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“It’s a barrette,” she answered, annoyed, before batting away his hand. “Don’t touch it. You’ll make it crooked.”
“Since when did you start wearingbutterflies?” he countered.
“I don’t know.” She sent him a frown as Gracen opened the door and held it for all of us to enter. “Since now. I thought it would make me look nice.Okay?”
She was starting to sound defensive, and Beau was beginning to look suspicious. A crease formed between his eyebrows. “Who’re you trying to look nice for?”
“I don’t know!” she cried, throwing up her hands in frustration. “It’s a dance. People tend to look nice for dances. Look at Chloe. She looks ready for the freakingprom.”
“Oh my God.” I immediately turned toward Bella. “Am I overdressed?”
“No, sweetie,” she answered, smoothing her hands down the sides of my arms before sending both Bentley and Beau a warning glance. Then she returned her attention to me. “You look perfect. Stop worrying.”
But my gut was already swirling, and my nerves were strung too tight. “I’m overdressed.”
“No. You’re fine, I swear,” Bentley insisted, hooking her arm through mine again. “You look great. Now let’s do this.”
As the five of us paused in the line that had formed in the foyer to get our entry tickets, I started to wring my hands. “Maybe I should go back to the car for my jacket.”
“No. Okay, here.” Sighing heavily, Bella forced me to face her. “Repeat after me,” she instructed. “I’m a sexy, confident beast. Any guy would be lucky to dance with me tonight.”
I groaned. “Yeah, I’m not saying that. I mean,lookat me.” I spread my arms and looked down at myself. “Who would want to dance with all of this?”
“Beau and Gray will, for starters,” Bentley spoke up. “Right, guys?”
Both Beau and Gray looked distinctly put on the spot, but they must’ve known they couldn’t say no.
As they each grumbled their obligatory assent, I shook my head. “They don’t count. They’re like family.”
“That’s it,” Bella announced. “I bet you ten bucks Caine Spinnaker asks you to dance before the end of the night.”
I snorted and muttered, “Yeah, only after you pay him twenty.”
Bentley’s eyes widened as she glanced between me and Bella. “Caine Spinnaker, huh?” She shifted closer to ask me, “Is that who you like, Chloe?Nice.”
“You thinkSpinnaker’scute?” Beau demanded in disbelief before wrinkling his nose in disgust. “Really?”
“What? He’d look cute with Chloe,” she argued.
“Guys…” Gracen nudged Bella’s arm. “We’re up.”
The five of us lifted our heads to see that we’d reached the front of the line, and it was time to enter our first high school formal.
Falling solemnly quiet, we each paid for a ticket and then filed inside the darkened interior that was lit only by colored strobes that circled the room from the deejay’s station.
From there, the five of us awkwardly shifted closer. Even Gray and Bella—the most socially adept members of our group—seemed intimidated.
“It’s loud,” Gray commented, lifting his voice above the music.
“And dark,” Bentley added.
“Should we dance?” Beau wondered.
“It’s the middle of a song,” Bella answered. “That’d be weird to join in now. We’ll catch the next one.”
I nodded, agreeing with her because I just felt so awkward and weird.
But as the current song ended, and a slow song took its place, the five of us winced at each other, not yet feeling the slow-song vibe.
