I take the phone back from her, my cheeks burning.
“You’re going to say yes, right?” she pushes.
I shake my head. “It’s not a good idea.”
She looks horrified. “What? Why not?”
“I barely know him. And your brother told me Aunt Maggie doesn’t let you guys date—”
“Oh, screw Mom. And anyway, this is Everett James we’re talking about. My best friend’s brother. If Mom found out you guys were together, she’d be totally cool with it.” Jasmine stares at my phone as if she’s afraid I’m going to make a life-ending mistake. “Youhaveto say yes.”
I bite my lip, imagining myself out on a date with Everett. Talking to him, one-on-one. Having him look at me with desire. Kissing him…
My body flares with goose bumps.
Instincts war within me. Part of me wants to text him the verbal equivalent of jumping in his arms:Take me, I’m yours!But then there’s that little voice that saysYou were going to keep your head down, remember?
I sigh. Yes, I remember.
I start to text him back, only to realize Jasmine is silently watching me like a hawk. I tilt the display of the phone away from her and say, “I’ve got this.”
Me:Why are you asking?
He starts to respond right away, and to keep myself from freaking out, I add him to my contact list. EVEREST JAMES, I type.
Everest:Want to take you out tonight. Movies?
I gnaw on my lip. My fingers want to type YES, but my mind is telling me, over and over again, no.
Me:Sorry. I’m busy.
I feel better after I’ve sent it. That was the right decision. I can’t go out with the guy. After graduation, I’m out of here.
I don’t need any reason to stay.
Everest:How about coffee then? Just an hour.
Me:Told you, I’m busy.
Everest:Yeah? Doing what?
Me:Going to the movies with another quarterback.
I hide a smile and glance at Jasmine, who is gathering up random items from the floor. She’s pretending she isn’t interested, but I can tell she’s hovering, wanting me to spill the tea. Sadly for her, there isn’t anything to tell. I said no, and I meant it.
But then I read Everett’s follow-up.
Everest:You’re flirting. That’s progress.
Everest:See you Monday.
He texts me a couple more times before the weekend is over, but I leave him on read. On Sunday night I hang out with Uncle Dan, Connor, and Connor’s friend Kabir in the family room after dinner, watching the Titans game. I’m not a football fan, but I’m notnota football fan. I don’t mind having it on in the background while I click through the hundreds of photographs I’ve taken since I got to Starling.
On the other side of the couch, Connor and Kabir are arguing. Those two always seem to be arguing. It’s entertaining.
“I’m telling you, Con,” Kabir says, his voice dripping with exasperation, “the moon landing was filmed on Earth. Earth! It’s, like, super obvious. You ever seen the shadows? They’re all wrong.”
Connor groans, slouching back on the couch. “Please, for the love of God, stop talking before my brain melts. The moon landing happened. Do you really think NASA has time to fake an entire moon mission? Do you realize how many people would have to be in on the cover-up? Dad, back me up—how many people would need to be involved?”
