Operation Prom Date (Tactics in Flirting, #1)(15)

“Thanks, Mom. Good night.”

She tapped the door. “I feel like I should say something parental, like this stays open. At least until we can discuss this friendship more.” She winked at me and giggled. Then her expression turned as serious as she could get it under the circumstances. “I’m not usually like this, or even drunk at all, I swear.”

“Remember to put aspirin and a glass of water by your bed. In fact, you should probably take one now.”

“Good idea.” Mom’s smile widened. “I love having a smart daughter who thinks ahead.” Her gaze moved to Cooper. “Which is why I’m a tad protective of her. Just so you know.” She stage-whispered. “See? I can totally pull off being all mom-like.”

“You’re definitely rocking the mom thing right now,” I said with a laugh, while also wishing she’d hurry and go to bed before she said anything else.

With a final wave, she was gone.

“Okay, I thought my mom wasn’t very embarrassing, but that…” I placed a hand on my cheek, hoping it didn’t look as pink as the heat radiating from it suggested. “Well, that was embarrassing.”

“It’s kind of nice, actually. I can see how much you guys care about each other.” Cooper stood. “I better get going.” He squeezed my shoulder, and while it made my sore muscles scream a little, the zips of energy counteracted it enough to make me want him to do it again. “Thanks for the movie.”

“Thanks for helping me with my operation.”

“Right. The Operation. Of course.” He lowered his hand, his fingertips dragging down my arm. “I’ll pick you up for the party tomorrow at seven. Since we’re going big, you might want to wear something a little bolder and flashier than usual.” Once he reached the doorway, he paused and glanced back at me. “But if you change your mind, we don’t have to go through with the plan. Just putting that out there.”

Dad and I used to go on missions all the time together. Like while we were shopping, he’d tell me to keep an eye out for a guy with a fedora—he wasn’t to be trusted. And we’d look until we found some random guy who had one on and plot our plan of attack. Not real attack, of course. But our hypothetical operations were detailed and epic.

Then there were the real ones, like cleaning the house as fast as we could before my mom came home, or surprising her with dinner, or buying her the perfect present for her birthday.

Real or fake, we used military lingo and acted as if our lives depended on our success. This entire operation brought back some of those good memories and the rush of making a plan of attack, and like back then, failure wasn’t an option. So bold, flashy clothes and attending a party where I pretended to be a little more than friends with Cooper? I could totally handle that.

“I won’t change my mind,” I said.





Chapter Nine


Kate


With the help of my friends Advil and IcyHot, I was able to push past the soreness in my muscles and curl my hair. In a few more weeks, my arms better be super toned from all the rowing.

I also watched a tutorial on eyeliner, and after several failed experiments at “wings” I went for more of a smoky eye. After so many smudged layers of black eyeliner, it was really my only choice. But I decided it worked.

The red dress I took from Mom’s closet was too over-the-top. There was bold and flashy, and then there was trying way too hard. It wasn’t me, either. I wanted to be me, but like me 2.0. The blue sleeveless top with the beaded sheer overlay fit my goal, especially when paired with my tightest jeans with the cute zippers on the front. On the way out the door, I added another spritz of perfume and slipped my new, strawberry-flavored-yet-still-shimmery lip-gloss into my pocket.

Mom whistled as I walked through the living room. After being dressed up last night, she was doing the super chill thing, wearing yoga pants and a T-shirt, and about to dig into ice cream while she did some binge watching of her own. “You going out with Cooper again?”

“We never went out, so I can’t do it again, now can I?”

Mom stuck a bite of Chunky Monkey in her mouth. “You’ve been spending a lot of time with him this week.”

“Because we’re friends.”

“Because you still have a crush on that cute football player?”

I wobbled my head back and forth, unsure whether to answer that. “I’m just taking it a day at a time.” And those days were going to add up quick, so I needed tonight to make a difference. I had maybe two more weeks before he lined up another date, if it wasn’t too late already.

Oh no, what if he has a date already? This will all be for nothing. I sucked in a breath and let it out, telling myself I would’ve heard about it. Whisperings about prom were starting, but going by last year’s timeline, things got real in the next few weeks. I still had a chance.

“Well, that Cooper boy is super cute if you ask me.”

“He’s super cute if you ask most anyone. His cuteness does not negate the fact that we’re just friends. He’s not interested in being more.”

Mom leaned forward as if she were about to glean some big gossip. “But if he was, you would be?”

The doorbell rang. “Saved by the bell. We’ll talk crushes later.”

“I’m holding you to that.” She extended a scoop of ice cream toward me. “For the road?”