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She rolls her eyes. “Thanks for clarifying, Jock Boy.”
“Look, I get it’s not really your thing,” I start. But then she shocks me when she cuts me off.
“I’ll go,” she says. “I mean… If you don’t mind going with an awkward science geek. I guess it could be okay?”
She says the last sentence like it’s a question. Like she’s checking to see if I still want her to come. And man, I wish she could see herself the way I do.
I pull her closer so she’s forced to look up and meet my eyes. “Guaranteed you will be the most interesting person at that party, Caro.” I smile at the slightly stunned expression on her face, then lace my fingers behind her back and lean in so I’m talking right against her ear. “Promise I won’t leave you alone tonight. I will be your sidekick the whole time,” I whisper. “Pinky promise.” I lean back and extend my pinky finger. “And I’ll take you home whenever you want to leave.”
Her cheeks flush pink and her eyes stay locked on mine for a couple of seconds before she lifts her own hand and links her pinky finger with mine.
“That sounds good,” she says. “Thank you.”
We stop at a drive-thru after leaving the stadium, because I’m always starving after a game. I used to be hopped up and hyper as hell after games, too… ready to party all night. Lately it’s sort of the opposite, and I hate it. Like my body can’t keep up with my brain or something. Even right now, I’m totally wiped.
Maggie drove with Jax and a couple of other girls, so it’s just Caroline and me. Which is perfect. We keep talking, even after we’ve finished eating, doing this thing we started a few days ago where I bring up the weirdest topic I can think of, and Caro tells me whatever facts she knows about it. My goal is to stump her, but I haven’t succeeded yet. And I’ve thrown some wild ones at her. Topics like garbage cans, and pantyhose, and turnips.
No joke.
My favorite is when she brings up these facts totally out of the blue, though. Like when someone says something or something happens that triggers a piece of knowledge that she just blurts out, which always stuns the hell out of anyone who’s with her at the time. Usually me.
This girl is insane with the stuff she knows. I have no idea how she doesn’t get bored out of her skull hanging out with someone like me.
I start up the car and we head along Ocean Drive toward the peninsula. Xave’s place is right at the tip, on a piece of property the size of a small kingdom.
I glance over at Caro. “I feel like I should warn you about Xave’s house.”
“Um, okay. Why?”
“It’s… Well, it’s pretty insane.”
“Is it bigger than yours?”
I laugh. “Like five times bigger.”
Her jaw drops. “Seriously?”
“Seriously.”
“Oh…” She schools her features. “Well, I’m sure it’s really nice.”
I chuckle again. “Trust me, it’s not.”
“What do you mean?”
“Picture the tackiest, over-the-top bougie estate. Then multiply that by ten. And that’s Xave’s place.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah. It’s a lot. I just feel I should prepare you.”
“Ok, wow… Thanks for the head’s up, I guess?”
I grin. “No problem.”
“Oh myGod.”
Caro’s gaping at the circular fountain dripping from a domed ceiling three stories above. It rains down around a massive glass chandelier into a marble pool in the west entrance hall.
