During the last week of school, I stayed locked in my room so I could focus on studying. When it was finally time for exams, they passed in a blur of Scantron sheets, true-false questions, and written essays. Afterward, the Walters spent the first week of our newfound freedom vegging out, their thoughts of school long gone, but all I could think about was getting my results back. I knew I’d aced all my classes because every final had been a breeze, but I needed visual confirmation before I could relax.
“Hey, guys, come here,” Nathan said.
I glanced up from my anatomy notebook. For the past hour, I had been sprawled out on Alex’s bed, double-checking all my notes to make sure I hadn’t missed a question on the exam. Alex was wrapped up in a quest on GoG and Nathan had been teaching himself a new song, but now his guitar was gone and he was hunched over his laptop.
“What’s up?” Alex called, hardly looking away from his own computer screen.
“Grades are in,” Nathan replied.
“Oh!” I scrambled off the bed and over to Nathan’s desk. He slid the computer to me, and I quickly logged in to my school account. “Come on,” I muttered as it took forever to load. Finally a new screen popped up.
“A, A, A, A, A, A,” Nathan said, reading off my results. “No shocker there,” Alex said.
“You never know,” I told him. “Freshman year I got an A- in my history class because my teacher said my final paper was too long. That was
horrible.”
Alex rolled his eyes. “Heaven forbid,” he said, but it didn’t bother me.
Finally it was summer. That meant I could relax and maybe even take a trip to New York. The knots in my neck and back loosened at the thought. But before I could go home, there was Will and Haley’s wedding, and tonight was the night before the big day.
Katherine had spent the entire morning making cupcakes, which Haley had requested over the traditional wedding cake. The two hundred or so personal chocolate cakes were left to cool on the dining-room table, and the room was strictly off limits to prevent any of the boys from eating them. The rest of the day was dedicated to scrubbing down the kitchen while Katherine kept an eye on the dining-room entrance to make sure no one snuck in.
At one point, I heard her shout at Jack and Jordan. Two seconds later, there was the telltale sign of retreat—the pounding of their feet on the stairs. Now that the kitchen was clean and all her cooking done, the space was off limits. The rehearsal dinner was taking place at a fancy Italian restaurant in town.
“You want to check your results?” I asked Alex, moving away from the computer so he could get a turn.
He grimaced and shook his head. “I’d rather not ruin this weekend’s fun.
I’ll check on Monday morning.”
“Kids,” I heard George shout from the bottom on the staircase. “Everyone needs to start getting ready. We’re leaving in an hour.”
It was time for the celebrations to begin.
***
I didn’t know which was more alarming: the fact that Parker was sitting on my bed with a sleeping bag at her feet, or that she had a bouquet of flowers in her hands. After the lengthy rehearsal dinner, during which Zack stabbed Benny with a fork and Jack and Jordan almost set the tablecloth on fire, we headed back to the Walters’ house to get a good night’s sleep.
“Um, hi?” I said, not sure what she was doing in my room.
“These were waiting for you,” she said and tossed me the flowers. They came at me fast, but I managed to snap my hands up and catch the bouquet in time. Parker’s features wilted, almost as if she had been hoping to hit me. “Who are they from?” I asked, burying my nose in the roses. They were
beautiful with huge, deep red petals.
“How am I supposed to know?” Parker shot back as she made herself comfortable on my bed. “But whoever it was, they’re a sap. Roses? Come on.”
They must have been from Alex. He was so sweet. “I think they’re beautiful,” I responded, holding them out to admire. A note fell out and fluttered down to the floor. I bent down and snatched it up before Parker could read what it said. Hopefully, Alex hadn’t written anything too cheesy or inappropriate.
Jackie, the scribble read, I’m sorry I keep screwing up and making mistakes. Life didn’t come with instructions. There was no signature. My mouth went dry, and I quickly discarded the flowers on my dresser.
“What’d the note say?” Parker asked, curious about my sudden change in attitude.
I crinkled up the piece of paper and tossed it in the trash. “Nothing,” I said. “So what are you doing in my room?”
Parker opened her mouth to respond, but the bedroom door swung open. “Jackie, I was hoping you’d be here,” Katherine said. She shuffled into
the room backward, holding the end of a cot. Isaac appeared on the other end, muttering something about slave labor. As soon as they set it down in the limited empty floor space, he was gone.
“Isaac,” Katherine called after him. “Remember to bring those blankets and pillows in here.”
“Of course, Your Majesty,” he called from down the hall. Katherine pursed her lips, but didn’t say anything else on the matter.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Parker will be staying in your room for the next two nights,” Katherine explained. “Grandma Green flew all the way out from New York and is staying in her room.”
At the rehearsal dinner I’d met some of the Walters’ extended family, Katherine’s mother being one of them. Since Parker and I were the only girls, it made sense that we would have to share a room for the weekend so an out-of-town guest had somewhere to sleep. I just wasn’t sure if my new bunkmate was going to be hostile or friendly.
“Okay,” I said, avoiding Parker’s gaze. I could feel her watching me and didn’t want to appear too anxious. “So what’s the plan for tomorrow?”
“I want everyone out of bed by seven o’clock so we all have time to get ready. Knowing me, there will probably be some last-minute chores to complete, things that slipped my mind. I was wondering if you could possibly do Parker’s hair tomorrow. With eleven boys, I’ve never been an experienced hairdresser.”
“No, Mom!” Parker complained, jumping up. “I don’t want my hair done. Why can’t I wear it like I always do?”
Katherine gave Parker a stern look. Her daughter’s normal look typically lacked the use of a brush. “Because tomorrow we all have to look presentable. You especially since you’re in the wedding.” As she said this, a pile of bedding flew through the open door and landed on the floor with a thump. Katherine massaged her temple. “Thank you, Isaac,” she said and rolled her eyes. “A-plus effort.”
“No probs, Aunt Katherine,” he called, already halfway down the hall. Katherine turned back around when we heard his bedroom door slam,
and Parker immediately started to pout. “I never wanted to be the stupid flower girl anyway,” she grumbled, kicking at one of the pillows Isaac had slopped on the floor. “It’s stupid.”
“Remember, you’re doing this to make your brother happy,” Katherine reminded her.
This seemed to win the argument, but Parker still grumbled and plopped down on the cot, clearly not happy.
“Good,” her mother said with a curt nod. “You two should go to bed. It’s late and tomorrow is going to be long.”
“Good night, Katherine,” I said as she moved toward the door. The rehearsal dinner had worn me out, and I had no problem turning the lights off early.
“Sweet dreams,” Katherine said to the both of us. When Parker didn’t respond, she glared at her daughter.
“Night,” Parker mumbled.
After Katherine left, I turned to Parker to tell her that I wouldn’t do her hair too girly for the wedding, but the scowl on her face kept me quiet. Gathering my toiletries and pajamas, I decided to go down to the bathroom and get ready for bed, giving her time to cool off. When I got back, Parker had already turned the lights off and was curled up on her cot, clearly in no mood to talk.
I lay awake for a long time, unable to fall asleep. I could sense that Parker was awake as well, even though she didn’t move an inch. There was a tension in the room that could only be caused by another sleepless person.
Finally she sighed. “I don’t want to wear a dress,” she said, her voice coming up out of the darkness.
I wanted to tell her that it would be fun, that the right dress could make any girl feel special, but it was the first time she’d opened up to me, and I didn’t want to ruin it. “How come?”
“They’re so girly.”
“But you are a girl,” I said, choosing my words carefully. “I’m a Walter,” she said, as if that meant something different.
“What does that mean?” I asked. “Because you live with a bunch of boys, you’re required to act like one?”
She considered this for a moment, and I could see her outline in the dark, twisting her blanket in her hands as she thought. “Yeah, kind of. Being one of the boys makes me special. Everyone at school knows who I am—Parker Walter, the tough girl with eleven brothers who can play tackle football and burp louder than any of the guys in my grade.”
I laughed. “But what about at home?” “What do you mean?”
“Well, if you’re just one of the boys, what makes you different from your brothers?”
“I don’t know.”
“Honestly, Parker, you have the best of both worlds,” I said, sitting up in bed. “You can enjoy doing boy things, like watching sports and playing video games. But you can also put on a dress and be a girl. That’s something that your brothers can’t do.”
She was quiet for a long time. “I never thought about it that way.” “Being a girl doesn’t make you weak, Parker. It makes you special.”
“I guess I can wear the dress, but just this once,” she said. “And you have to promise not to curl my hair.”
“All right,” I told her. “It’s a deal.”
***
Saturday morning did not go smoothly. Since life with the Walters was always unpredictable, I’d set my alarm an hour earlier than needed as I almost expected some kind of tiny disaster to occur. Of course, the extra hour wasn’t near enough time when something did happen. I was standing at the toaster waiting for my English muffin to pop when I heard a scream.
“Katherine?” I asked, rushing into the dining room. “What is it?”
“The cupcakes,” she said, clamping a hand to her mouth in horror. She was standing at the head of the dining-room table, and for a moment, I was afraid they were gone—how could the boys eat two hundred cupcakes?— but then, she stepped aside, revealing all of baked treats. “I forgot to frost them.”
“Okay,” I said calmly. “I have some time. Where’s the frosting?”
She disappeared back into the kitchen and I heard the fridge open. “… Just knew something like this would happen. Told George something wasn’t right before we went to bed, but did he listen?” A moment later she was back, carrying an armful of supplies. “So the frosting is already mixed,”
Katherine told me, quick to use my help. “You just need to make sure half of the cupcakes are frosted teal and the other half yellow. I have a few icing tubes with different piping tips you can use. Once they’re all frosted, I also have sprinkles that go on top.”
And just like that, I had a huge project on my hands. I thought it would be easy, but I’d never frosted two hundred cupcakes before. It took a lot longer than I thought. I was only about halfway done when I looked at the clock and panicked. I still needed to take a shower, get ready, and do Parker’s hair.
“Crap, crap, crap!” I said, as the frosting in the tube I was squeezing ran out. Refilling the tubes was the messiest and most frustrating part of the job.
“Jackie, are you okay?” someone asked.
I glanced up to see Cole. His hair was damp from a shower, and he was already dressed in his suit. When he leaned against the table, I realized he was eating a cupcake.
“Can you please not do that?” I snapped. “Do what?” he asked me through a mouthful.
“Eat those! They’re for the wedding.” I yelled.
“Sorry,” Cole said quietly after swallowing. He looked away from me, and I was flooded with guilt. I shouldn’t take my frustration out on him, because none of this was his fault.
“Look, Cole, I didn’t mean to snap at you,” I said. “It’s just that I still have to get ready and help Parker, and this is taking forever.”
“Do you need help?” he asked after a second, completely catching me off guard.
“Thanks, Cole, but you’re already dressed. I wouldn’t want you to get your suit dirty.”
“That’s no problem.” He started to shrug out of his jacket. When that was off, his fingers began working the buttons on his shirt, and I couldn’t help but stare. Soon he was down to his dress pants and undershirt. “Okay, boss,” he asked, setting his clothes aside where they wouldn’t get dirty. “What do you need me to do?”
It took me a minute to regain my composure, but then I breathed a sigh of relief. “Here,” I said, handing him the empty icing tube. “If you could fill this with yellow frosting and start on that row over there, that would be amazing.”
“Sure thing,” he said, taking the tube from me. “And by the way, you have frosting on your nose.”
“Did I get it?” I asked, using the back of my hand.
“Here,” Cole said, stepping forward. He brought his finger up to my face and rubbed it off. Then he stuck his finger in his mouth and sucked away the frosting. “Got it.”
My cheeks went pink, and I turned back toward the table to hide my embarrassment. “Thanks,” I said, grabbing one of the sprinkle containers. “We should probably get to work.”
“Of course.”
I risked a quick glance in Cole’s direction. He was already spooning the yellow paste into the tube, his hands quick, but on his face was the classic Cole smirk. We both knew that he had gotten to me.
***
“Are you kidding me?” I complained to Nathan when we reached our assigned table. My name card was right between two boys—Cole and Alex, to be exact.
Will and Haley had already said “I do” in a ceremony by Katherine’s blooming garden, and cocktail hour had just ended. For dinner, there were two huge tents set up in the backyard, with enough room to seat all the wedding guests.
“This is going to be an enjoyable evening,” Isaac said. Rolling his eyes, he pulled back his chair.
I shot him a dirty look and turned to Danny. “Would you mind switching with Cole?” I asked.
Danny quickly sat down. “I’m sorry, Jackie,” he said, looking regretful. “I can’t.”
“Why not?” I asked, still hovering behind my spot. Was it really that hard to move one seat over?
“Well, you see…” He trailed off, almost as if he felt uncomfortable finishing his sentence. Then Danny grabbed the water glass next to his plate and took a long sip so he didn’t have to answer me.
“He doesn’t want to lose our bet,” Isaac said with a grin as he unfolded his napkin and set it on his lap.
“You made a bet?” I asked, whipping around to glare at Danny. Isaac was addicted to gambling, but for the most part the boys knew not to indulge him. This was so unlike Danny that it made me furious.
“I know I shouldn’t have,” Danny said, hanging his head. “But if I’m going to move to New York, I need some extra money.”
Sighing, I yanked back my chair and took my place. “Why didn’t you say something?” I demanded. “You know I’d be more than happy to help you.”
He shrugged. “I didn’t want to owe you anything.”
“Apparently he’d rather owe me,” Isaac said. “I’m earning a hundred bucks on this.”
“A hundred bucks?” I asked in shock. “What’s this stupid bet anyway?” “That Cole and Alex won’t be able to get through dinner without
fighting over you,” Isaac explained.
“And?” I asked, not knowing if I wanted to hear the rest.
“I said they wouldn’t last five minutes,” Danny responded quietly. “Wonderful,” I said, sinking into my seat. “Just wonderful.”
“At least they will both be happy,” Nathan said, trying to look on the bright side of things. “Well, for a little bit.”
He was right. Cole and Alex would both be happy to find that they were sitting next to me. However, they would quickly get fed up with each other. The worst part was that I was going to be stuck in the middle.
“Well, what about me?” I whined. Didn’t I deserve to be happy too? “What about you?” Alex asked, coming up behind me. Leaning down,
he pecked me on the cheek.
“Nothing,” I grumbled as he kissed me again.
“Um, barf. Not at the dinner table, please,” Cole said, turning up next to Alex. He sat down and let out a large belch. “Man, I’m hungry.”
“What a gentleman,” I said, shaking my head in disgust.
“Oh, sorry. Didn’t know I was in the presence of any ladies,” Cole shot back.
“Hey!” Alex said. “Don’t be mean to my girlfriend.”
“I was just joking. Chill. And do you have to keep calling her that, or are you afraid she might forget?”
“Come on, guys,” I said, trying to stop the fight. But it didn’t matter; everyone knew it was going to happen. I could already see the anticipation on Isaac’s face, and Danny’s eyes were glued to his watch.
“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Alex demanded as his face flushed red.
“Nothing,” Cole drawled. “I’m just pointing out that Jackie is a person, not a thing,”
“Boys!” I cried, looking back and forth between the two.
Cole looked calm and under control, but beneath his smooth exterior, I could tell he was aggravated. Alex, on the other hand, looked like a volcano on the verge of activity. Unconsciously his fingers had wrapped around the fork resting on his napkin, and as he squeezed the thin strip of metal, the color drained from his knuckles. I kept an eye on the utensil in his hand, afraid of what might happen if he snapped.
“Just shut up, Cole,” Alex hissed.
“Shut up?” Cole snickered. “That’s a good one. I’ll have to remember it.
I bet your girlfriend can’t wait for you to defend her in a fight.” “Guys, please stop,” I begged.
I risked a quick glance at the head table. Mr. Walter had just stood up with champagne glass in hand. He was about to give a speech about the bride and groom, and all the horrible possibilities of what would occur if Cole and Alex didn’t cool down were running through my head. Worst case
scenario: the boys get into a fistfight in the middle of their father’s speech and ruin Will and Haley’s wedding.
“At least I have one,” Alex replied, looking smug.
Cole narrowed his eyes at his brother, and I gave up. Alex had officially pushed Cole too far, and there was no stopping either of them now.
“Is that a challenge?” he hissed.
“Suck it!” Danny whispered to his cousin with a smile on his face. “That was exactly three minutes. I want my money in cash.”
“Damn,” Isaac said, shaking his head and pulling out his wallet. “I’ve been on a losing streak lately.”
Alex didn’t respond to Cole, except to flip him off.
“Fine,” Cole said, smiling evilly. “But don’t blame me when your girl’s in my arms.”
“Cole!” I shouted angrily before giving him a hefty kick in the shin from under the table, but he didn’t even seem to notice my attempt to bruise him. Instead, he and his brother continued their stare-down.
“Well,” Nathan said, turning to Danny. “What a great way to start the reception.”
“Yeah,” Isaac said with a smile. “We haven’t even gotten our salads yet.”
***
As dinner progressed, Alex and Cole became increasingly annoying. “Jackie, would you like me to get you something from the bar?” Cole
asked, turning to me.
“What are you trying to do, get her drunk?” Alex said. Since his fight with Cole, there had been a frown permanently etched onto his forehead.
“No, I was just trying to be nice,” Cole said, holding his hands up in defense.
“Is that what happened last time you got her a drink?” he asked, referring to the time Cole and I skipped school.
“Guys, cut it out,” I said for the millionth time. I put a hand on Alex’s leg to try and calm him down. “A glass of red wine would be great,” I told
Cole. If the rest of the night was going to continue like this, I needed something to calm myself down.
“Classy,” Isaac said, getting up to go with Cole. “I like it.” “Anything for you?” Cole asked Danny.
“A beer is fine, thanks.”
Alex grumbled to himself as his brother and cousin walked away, but I was beyond caring. As much as I was against drinking since my last experience, I really needed something to take the edge off my headache. When I was little, my mother would always let me take a sip of her wine at dinner, and surprisingly I found it was a bitter taste that I didn’t mind.
Everyone waited for Cole and Isaac to return with the drinks, and we munched on our dessert in silence. The wedding cupcakes had turned out beautifully, thanks to Cole’s help, and Haley loved them.
“Here you go, my lovely lady,” Cole said, setting my drink in front of me. Alex shot him a glare, but before he could say anything, Isaac set a drink down for him as well.
“For me?” Alex asked in surprise. His cousin nodded. “Thanks, dude.
What is it?”
“Iced tea, with a little something extra,” Isaac answered. “Just be careful with those. They’ll creep up on you fast.”
I watched Alex as he lifted the drink to his lips and took a swig. “This is great,” he said, perking up in his seat. “You can’t even taste the alcohol!”
The drink seemed to make Alex less hostile toward Cole, so Isaac kept them coming. But Alex didn’t heed his warning and two hours later, he was in the bathroom puking his guts out. After bringing him another glass of water, I collapsed onto one of the kitchen chairs to wait for him to finish. When his stomach was empty, I was going to tuck him in bed so he could get some rest.
Sitting down, I realized just how tired I was, and how much today had sucked. I had been looking forward to the wedding for so long, and although it turned out beautifully for Will and Haley, it hadn’t been fun for
me. Between the cupcake crisis in the morning, the boys fighting through dinner, and Alex getting sick, the day was pretty much ruined.
“And this will be our last song of the evening,” I heard the lead singer of the band announce.
“Dang it,” I said, thinking I was alone. “I didn’t even get to dance to one song.”
“We could fix that.” Cole pushed open the screen door and stepped inside. “Jackie, come dance with me,” he said, extending his hand to me.
I looked at it reluctantly. Dancing with him would probably only cause more drama by the end of the night, but I had really been looking forward to the wedding reception. “You need a break,” he added.
“I don’t know,” I said, wringing my hands. “I really should look after him,” I said, nodding my head in Alex’s direction.
“He’s a big boy, and you’re not his mother,” Cole said, heaving me to my feet. “It’s just one dance. He won’t even notice you’re gone.”
“I don’t—” I started to say, but Cole was already pulling me out the back door and I let him.
He led me out onto the dance floor, where a slow song was starting to play. Couples stood all around us, swaying back and forth to the music. I didn’t know what to do—if I should actually dance with him—but Cole made the decision for me by wrapping his arms around my waist.
“You know, you’re supposed to put your hands on my shoulders,” Cole pointed out. “Otherwise, this is going to get really awkward, really fast.”
“I shouldn’t be doing this,” I said, but I hooked my hands around his neck anyway.
“Probably not,” he said softly. “But you want to.”
“Cole, don’t start this again,” I begged. His nearly white bangs were longer than when we first met—now they brushed at the top of his eyes, and his lips were partially open, begging to be kissed. He was perfectly beautiful and I had to glance away. I could feel the blood rushing through my veins.
“Why not, Jackie? Was what I said wrong?”
“Please,” I said, avoiding his question. “I just want one dance.” “And I just want one answer.”
“Why does it even matter, Cole?” I asked, looking back up at him sharply.
He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment in concentration. “Because,” he said, opening them again. They were a dazzling blue. “Loving you just crept up on me, and before I knew it, I was head over heels for you.”
I stopped dancing. “Love?” I repeated in shock.
“Tell me you feel the same way, or that you feel something.” Here, his voice cracked, but he kept going. “I just—I need to know that I’m not alone.”
“God, Cole, don’t put me in this situation. I can’t!”
“The hell you can’t!” he exclaimed, ripping his arms away from me. “I’ve seen the way you look at me when you think I won’t notice. But the thing is, I’m always paying attention to you, Jackie. It’s like—you’re gravity and I’m just a little blip on your radar.”
“A blip on my radar?” I asked. The idea was ridiculous. “Cole, you’re impossible to miss.”
“So does that mean—”
“No,” I said, stepping away from him. “I’m not saying it. I’m done with this. With us.”
“Every time I try to work things out between us, you run away,” Cole said, grabbing my wrist and spinning me back around. “Why do you keep avoiding me?”
“Because!” I finally shouted. “I like you, even though it doesn’t make sense, and I hate that I can’t control my feelings.” I wouldn’t let myself love Cole the way he said he loved me. If I did, our love might be ruined by the guilt I felt over my family.
Cole dropped his hand in shock, but I was already turning on my heels. I needed to get away before he recovered from my confession. But when my gaze landed on the back porch, I realized that someone was watching us. Alex was standing on the steps, an unreadable expression on his face.
“Are you happy now?” I asked Cole and shot him one last glare before pushing through the crowds.
***
“Jackie, what are you doing up here?”
I slowly pulled my head away from my knees and brushed away a tear.
Danny’s head popped up through the trapdoor in the tree house.
“Hiding from the world,” I grumbled. Danny smiled sadly and pulled himself up into my hiding place. “How’d you find me?”
“No offense, Jackie, but I wouldn’t call it hiding. I could hear you crying from a mile away,” he told me.
After my conversation with Cole, the one where I confessed my feelings for him and Alex heard, I had needed to get away from everyone. I wanted to go somewhere where nobody would look, and only Alex used the tree house anymore. He was the last person who would come looking for me.
“You know, my brother is looking for you,” Danny said, sitting down next to me.
“I don’t want to talk to Cole,” I said glumly.
Danny was silent for a moment, and he wrapped an arm around my shoulder. “Jackie,” he whispered quietly, “you shouldn’t feel bad.”
“No,” I said, wiping the snot away from my nose. “I shouldn’t have danced with Cole.”
“You can’t control how you feel about him,” he said, as if it was no great secret that I liked Cole.
I was quiet for a while as I thought about my answer. “But what does that say about me? My whole family just died and all I can think about is him.” Admitting the truth out loud to Danny made me feel horrible all over again, and I started to sob.
“Jackie,” Danny said soothingly as he pulled me into a hug. “It’s okay.
Don’t cry.”
“No, it’s not okay,” I bawled as more and more tears started to pour out of my eyes. “I’m a horrible person. My mom—I don’t know how she’ll
ever be proud of me.”
“I’m not sure what your mom has to do with this,” Danny said, “but how could she not be happy for you? With Cole, you found someone who helped take away the pain of losing her.”
I had no idea how to respond to Danny, so I gave another excuse. “Really? Even after everything he’s done to me?”
“I know it doesn’t seem like it, but my brother is a good person. We might be completely different, but we’re still twins and Cole tells me everything. He was crushed when Alex stopped talking to him after the whole Mary thing. And he was telling the truth—Cole had no clue that she dumped Alex for him.”
“Danny, why are you even telling me this?” It had nothing to do with the struggle going on in my head.
“I don’t know. I’m just trying to explain him,” he said. “Sure Cole’s a player, but he’s never been a mean person. Then you came along, and the rift between him and Alex turned into a gaping hole and Cole got all aggressive.” When Danny saw the pained look on my face, he quickly added, “There was nothing you could have done, Jackie. It wasn’t your fault.”
“Is this supposed to be some kind of pep talk? It’s not working.”
“All I’m trying to say is that I know Cole hurt you, but I don’t think it was intentional.”
“You honestly believe that? What about the night we went TPing or the time he dragged me to Mary’s party?”
“His anger was always directed at Alex, not you.” “It didn’t seem that way.”
“Look, Jackie, he has a bad way of showing it, but he cares about you. I’ve never seen Cole fight so hard for something in his life. Not even for his football scholarship.”
For a long time, I didn’t say anything. “You know, you’re making things a lot more difficult,” I told him.
“You just need to talk to him.”
“I doesn’t matter that I like him. I’m still pissed, and I don’t think I can handle seeing him right now.”
“Not Cole, Alex.”
“Yeah, right. He’s not going to talk to me.”
“He was the one looking for you,” Danny said. “Not Cole.” “Why would Alex want to talk to me?”
“He isn’t as clueless as he seems.”
I was quiet for a full minute as his words sunk in. Did he mean Alex had known all along that I had feelings for Cole? Had I even known? “Hey, Danny?” I finally said.
“What?”
“I’m going to make sure you make it to your training camp in New York, whether you want my help or not.”
“About that,” Danny said, scratching the back of his head. “I know now isn’t the greatest time, but I had a conversation with my mom tonight. This wasn’t exactly how I was planning on telling you, but she said you could come with if you wanted.”
“What?” I asked, taken aback. “Katherine said I could go back and live in New York?”
“Yeah, well, I’m eighteen now, and she knows how much you really want to be at home. It would only be for the rest of summer since you’d have to come back here for school, but your uncle Richard agreed that we could live in your apartment together. Of course, if that’s okay with you.”
For a moment I was so excited I could barely contain myself. I was going to get to go home and, on top of that, live with one of the best friends that I had made in Colorado. But then, I thought about all the other amazing friends I met here. What would it be like without daily runs with Nathan, or Riley and Heather’s bubbly personalities? How would I feel without Alex and Cole?
“Danny, I would love to go to New York and live with you. You know that’s where I want to be. I guess I just have to decide if that’s the best thing for me right now.”
“I completely understand, Jackie. Take your time deciding. I don’t want you to feel like you made the wrong choice.”
