“Me, either.”
I looked into Keri’s eyes and felt justhorrible.
“You tried to kill yourself, Payton. Whatif… My God, what if that happened? What if I never got the chanceto tell you how much you meant to me?”
How could she possibly still love me aftereverything? I shook my head. “I don’t know.”
“And tonight?” she asked, looking at me. Shepulled her bottom lip between her teeth and waited for my response.I didn’t know what to say.
“What do you mean?”
“What was it to you?”
I looked at her and didn’t say anything. Shegot up fast and brushed off her legs, errant pieces of grass weresticking to them and wriggled off when she stood. “Did it meananything?”
“Of course,” I said, and then stood as well.“I…”
“Someday this will be right between us,Payton,” she said softly, and then wiped at her eyes.
I nodded, and then looked over at the piecesof wood sticking out of the ground.
Just then, my cellphone chirped, and Irealized that I’d left it in the grass. Keri reached over andgrabbed it, and handed it to me, but not before seeing the pictureon the display. She closed her eyes.
“Patti’s calling for you.”
I took a deep breath and went to put thephone in my pocket.
“You’d better answer that,” Keri said.
“What do you want me to do, Keri? What canI…?”
“I just want, for once, for us to just befine. This was a mistake, wasn’t it?”
I nodded, and could feel the phone nowbuzzing in my pocket. A voicemail. Great.
“Awesome. Well, I’ve got to get back beforeTodd and Alexis start looking for me.”
“We should talk about this,” I said, eventhough it was the last thing I wanted.
“No, I think we’re done here.”
Chapter Seven
* Fun Fair…*
I recovered fromthe whole “losing my virginity” thing. I don’t think I’d everforget how it felt, to be that close to someone, that connected toanother person. It was special for me, even if it wasn’t specialfor him. I thought about it often since it happened—nearly a weekago, but couldn’t bring myself to tell Alexis or Todd about it.
They didn’t need to know.
They couldn’t tell, could they?
I mean, I felt like the entire world knewthat Payton Taylor popped my cherry. I snorted, thinking how verydumb that particular thought was. I sat on the bench and waited forthe billions and billions of screaming kids to come up to me andeither hug me, sock me, or kick me. It was a shitty job, and yet,it was fun.
“I can’t believe you haven’t killed anyoneyet,” Alexis said as she came and sat with me on the bench. She hadher “Wench” costume on and she crossed her legs at her ankles. “I’mso damn beat.” She pulled her right foot up to her thigh andstarted to rub her toes. “Oh…”
I grinned. “How’s the job?”
“It sucks ass.”
I laughed. “Tell me how you reallyfeel.”
“You should see Todd in there.” Alexis shookher head. “He’s wearing that damn eye patch and talking like JackSparrow.”
I grinned. “I knew he’d like the job.”
“He’s a natural, and of course all the kidslove him.”
“I hear a couple of girls that work herelike him, too.”
Alexis’s eyes narrowed. “I heard that, too.Well, they better watch out, because I will knock out anyone thattries to touch my man.”
I laughed. “I don’t think you have anythingto worry about. You and Todd are pretty damn awesome.”
Alexis smiled and put her foot back down. “Ithink so, too.”
“Tell me something good,” I said, and lookedat Alexis. She started to laugh and I shrugged. “What?”
“That stupid costume! I totally forgot youwere wearing it.”
I laughed. “Yeah, it’s hard to remember thatyou’re talking to a five-foot-tall bird.”
“Shut up.”
“Seriously, tell me something good.”
Alexis quirked her brow. “How good?”
I sighed. Not that good. “Surpriseme.”
“Okay, Todd asked me to marry him.”
I turned my head so fast that I knockedAlexis in the eye with my beak. “Shit! Sorry! Oh my God! Are youserious?”
“Damn it, Keri, watch it with thatthing!”
“Sorry!”
Alexis moved back a little and grinned. Sheput her hand into her pocket and then moved it back out, and voila!There was a ring on her left ring-finger!
I squealed, and then I stood up and grabbedher hands. We jumped around in the lot like two lunatics.
Then the kids started coming in droves, andwe were all dancing and squealing, and I had the biggest grin on myface, and nobody could see it underneath the costume.
Five hours later, I was all ready tocelebrate Alexis and Todd’s great news when I walked in to thehouse to loud voices. Seth’s and Jack’s.
I smiled as I made my way into the livingroom, and stopped dead when I saw Jack holding onto his jaw. “Whatthe hell?”
I looked at Seth, then back to Jack.“Cassie,” I said, knowing exactly what was going on. Seth frownedand then threw his hands up in the air.
“You knew!”
I swallowed, not knowing what to say.“Mom…”
“Mom knew!” Seth yelled. “Are you guyskidding me?!”
“I’m sorry, Seth, I thought…” I looked atJack. “Why didn’t you talk to him?”
“Oh, and what was I supposed to say. Gee,bro, I’ve been in love with your girlfriend for some time now, andoh, by the way, she and I used to hang out.”
“Define hang out,” Seth said under hisbreath.
“How do you define it, Seth?” Jackasked snidely.
“Fuck you, Jack,” Seth said, and then helooked at me. “And you, I thought you were…”
I shook my head. “Don’t say something youcan’t take back, Seth. What was I supposed to say? Jack’s beenmiserable, too.”
“Oh, now you’re taking his side?”
“No, I’m not taking any sides. I think thesituation sucks. Honestly, the only person to blame for all of thisis Cassie.”
Both of my brothers were now giving me dirtylooks, but it was Seth that broke away first. “You’re right.”
I swallowed. “I am?”
“Yeah, she’s right, Jack. Cassie is to blamefor this. She knew…”
“And she knew that going into this wholething,” I said, hoping that I was still on Seth’s good list. Ididn’t want to be on anyone’s shit-list any longer.
“Sorry about
