Page 20 of When You Had Me Adapting

I breathe out. “Nothing seems good enough.” I move the clothes around in my closet.

“Why? It’s just the bonfire. We go every year.”

“We’re about to be juniors and I don’t have a boyfriend. The whole school will be there. I can’t show up looking lame.”

“Since when do you want a boyfriend?”

Since I figured out I want Jace Jackson.

“I don’t know, but it doesn’t matter. What matters is I have nothing to wear.”

“You literally have triple the clothes I have. Anything you wear will be fine.” I’m not sure she’s right. I’m full of nerves. I know I need to tell him and her, but what if I mess everything up? The three of us are a trio—a packaged deal.

Grabbing both of my options, I flip around, so she can see them. “Should I wear this peplum top with the aqua bubble necklace or this lace top with the white bubble necklace?” I ask, trying to distract myself.

“Definitely the peplum top,” she says. “What shoes were you thinking?”

“My gladiator sandals?”

“Perfect,” she squeaks. “Jace said he could drive, so he should be over soon.” She looks down at the Michael Kors watch Beau gave her for her birthday. My stomach fills with butterflies at the thought of Jace. I fight the urge to tell Poppy about my plan and quickly get dressed.

“Girls, Jace is here,” my dad yells from downstairs.

“One second,” I call back, running my straightener through my hair one more time before unplugging it. I pause in front of my floor length mirror. Poppy joins me and we pose for a quick mirror selfie before heading downstairs to where Jace and my dad stand by the front door.

Jace looks so good tonight. He’s in a pair of dark jeans, white sneakers, and a T-shirt that reads, “Well, This is Hawkward.” I laugh to myself when I read his shirt. His short dark hair is styled perfectly. As we step off the last step, he brings his camera to his eye and captures a picture of the two of us.

“Y’all ready to go?” he asks.

“Yep,” Poppy says, walking by him and out of the house. His ocean blue eyes find mine and his face erupts into a big smile, making my heart start to beat faster.

“You look beautiful, pixie,” he says.

“Thanks.” I feel my cheeks heat. “I like your shirt.”

“You might be the only one.” Embarrassment laces his words.

“It’s because no one else is as fun as us.” He smiles and I want to melt right there on the entryway floor.

“Alright, Jace, have the girls home no later than midnight,” my dad lectures. “And no drinking and driving.”

“You got it, Mr. Sims.”

“Bye, Dad.”

We walk out the door and when we make it to his Jeep, Poppy is already riding shotgun. I climb into the back and he cranks the engine. The ride to Beau’s isn’t very long and Macklemore blares through the speakers. The wind rips through the vehicle as we drive down a back road. I can’t stop fidgeting and my palms are so sweaty.Shit, I need to calm down.

He turns onto a driveway lined with cars and parks. Poppy jumps down and yells something about finding Beau. Jace swings my door open and helps me out of the Jeep.

“Want to take a walk?” he asks.

“A walk? You don’t want to go to the party?”

“You know this isn’t my thing. I can’t stand Beau or his friends. I don’t know what Poppy sees in him.”

“She always sees the best in people and thinks they can change. I tried telling her he’s still the same asshole he was when we were kids, but she swears he’s different now.”

“I don’t trust him,” he says.

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