by Cindi Madsen
“Ignore them.” My words didn’t calm her like they had when we’d been alone in my truck. I cupped her cheek, forcing her gaze back to mine. “I thought of a punch line.” At her confused expression, I added, “To why the chicken crossed the road. Only I’m changing it to why did the chickens cross the road.”
“Why?”
“Because they lacked individual thought and all the other chickens were doing it.”
The smile came on slowly, but once it took hold, it transformed her features, turning her back into the girl with the contagious smile, who did things like knit beanies, talk to her pet lizard, and ship TV couples with a passion I’d never seen before. “Thanks, wingman.”
“Ooh, I love it when you use pet names.”
She laughed, and by the time I dared a quick glance at the girl squad who’d obviously hurt her, they’d moved on to judge other people.
I grimaced when I noticed Paris heading for Pecker. She draped herself around him, and considering their history and what I knew about the girl, I suspected she was more his type than Kate.
Kate was way too good for him, obviously, but I knew I’d never convince her of that.
“What?” she asked, and the section of hair that forever fell in her eyes drifted forward. Thanks to earlier tonight, I knew it was as soft as it looked. I wanted to brush it back again, but I needed to limit myself. To not get too carried away with our act, or I might forget where the lines were.
Over her shoulder, I noticed Pecker looked bored by Paris, which I supposed was good for our mission. Was it bad to wish that he’d find a prom date tonight, and then Kate could abandon this plan and not end up hurt?
I swear if he hurts her…
Kate put her hand on the side of my face, the way I’d done to her a moment ago. “Why did the cock cross the road?”
My jaw dropped for a couple of seconds before I recovered. “Why?”
“To grab the chick’s ass.”
I laughed. “I think you win.”
“Well, you looked like you might murder someone. I thought I’d lighten the mood.”
“Mood officially lightened.” I was about to point out we now had an audience that included her dream boy, but I figured it’d only make her nervous. Which meant limits were off, at least for a couple of seconds. I picked up a strand of her hair, wound it around my finger, and leaned close. I kissed her cheek, just a little peck, and whispered, “Wanna get out of here?”
She licked her lips and I nearly groaned. For a moment the rest of the world faded. But then her eyes flicked to the side. Dawning overcame her features, and she curled my shirt in her fist and tugged me close enough that my nose brushed hers. “Definitely.”
I probably should’ve taken Kate right home—it was almost eleven, after all. But she said she had until eleven thirty, and if I went home and went to bed, then it’d be tomorrow, and I wasn’t ready for it to be tomorrow yet.
So we grabbed sodas and walked to the nearest dock. We sat at the end, and Kate’s legs went to swinging. “I’m trying to remember for sure which house is yours. I know it’s by the dock we usually go to, but there are three, and they all look the same.” She squinted. “Doesn’t it have green trim? Not that I can even see what color the trim is right now.”
“Blue trim.” I pointed across the cove. The lights blazed through most of the windows in the house, even though I knew Dad was most likely still in his office, and Mom was up in her room, reading or watching TV alone. “Fifth one down.”
Kate counted under her breath until her finger lined up with the right house. “It’s nice. With a side of super huge.”
“Sometime I’ll have to show you the inside.” Sometime when Dad wasn’t there. Ever since I didn’t act excited enough by the internship he’d set up, things were more icy than usual between us. I could only imagine if I told him how I actually felt about it and the entire future he wanted for me.
“I’d like that.” The wood creaked underneath us as Kate continued to swing her legs. Must be all that frantic energy buzzing just underneath the surface. Her head tipped to the sky. The moon waned gibbous and put out enough light to cast a pale yellow glow on Kate’s features. “Do you still know all the constellations, and, like, the history of all the stars?”
“No.”
She whipped her head toward me. “Liar.”
“There are billions and billions of stars. You think I know the history of each one?”
“Is it true that most of the stars we see are dead? Because that’s depressing, and I like to think they’re still up there shining their little butts off.”
“Light travels at about 300,000 kilometers a second, which is crazy fast, but stars are so far away that even light from the closest stars takes years to get to us.”
She frowned at me. “So you’re saying they’re dead instead of letting me believe my happier version?”
“I’m giving you facts.”
“Fine,” she said, her voice making it clear she was all put out about it. “I’ll allow it.”
“You’ll allow facts?” Before I got way off topic and fell into a lecture about how facts were facts, even if you didn’t want them to be, I shifted back to the subject at hand. “Don’t go getting all sad. I wasn’t finished. Stars have crazy long lifespans, and depending on size, we’re talking high millions to trillions of years. So, no, the answer to your question is that despite popular opinion—which is not the same as proven facts—it’s not true. Some of the stars we’re seeing might be dead, but most of them—to borrow your phrase—are still shining their little butts off.”
“I thought you didn’t know their history.”
Part of me felt like growling in exasperation, and the other part of me just wanted to throw my arms around her and hug her. All of my perfume sniffing must’ve killed a few brain cells.
“Glad we cleared that up.” She took a swig of her soda and then set the can down on the dock with a clank. “Now, tell me the constellations, because I know you know them. Do you still have that app?”
“I have a better one.”
“Well, whip it out, Galileo.”
“Okay, okay. But you might want to be careful about instructing guys to ‘whip it out.’ Just saying.”
She gasped and shoved me. I chuckled and righted myself, then set my empty soda can next to hers. I opened my stargazer app and lined it up so the constellations would show on the screen.
There were still nights when I laid back and stared up at the stars, but I rarely took the time to study the sky anymore. Considering the calming effect, I should try it out every time my father brought up my summer internship or college. I’d also expressed an interest in marine biology last year, and he’d told me that my head was always in the stars or in the water, and I needed to learn to keep it on solid ground.
Kate leaned in, much closer than she had that summer a few years ago, when she seemed to be doing it more out of polite pity than interest.
I moved the screen into the position that found the most constellations. I pointed out the Big Dipper, which was the one most people knew, then moved on to Virgo and Corona Borealis. “There’s Hercules. See?”
The lines on the screen shifted as I honed in on it, outlining the stars.
“And what’s the story behind that?” The breeze stirred up the scent of the lake, that fresh-water and pine smell, and it mixed in with Kate’s perfume. Suddenly it took a lot more effort than usual to focus on her words instead of the press of her warm body against my arm. “I mean, I know who Hercules is, but why did he get a constellation?”
I thought about feigning ignorance, but this was Kate, and how often did I get to talk about the stars? “As the mother of a dragon, I’m not sure you’ll like it too much. He’s standing victoriously on Draco’s head. Killing the dragon Ladon is thought to be Hercules’s biggest victory.”
“If Hercules came near my dragon, I’d take him out.” She held up her fists as if she were ready for a fight.
&
nbsp; “You’re just going to take on one of the strongest heroes in mythology?”
“To save Klaus? Um, yeah.”
My hand found its way to hers. “I’d put my money on you.”
“I might not have had the patience to hear about this a few years ago, but I’m finding it really cool now. So what happens when you point it at someone’s face?” She took my phone out of my hands and aimed the screen at me.
“I can’t see it,” I said, “but I’m guessing nothing happens besides seeing a really dark outline of my face.”
“Wrong. I can see this constellation that represents a story about a boy named Cooper, who dreamed about sailing, until one day, his father—Zeus, of course, because Zeus has trouble keeping it in his pants…”
“Maybe someone instructed him to ‘whip it out.’”
Kate lowered the screen long enough to give me a reprimanding look. “Anyway, Zeus knew how much his son Cooper loved the sea, so he gave him a magical rowboat that could withstand even the wildest storms, and asked Poseidon to watch out for him.” Her eyes peeked over the top of the screen, the phone covering her nose and mouth. “And now he travels the seas, barking orders to go faster, all in pursuit of the most impressive time in the seven seas.” She shot me an over-the-top grin.
I took my phone from her and shook my head. “Smart-ass.”
“I’ve exhausted all my Greek mythology knowledge, anyway.”
“What? You don’t ship any couples from back then?”
“Of course I do.” She pulled up one knee and tucked her chin on top of it. “I mean, I’m sure I would if I knew more about them. I’ll do some research over the weekend and get back to you on that.”
“Can’t wait.” I made sure it came out on the teasing sounding end of the spectrum, but honestly, it was the truth.
“And if they don’t have any constellations for them, we’re gonna have to fix that. So you better be prepared, or else.”
This time, I saluted her.
She laughed, the happy sound echoing across the waves, only to come back and smack me right in the chest.
She glanced at the time and sighed. “My mom’s cool and all, but I probably shouldn’t push it.” She jumped to her feet and extended a hand to me, like I’d need help to get up.
I didn’t, but I wasn’t going to pass up the chance to hold on to her, just for a second or two. Yep, way too much perfume-sniffing, and I think talking constellations did a number on me, too.
I stepped on the soda cans, flattening them so I could pack them back easier, because nothing drove me more crazy than people who left their trash everywhere—especially on the shores of my lake.
Kate practically bounced her way down the dock, her excitement for life in general contagious. “I think tonight went pretty well. I actually talked to Mick, like more than a sentence, too, and he knew my name already, which shows promise.” Her mouth twisted. “It’s a little weird that most of our classmates think we’re off hooking up right now, but I guess if it works, it’s worth it.”
“Totally worth it,” I said, with much more conviction than I felt. Then, because I liked it when Kate was happy, I added, “Operation Prom Date is off to a promising start.”
Kate held her hand up for a high-five and I slapped my palm to hers. “Hooah!”
Chapter Thirteen
Cooper
When I approached Kate on Monday morning, she had a bigger crowd than usual around her. Well, usually she was alone, so that wasn’t very hard. But Jaden, Dexter, and the stoner dude whose name I couldn’t recall stood next to her.
She flashed me a big smile and lifted her hand in a wave. “Morning, Cooper.”
“Hey, Coop,” Jaden said, pushing himself off the locker he was lounging against. “We were just talking about the party. Did you hear the cops broke it up around eleven? Noise complaint, apparently.”
“Glad we took off before then.” Kate winked at me. I wished I could enjoy it more, but I couldn’t help noticing the way the guys in the near vicinity—including my closest friend and usual rowing partner—were looking at her. She had on a black scoop neck top, these tight, bright blue pants, and the silver ribbon she’d tied around her dark hair to form a headband somehow made the look more sexy than innocent. Like she was a good girl just waiting to go bad.
Damn vultures. They saw a sweet girl with a nice body, and now that they thought she might be open to a little fun, they swooped in to take advantage of that sweetness.
I moved over to her, stepping slightly in front of her. “Yeah. Guess it’s good that we took off early.”
Kate’s hand curled around my arm, and I glanced down, my icy mood thawing a bit.
But she wasn’t looking at me. Her teeth sunk into her bottom lip as she grinned at none other than Mick Pecker, that lucky bastard.
“Hey, Kate,” he said, a cocky smile on his stupid face. “We still need to have that conversation about colleges.”
“Totally.” Her voice came out breathless, yet loud enough to make my pulse kick up a notch, and from the goofy look on Pecker’s face, he felt the impact, too. She ran her finger across her silver necklace, causing the fat charm there to swing back and forth in a hypnotizing fashion. “Find me later?”
He nodded and moved on, but he cast another glance over his shoulder before he turned the corner.
Great. Suddenly she was all smooth and flirty? What had I done? I was starting to hate myself for thinking this would work—I mean, it had worked. So I guess I mostly hated myself for being successful.
“Who knew that one party was all it’d take for my classmates to see me instead of see through me,” Kate said, her voice low so that only I’d hear. “Monte’s locker is right next to mine, and the only thing he’s ever said to me before is ‘Please move.’”
Jaden patted the books under his arm. “I better get to class. One more tardy and I have to serve in detention.” He looked at me. “You coming, Callihan?”
“One sec.” I turned to Kate. “Meet me at my truck after school?”
“That’s the plan.”
“I just wanted to make sure you weren’t going to claim to be too sore so you could try to wiggle out of it.”
Her mouth dropped, her expression mock shock. “I wouldn’t dream of it. Especially after you delivered so impressively this weekend.” She said the last part loud enough it gained the attention of not just the guys who’d already been swarming, but several more people. She probably didn’t realize how it sounded, either.
My gaze traveled over her in an attempt to land on somewhere that didn’t give me inappropriate thoughts, but every place it landed only made me think about her hips, her butt, her curves, her lips, and that eye-grabbing silver ribbon.
That bow under her ear is just begging for one good yank. I wanted to be the one to do it, too. And that’s definitely my cue to go.
“I’ll catch you later, then.” As I started away, I heard someone else call her name.
At least I’d secured every afternoon for the next few weeks before she turned into the most popular girl in school.
I quickened my pace and caught up to Jaden, but I couldn’t help casting one more glance Kate’s way.
“She’s cute,” Jaden said.
“I know.” In fact, more and more, it’s all I can think about.
“So you and her are…?”
“Friends.”
“Good to know.” The smug smile that spread across his face made me want to punch it off him, something I never felt toward Jaden, even when we argued about training and times.
“Don’t bother. She’s interested in Pecker.” As soon as the words were out of my mouth, I realized I shouldn’t have said them. She got weird about people knowing, and there were too many ears around. I’d reacted more out of wanting to keep the competition down, even though there was no competition.
She wanted Mick. She had an operation named for landing him and everything. And apparently I needed to be reminded of that fact over a
nd over.
…
I thought I looked forward to the end of the school day and getting out on the lake before, but adding Kate to the mix took my anticipation to the next level. At least at the lake, it was just me and her, none of her ever-growing fan club.
Instead of making me maneuver the boat into the water myself on Wednesday afternoon, she took the initiative. But she definitely paused to scan the water, and I immediately knew why.
Yesterday we’d seen Pecker from afar—he was in a kayak and far enough away the only thing Kate could do was wave and yell hello—but it probably gave them something to talk about today, and stupid me, I’d given her that tip. I figured it was the lesser of the evils between rowing over to him and watching them flirt as I sat in the boat like a chump.
Thanks to overhearing a conversation between him and one of his cohorts last period, at least I knew today they were planning on playing football at the school field.
She’s all mine today. I shook my head at myself, because that sounded a little too creepy villain for my tastes. What I meant was we wouldn’t have any distractions of the jock kind. Not to mention the sun was shining, birds were happily chirping—something Kate had pointed out she loved—and all that glistening water was just begging to be glided across.
Kate gave up her search and focused on the boat. “You want to jump in first?”
“Go ahead. I’ll hold it for you.”
She shrugged and climbed in. I stepped inside, balancing my weight to keep the boat from wobbling too much. I sat down and grabbed the oars, ready to get out there, but then I decided we could take a few minutes to catch up—she’d been texting about some group assignment the entire drive over.
“How was your day?” I asked.
She smiled, and that strange sensation I forgot existed until she fully crashed into my life twisted my gut. “Amazing, actually. I talked to Mick before school. We had a whole conversation and everything, about how I saw him on the lake yesterday, and he seemed to be super impressed I came out here all the time. We both talked about how it was one of our favorite places. There might’ve been an awkward pause or two, but I recovered quickly enough I don’t think it was a big deal. Chatting with you all the time has helped me not be so rusty.”