Page 141 of Wicked Games

“Well, Uncle took them down after a while. They lost their effectiveness.”

Weird. But he has an odd expression, so I don’t question it.

The cheerleaders run out across the field, shaking their pom-poms.

Two familiar people climb the steps, and I shoot to my feet.

“Claire! Hanna!” I race toward them.

Hanna’s face lights up, and she crashes into me. I throw my arms around her, squeezing tight.

“I swear you grew five inches,” I tell her. “How are you?”

She grins at me. “Good! Claire said she saw you, but I couldn’t go.” Her lower lip pops out. “I miss you, Margo.”

“I miss you, too.” I rub her arm. “Are you liking this school? Claire said you were making some friends.”

Her hair is pulled back in two neat French braids, and the sisters are decked out in Lion’s Head colors.

I touch the purple hair bands and smile. “You guys went all out.”

Hanna beams. “Claire helped me with my hair, and she got me this shirt from school, see?” She unzips her purple jacket and shows me the purple-and-black shirt.Lion’s Head Foreveris scrawled across her chest. “My friends are sitting on the other side, but we saw you.”

“Aww, well, I’m so glad.”

Claire steps up and hugs me. “You guys really got prime seating, huh?”

I glance back at Caleb, but he’s talking to someone else. The boy dressed in purple and black is vaguely familiar.

I shrug. “I guess.”

“We’re on the other side.” Claire hooks her thumb toward the field. There are stands on the other side, and it’s very clearly divided: Lion’s Head fans on one side and Emery-Rose on the other.

“Well, thanks for coming to say hi. I don’t think I would’ve spotted you otherwise.”

Claire shrugs.

“Hey, Margo.”

I turn toward the Lion’s Head boy who was just talking to Caleb. He towers above me. “Matt Bonner,” he reminds me. “We met at a game a few months ago.”

I nod. “Right…”

Claire clears her throat, raising her eyebrows.

“Oh, right. Um, Matt, have you met Claire? She’s a junior at Lion’s Head.”

Matt grins at her, extending his hand. “Pleasure.”

She blushes.

Ooh.So much for that nice boy who asked her out.

Matt takes a second to release her hand, and my attention bounces between the two of them for a hot second. Then Claire pulls away. She steers Hanna back toward the ground.

“Nice to meet you.” Her voice is gruff. “Margo, I’ll see you later.”

“Maybe at the after-party?” Matt asks. “Fletcher’s hosting.”

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