Page 8 of Fraternizing with the Enemy
Jade shrugged. “You never talked about wanting to be captain before.”
Well, that was because it would’ve been awkward, becauseJadealways talked about wanting to be captain of the cheer squad. Honestly, I wasn’t sure I’d ever let myself imagine what it’d be like to be captain before. In my mind, it was always going to be Jade.
Until, on the last day of cheer camp last week, Coach Chelsea announced both of our names. And Jade, who’d been preparing her acceptance speech practically since freshman year, had been caught so totally off-guard.
And I’d been so totally caught off-guard that the other name called had beenmine.
“I’m glad to be co-captain with you,” I beamed at her. “It worked out perfectly.”
Jade was so concentrated that it took her a second to smile back. “You’re right. And Logan’s so perfect for you, too. Everyone is going todiewhen they see you two holding hands down the halls. Brentwood’s next It Couple status issoyours.”
The picture in my head was perfect. “Imagine all the Babble posts.”
“Imagineallthe attention.”
Again, we both shared an excited giggle.
Jade had let me borrow one of her yellow sundresses, one that fit me a bit tighter than it fit her. It hugged my waist and flared out over my hips in a similar way our cheer uniforms did, but with a bit more of my chest showing.
“It’s not too much.” It came out more as a statement—unsure, but still afraid to question her.
“Definitely not.” Jade readjusted my necklace chain. I let her gaze roam me for a beat longer. Finally, she gave me an encouraging smile. “It’s just enough.”
All at once, I relaxed. If I could trust anyone, it was Jade Dyer.
The sound of a car door had us both freezing. Jade peeked out the window first. “It’s him,” she hissed, hauling me from my chair. “Look.”
My heart jumped into my throat as I turned to look out my first-floor bedroom window, finding Logan striding up my gravel driveway. He had on an undone dark plaid button-down, paired with a black undershirt, finished off with light wash jeans. He had one hand half behind his back, the other fidgeting with his car keys. His lips were moving, as if he was talking to himself.
“Is he talking to himself?” I asked, squinting. And then I glanced down at my sundress. “Are you sure this isn’t too much? If he’s in jeans, maybe I should?—”
“No.” Jade grabbed me by the shoulders and turned me away from the window, forcing me to face her. “Mads, you need to look this pretty. You can’t risk him losing interest.”
Losing interest.As perfect as yesterday was, the thought had never occurred to me. It made my stomach drop. “Right. He… has to be mine.”
She nodded once. “Go knock his socks off.” And then she swatted my butt.
I padded down the hallway, forcing myself to walk slow, attempting to coax my heartrate into a normal realm. It didn’t work.Knock his socks off.
When I hauled the door open, I foundLogan with his gaze focused on his shoes and his lips still moving. Hewastalking to himself, or at least mumbling something under his breath. His blue eyes lifted from the ground to mine, and I watched them shift. In that split second, I’d seen the tension in them—tension that melted as soon as our gazes locked. His shoulders dropped a little, as if something had struck him. As ifIhad struck him.
“There she is.” Those three words seemed to tumble from his lips, as if they were the ones he’d been practicing. And then his brows scrunched together, and louder, he said, “I—I mean, hi.”
“Hi.” I tried to swallow my nerves. Up close, I could see just how casual his outfit really was. His jeans were almost threadbare at the knees, like if there was any more friction, holes would form. His shirt was wrinkled, as if he’d unwadded it before throwing it on. “You look, uh?—”
“Incomparable to you.” Logan’s eyes swept down my frame, taking in the dress, the hair, the makeup. He cleared his throat. “Hopefully these make up for how woefully lame I look next to you.”
He pulled his hand out from behind his back, revealing a bouquet of white flowers. Mostly white, anyway. A lot of them were still closed, more green with their petals hidden. I didn’t know much about flowers, or which kind they were, just that they were pretty.
“A lot of them haven’t bloomed yet,” Logan said, scratching the side of his neck. “My mom used to say those were the best to buy, because they’d last longer.”
“They’re perfect,” I murmured, eyeing the closed buds. I took them gently, my fingertips brushing his. “No one’s ever bought me flowers before.”
“Well, I’m honored to be the first.”And then his focus went over my shoulder, the corners of his lips dropping.
Jade was standing there when I turned, her hip propped against the wall. She gave him a sickly sweet smile. “Good to see you again.”
Logan didn’t return the sentiment. I offered the flowers to her. “Can you put these in water? I have a vase in my room.”
