by Paula Garner
For a variety of reasons, special thanks go to: Elissa Whiteman, Harriet Heifetz, Adelle Katz, Sybil Ward, Lindsey Sprague, Brenda Drake, Katie Locke, Dahlia Adler, Rachel Simon, and Mark O’Brien.
Special thanks to Ashley Herring Blake, Karen Hattrup, Emily Henry, Kerry Kletter, Kali Wallace, and Jeff Zentner for your early reads and overwhelming responses. Your generosity means the world to me.
To all my fellow Sweet Sixteeners and 2k16ers, thank you for the pleasure of your company and friendship on this ride. It has been a privilege to feel your support and to cheer you on in return.
And finally, a sheepish thank-you to Otis Heymann. I stole your name for this book in 2008 when I first saw you at a swim meet and there were girls fawning over how cute you were. I hope you don’t mind.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or, if real, are used fictitiously.
Copyright © 2016 by Paula Garner
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in an information retrieval system in any form or by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, taping, and recording, without prior written permission from the publisher.
First electronic edition 2016
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number pending
Candlewick Press
99 Dover Street
Somerville, Massachusetts 02144
visit us at www.candlewick.com