable voice of his, “Princess, there’s no one I’d rather hang out with more than you. You know that.”

I stop and give Phillip a hug. “I love you, Phillip. You’ll always be my best friend.

“Walk into the place like you own it, JJ, and people will think that you do.” Of course, he also said, “If you can’t

dazzle them with brilliance, baffle them with bullshit.”

Danny hears me and starts running toward me at full speed. I’m afraid for a moment that he’s going to tackle me, but he stops on a dime in front of me and pulls me into a big bear hug.

He just wraps his arms around my waist, pulls my back in tight to his chest, and leans his chin on my shoulder.

he is my best friend, and I don’t know what I would do without him.

He rushes to me, wraps me in a one-armed hug, and pulls me close.

“Princess,” he whispers back, “you know I could never stay mad at you.”

Phillip sits next to me and holds my hands.

He runs the back of his hand across my cheek and then holds my chin, forcing me to look up at him. “We love you. I love you. We’ll get through it together.”

He holds my hand as we walk back to the waiting room, and that gives me strength somehow.

Phillip grabs my hand and leads me upstairs. He lies on his bed, props a pillow behind his back, and holds out his arm. I snuggle into the crook of it, put my head on his chest, and close my eyes.

Phillip doesn’t say anything to me. He just runs his fingers through my hair over and over again.

“I’ll always love my Princess.” He smiles. “Even when she’s mad at me.”

He stood by my side and held my hand through it all.

And, every night, the only way I could go to sleep was lying on his shoulder. I never could’ve gotten through these last few days without him.

‘Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it—every,

every minute?’

What would I ever do without that boy? I reach over and put my hand on top of his.

Phillip pulls me aside, next to the limo. “Princess, you can do this. You’ve got this.

Phillip tenderly cups my shoulder with his hand and pulls me into a hug. Then, he smiles at me, touches the tip of my nose with his finger, and says, “Don’t think you can get rid of me that easily. As long as I’m around, you’ll never be alone. I do have my reputation to uphold as your, uh, very close friend, you know. Heck, I’m going to be around so much; you’ll probably be begging me to leave.” He gives me a sly little grin.

Something about having Phillip squeeze my hand helps me keep it all together.

I think it’s just that I have become an empty shell.

Danny takes my hand, pulls me up, and wraps me into a hug. I practically melt against him.

He wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me into a tight hug.

This is the kind of hug where your hips touch and your stomachs touch, and you feel like your bodies are molded together.

And, every time I see you, Phillip is holding your hand, and everyone thinks you two are together, and I just keep thinking it should have been me there.

im team phillip

He sits on the bed and shakes his head at me as he gathers me into his arms.

Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it—every, every minute? The quote is Elizabeth’s way of saying we should put more emphasis on the value of daily life.

I don’t know how he does it, but Phillip always seems to know exactly what I need.

Phillip—my articulate, sensitive, linguistic, emotional man—what do you have to say about how I look tonight?

I’m lying on Phillip’s shoulder and wrapped up in his arms.

I run down the stairs, across the street, leap into his arms, and scream, “Phillip!” I throw my arms around his neck and give him a quick kiss on the lips.

He’s holding my hand and swinging my arm irritatingly high while we walk.

“Spin away. Hell, you don’t even have to spin. I’ll kiss you anyway. Do you want me to kiss you?”

“I haven’t met anyone who makes me want to stay with them more than I want to go and rescue you. What can I say?” He rolls his eyes at me. “You’ve made me play your knight in shining armor for so long that I just can’t seem to get it out of my system.”

He puts his hand on my knee and leans toward me. “Seriously, you are kinda special to me.”

“I want you,” he repeats. “Go out with me for real, Princess.”

“No, Princess, you don’t like me; you are totally in love with me. You’re just too stubborn to admit it.”