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As if we could forget. Ms. Gentry had only been lecturing us every spare second about how much depended on that last ride. I gulped down my bite of watermelon, scored my sheet, and passed it along to the end as quickly as I could. Hopping up from the table, I made a bee-line for Graham and his friends. They didn’t notice me approach. It wasn’t until I tapped Graham on the shoulder and he turned to see who it was did they finally stop their joking around.
“Hey, Graham.” I lifted my chin, determined not to chicken out at the last minute. This plan was crucial to getting my life back to normal this year. I wouldn’t let my nerves get in the way. “You said we could hang out sometime. Want to go to a movie tonight?”
His dark eyes filled with amusement as they flicked up and down me for a second. “Yeah, sure. But wait—aren’t you Hunter McNally’s girl?”
Blood rushed to my cheeks. No one had ever called me that before. I got a strange head rush just hearing it. But that was wrong. So very, very wrong.
“Nope, we’re just friends.” I cocked my head impatiently to the side. “Do you want to go, or what? Do they let you guys off of that ranch?”
His lips cracked a grin, as if he were impressed by my attitude. “I’ll find a way to be there. Meet you at nine?”
“Sounds good. See you then.”
The noise his friends made when I turned to walk away was loud and embarrassing. I squinted at the ground, trying not to trip and give them further fuel to mock me. As confident as I’d sounded, I needed some help. I’d never been on a real date before. It was time to find Lexi and Beth and beg for some help.
But when a woman in a power suit and designer heels brushed past me, nearly knocking me to the ground, I finally looked up from my feet. The woman seemed slightly familiar, like I’d seen her on TV or something. She marched up to Sarah, who was sitting by herself on the bleachers and staring down at her phone with a dejected expression. It was so different from the snobbish sneer she usually wore on her face that it was almost hard to recognize her.
“Did I miss it?” the woman asked, looking around at the milling crowd.
Sarah glanced up, her eyes narrowing. “I told you it started at ten, Mom. Where were you?”
I slowed down my pace, straining to hear as much of the conversation as possible. Mom had always said eavesdropping was rude. Especially after all the times I’d stood outside my sister’s bedroom and listened in on her private conversations. But this was too good to pass up. I was morbidly curious about what kind of creature had birthed someone so evil as Sarah Claiborne. Her mom definitely looked high maintenance. From her expensive dye job to her manicured nails and designer handbag, it was clear the woman had taste and expectations. I’d never met her. She was always working when all the girls hung at Sarah’s house.
“You know this time of year is hard for me,” Sarah’s mom complained, pulling a ringing phone from her bag. “I’ve got campaigns running. You can’t expect me to be at all of your events.”
“Or any of them,” Sarah muttered as her mom answered her phone.
A twinge of sympathy shot through me. It was as unwelcome as a massive zit on my chin. I didn’t want to feel sorry for Sarah, but seeing her sitting there, slumped over while her mom ignored her was not the kind of payback I had in mind after this year.
My mom had plenty on her own plate. With a heart condition, a busy restaurant, and everything else, she still found time to come to my events. Sarah’s mom was something else. I couldn’t help but feel grateful for my own.
But feeling sorry for Sarah wasn’t on my radar at that moment. Lexi and Beth were just up ahead, waiting for me to find them. And better yet, Hunter was with them, standing there looking so cool and confident. Not at all like the way I was feeling inside. The sight of him made my stomach drop. Still, now was not the time to chicken out. I bounced up to them with a giant smile on my face, tucking my hands in my jean pockets.
“Hey, guys. Guess who has a date tonight?”
Lexi bounced up and down, grinning from ear to ear. “You did it? You asked him out?”
“Sure did.” I ran a hand over my wavy hair, keeping my gaze away from Hunter. I didn’t need to see his reaction to my news. “We’re going to a movie tonight. I need help getting ready. You in?”
“I’m so in, I’m next season,” Lexi squealed. “I can’t believe you guys are going out. Beth thought you never would.”
“I didn’t say they never would,” Beth said with a shrug. “I just didn’t think it would happen this week. You guys are cute together.”
She pointed at me, and then at Hunter. I followed the direction of her finger to see Hunter staring at me, his eyes as wide as his belt buckle. His neck was flushed and his mouth hanging open. Panic shot through me.
“Woah, Hunter and I are not going out.” I held up my hands in front of me. They totally had the wrong idea. “I just asked Graham out to a movie tonight.”
Lexi and Beth exchanged disbelieving expressions as I tried to pull myself together. No, I wasn’t going out with Hunter. He didn’t like me like that. He’d made it perfectly clear yesterday after our riding lesson that it wasn’t ever going to happen. The world was as it should be.
And I was happy about that.
In fact, I was moving on.
“You? Asked Graham out?” Hunter’s chest deflated a little as he stared at me. “Why?”
“Because...it’s good for me to get out there.” I crossed my arms over my chest and blinked at him. “You’re only young once.”
“But he’s a jerk.” His gaze darted over to where Graham was standing and then back to me.
