Lies I Told(26)

“The good news is: the bonfire didn’t suck as much as I thought it would, although I still wish you would have come with me.”

“Oh . . . okay,” Selena said. “That is good. What’s the bad news?”

I let her eyes slide to Logan’s table. “They want me to sit with them now, and I’m not going without you.”

“Wait a minute. You’re asking me to sit with them?”

“No,” I said. “I’m asking you to sit with me . . . while I sit with them.”


She gave me a half smile. “Kind of sounds like the same thing.”

“Well, it’s not.” I sighed. “Look, you’re the best friend I have here. I don’t want to lose that just because I’m getting to know other people. And they’re not that bad.”

She raised her eyebrows. “Not that bad, huh?”

“Okay, Rachel’s kind of a bitch.” I laughed. “But everyone else is really nice. Besides, Ashley and Nina aren’t even here, and I’m pretty sure David’s been checking you out.”

“Now you’re getting desperate.”

“Look for yourself if you don’t believe me,” I said. “Although I don’t recommend it.”

“Right.”

She turned in her seat to look at Logan’s table. David was staring right at her. When she turned around, her cheeks were flaming.

“Thanks for that.”

I grinned. “Anytime. Seriously, though. Will you come with me? Please?”

She stood with a sigh. “Okay, but I’m not promising it’ll be permanent.”

“No worries,” I said. “This is a contract-free arrangement.”

I tried to calm the butterflies in my stomach as I led the way to Logan’s table. It wasn’t about getting in with the group, about the con. I just wanted Logan to like me, and I wanted everyone to be nice to Selena.

But I shouldn’t have worried. After a moment’s surprise, everyone moved over and made room for both of us. I chose a seat next to Logan, and Selena took the one across from me.

“Where’s Parker?” Rachel asked.

I looked around. “Um . . . I don’t know. Probably studying or something.”

She nodded as conversation resumed at the table. I breathed a quiet sigh of relief when I overheard David ask Selena what she was reading. Everything would be fine.

Logan smiled down at me. “Hey.”

Heat rushed to my stomach as his denim-clad thigh brushed against mine under the table.

“Hey,” I said. “Thanks for yesterday. I had fun.”

“Me too. My parents like you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” He leaned in, so close I could smell the Mango Madness Snapple, fruity and tropical, on his breath. “So do I.”

I smiled up at him and something warm and tremulous seemed to blossom between us.

After that, I was surprised how easy it was, sliding into Logan’s group, sitting with them at lunch, hanging out by the BMW in the morning. Even more surprising was how much I liked them. Sure, they were spoiled and a little entitled—Rachel being one of the worse offenders—but they were nice and interesting, too. They welcomed Selena without question, and after some initial shyness, she seemed happy to have a new group of friends. Olivia teased her about her propensity for the clearance rack and Selena teased back about Olivia’s shoes costing enough to feed ten third-world children. But it was all in good fun. Selena still said hello to Ashley in the halls and still walked to and from school with Nina, so I guessed the new arrangement hadn’t impacted their less-than-wholehearted friendship.

Even the guys seemed happy to have us around, and Raj and Liam parted ways with Logan at the first bell so we could walk to class alone together. After Parker’s intensity, it was nice to just be with someone. To be silent in someone’s company without worrying that they were slip-sliding toward the depression and self-destruction that always seemed to lurk under Parker’s surface.

Rachel was the only one who never quite warmed up, and I got tired of the icy gaze, the surreptitious glances, the flip of red hair. Tired of Rachel acting like I would go away if only she ignored me long enough. Then, just when I was ready to tell her to bite me, I would see that thing in her eyes, that sly and knowing thing that made my heart skip a beat for no good reason. A rush of fear would flood my body and I’d have to remind myself to take it easy. To be careful.

By the second week of October, my nerves were shot. Torn between annoyance and anxiety, I finally decided to err on the side of caution by trying one last time to win Rachel over. It might not make a difference to the con, but it would definitely make things more pleasant in the meantime.

Drastic times call for drastic measures and all that.

I made my move on a Friday, inviting Selena, Rachel, Harper, and Olivia over for a hangout and sleepover later that night. I half hoped they would say no—I was a little freaked about the idea of having them all in the house on Camino Jardin—but they were all over the idea. Olivia launched into a plan to give Selena a makeover (over Selena’s very public protests), and Harper suggested a clothing swap (after glancing nervously at Rachel for approval).

Rachel just sat there.

“You’ll come, too, right, Rach?” Olivia asked.