“We usually do a quiet family thing at home. But I know she would love it if Zac came,” he said, catching up to me. “She told me today that Zac is her BFF.”

I stopped walking. “Zac’s not great at other people’s houses. I wouldn’t want him to freak out and ruin her party.”

Suddenly, that hand, that hand that belonged to Jake Jones-Evans, was on my shoulder, and my whole body, every single microscopic cell in it, reacted. It burst into flames and burned with the intensity of a million exploding stars.

“Don’t worry. He can freak out. No one will judge.”

“If you’re sure?”

“I’m inviting you, aren’t I? And it would mean the world to Lisa.”

“BFFs? They’re so cute,” I said.

“They are.”

“Okay, cool,” I conceded.

“I’ll text you the details.” He looked back down at the book in my hands. “Chapter seven’s a real eye-opener.”

“I’ll be sure to read it, then,” I replied.

And then he turned and walked away from me. I stared after him. I hadn’t intended to, but I felt his sudden absence so acutely that all I could do was watch him walk away. My stare was interrupted when I heard a giggle. I looked to my left and there she was. Amber. Staring at me with a smile plastered across her face, the kind of smile a shark might have before it calls you buddy and then rips an organ out and spits it onto the cold, hard floor.

29

I was nervous about meeting Jake’s parents, but I didn’t want to show it, for Zac’s sake, because he’d been tapping his fingers against the dashboard nervously the whole way there.

“Will she like her present?” he asked, sounding almost panicked.

“I’m sure,” I replied calmly.

“How do you know?”

“Well, I asked Jake what she liked and he said making jewelry, so I think she’ll love it.”

“Do you think she will like the beads I chose? They are blue. Blue is the best color. Even though it’s normally not for girls. They like pink, but I don’t like pink.”

“I’m sure she will love the blue.” We’d been to a craft store earlier that day to buy Lisa a present, and then I’d painted her a card and Zac had written in it.

“Did you bring my water bottle?” He fiddled with his seat belt now.

“Yes.”

“Did you bring my binoculars?” he asked.

“I did.”

“Did you know Dad is getting married?” he asked. I whipped around in my seat and stared at him.

“How do you know?”

“I heard Mom saying it on the phone, ‘Can you believe it, Sue. He’s actually marrying that woman. He’s actually marrying that homewrecking bitch.’”

“Whoa!” I held my hand up.

“That’s what Mom said!”