“Anyway, forget about him and answer me this,” Mandy said, looping her arm through mine and tugging me forward. “How much do you think Audrey will want to kill us if we start a campaign for her for homecoming queen?”
I side-eyed her, falling into step. “Are you sure you want to risk that? She’s got Collin now. He’s strong. And muscular. He’s like a built-in bodyguard. I’m pretty sure he could take you down if she asked him to.”
“That’s only if he can catch me.” She grinned. “Bad luck for you. I’ve seen you run. You don’t stand a chance.”
She shoved me playfully as we made our way to the school doors. Not far behind us, Audrey and Collin were walking hand in hand, too busy staring at each other with stars in their eyes to notice us talking about them. Warmth burst in my chest at the sight. I’d had my worries about our senior year, but everything seemed to be falling into place. Not even today’s events could wash away that feeling.
And as I reveled in that warm feeling, I felt the pull of someone watching me. My eyes scanned the crowd and settled on Mason Finnick leaning over the water fountain, dead ahead. Our gazes met and I smiled at him. Mandy would’ve elbowed me for being nice, but I believed in second chances. Even if he was the rudest guy I’d ever met.
But apparently, Mason was impervious to even my most charming smiles. He stood up and wiped the back of his hand across his mouth, glowering at me for a second, before turning abruptly on the heels of his Nikes to stride off to class. As I watched him go, a strange feeling stirred in my gut, like someone had released a jar full of lightning bugs in my stomach. I couldn’t be sure if it was disappointment in finding out that my smiles didn’t actually have superpowers or if it was because of Mason himself. Either way, I had to let it go for now.
No, I wasn’t going to worry about someone like Mason Finnick. He might have decided to believe that everything was terrible about this day, but he was wrong. We had love on our side. Collin and Audrey were proof of that.
And I would’ve dared him to tell me any differently.
Thank you for reading!
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Lacy
Keep reading for an excerpt of the next book in the series, Trina’s story – Dare You to Date the Point Guard – and order it here before it returns to full price.
Excerpt From Dare You to Date the Point Guard
Chapter One
A cancer ward wasn’t exactly where most teens chose to spend their Saturdays. At least, not for most of the kids at my school. Rock Valley High had it’s fair share of jocks, nerds, and emos. We also had gamers, mangas, populars, and the normals.
And then there was me – Trina Frye.
The person who spent study hall in art class, walked around all day with paint in my hair, and volunteered at the cancer ward on the weekends. But those other kids didn’t know what they were missing.
“I’m so bored.” Charley looked up from her Glamour magazine at me, her deep brown eyes blinking slowly. She tilted her head and gave off one of the most pathetic sighs I’d ever heard. “Can’t we do something fun?”
I leaned forward and pushed my dark, curly hair out of my face, excitement coursing through my veins. The sketching pad with Charley’s likeness on it that I’d been drawing fell out of my lap and to the floor. “We could stalk Jennifer Lawrence online and see how much she spent on her wedding.”
Celebrity stalking was Charley’s hobby. At least, while she was getting chemo treatments. This was her sixth round and it was my job as a hospital volunteer to help her through it the best way I could. Maybe I couldn’t keep her from feeling sick as those chemicals entered her body. And maybe I couldn’t keep her beautiful black hair from falling from her head. But I could stalk celebrities like the best of them, and for Charley, I would do it with all of my heart.
Charley sat back in her recliner, her lips pulling down into a frown. “Nah, I’m not really in the mood. We need something better to do. Something...a little bit naughty.”
Her eyes canvassed the hospital room as I gulped. Naughty wasn’t on my radar. As a senior in high school, I had plans. More specifically, my parents had plans for me to go to Northwestern University and then med school. Never mind the fantastic art school in Chicago I’d obsessively googled over the past year.
I couldn’t tell how many times they’d lectured me on how my decisions today affected my future. Art was just a hobby. And everything on my rap sheet would affect my career path. Charley was just a freshman. She didn’t understand.
“I’ve got it,” she said, adjusting her IV line to reach for my empty Coke bottle. Setting it carefully on the floor, she looked up at me and grinned. “You still don’t have a boyfriend, right? How about a little Spin-the-Bottle? You go first.”
I laughed and glanced down the rows of reclining chairs. At least five other recliners were claimed by cancer patients. Old Mr. Richard at the end, with the shiny head and disapproving grunts. Sweet Lilly, who made the world’s best chocolate chip cookies and was the granny everyone wished they had. Plus, three other middle-aged folks. A few nurses stood at the station across the room, but other than that, the pickings were slim.
“I’m not sure there’s anyone in here that’s boyfriend material.”
Charley rolled her eyes and adjusted her black baseball cap that hid the remnants of her hair. “Just spin, Trina. Don’t be lame.”
“I’m not lame,” I replied, shaking my head. “Cancer is lame.”
She rolled her eyes again, but a hint of a smile played on her lips. “Yeah, yeah, cancer is lame. I’ve heard that soundbite more times than I can count. Now, spin it before I change my mind and decide we have to do karaoke instead. I’ve heard you sing, Trina. I’m pretty sure your singing would kill everyone in here quicker than the cancer.”