Page 78 of Bookworm

"It is. You're Bo's girlfriend."

Shin came over and shook my hand.

"I have to say Lottie, I never thought I'd live to see the day," he said. "And not just because I almost died. But because, well, Bo is…kinda harsh, if you know what I mean. Underneath the scowl beats a heart of gold, and I'm so glad he finally found someone whocan see that."

Bo sighed. "Shin, stop."

"I'm serious," he said back. "Lottieis now my friend by proxy. We're going to be besties too."

I gave him a faint smile. "You seem like a good friend, Shin."

"Thank you so much, Lottie," he said. "Can I officially dub you BOLO? Or would you rather your couple name be LOBO?"

I blinked, hearing a groan somewhere next to me.Pretty sure it came from Bo.

"Too soon?" Shin asked.

Thankfully, we were saved by Mrs. Lee.

"Shin," she called. "Stopslacking off. You come workup here, under my supervision."

Shin winked. "Told you she missed me."

With one last squeeze of my hand and a wave, Shin left, and an awkward silence descended.It lasted all of five seconds. That was when Bo turned toface me.

"So,girlfriend," he said.

Heart fluttering, I looked up at him.

"I've been waiting to hear these rules of yours."

"Really?" I asked.

He cocked his head to the side."What do you say we talk while we water, feed, and arrange these flowers?"

"Sounds good, Stryker."

"Watch and learn," he said.

"I'll try and do what you do."

He shook his head. "There is no try, Kent."

Rolling my eyes, I scoffed. "Yeah okay, Yoda."

"Halemoniswears she came up with that line first."

"ThenI bet she did," I said. "Your grandmother's awesome."

Bo ignored me, but I noticed his eyes brighten. It was clear he loved her and his parents very much. Even with Shin, I'd noticed aclear affection beneath his pretense of indifference.I copied Bo's movements, trying my best to do exactly ashe was. Soon, I was cutting the stems at what Bocalled a careful 45-degree angle, changing out old water for new, and adding packets of flower food where necessary.Bo also did all the heavy lifting while I worked on more decorative bows. Taking a deep breath, I decided to jump right in.

"So Stryker, I've thought a lot about our situation," I said.

Bo nodded.

"And like said, I came up with a few rules I think are a must."

"How'd you come up with them?" he asked.

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