I nodded. It wasn’t only those safety pins that were keeping my dress from puddling on the ground, or that my ankle felt like a sausage wrapped in an Ace bandage. I liked hanging out in the playhouse. I liked doing homework on his bed. I liked huddling on the curb next to him as we watched Kane shoot hoops. Somewhere along the line, I’d stopped being social. It was so much easier, the two of us.

Declan leaned over and kissed me on the cheek, then said, “I told you there’d be a surprise, right?” He motioned to the front of the hotel, which was ablaze with lights. Extravagantly dressed bodies were hurrying to the revolving doors, disappearing inside. “It’s in there.”

I nodded nervously. I knew what it was. It was tradition for couples to rent hotel rooms for the night. They’d tell their parents it was a “group thing,” but it wasn’t really. All the girls were talking about it. Many of them were holding out to be stripped of their virginity tonight, because nothing says romance like losing it on the same night as ten dozen other girls. A guy would always get the room on the sly, then present his date with the key card as a “surprise.” I don’t know when it became a tradition, but despite being one of the more suck-tastic Deer Hills High traditions out there, it had nearly overshadowed the whole prom event.

“Okay.” I pulled open the door and tottered out, but before my injured foot could find the pavement, he was there. He scooped me up into his arms, bumped the door closed with his elbow, and carried me across the parking lot. I forced a smile. “My hero.”

Embarrassingly enough, everyone turned as we approached. People cheered at our grand entrance. When we were inside the lush lobby, Declan set me down and bowed shyly. “Are you all right to walk?” he asked me.

I nodded. These were not my people—they were all a year older, so I barely knew them. No way was I causing any more of a scene. I looked around for Kane. “Where do you think he is?”

Declan read my mind. “Hanging from the chandelier, probably.”

Right. We headed down to the ballroom, Declan stopping every so often to chat with one of his friends. I hardly knew anyone. I settled down into one of the chairs, Declan next to me. He propped my foot on his knee for a moment. He looked a little nervous. He kept looking up at the stage, where the DJ was spinning loud dance music. Then he leaned in and said, “You’ll be okay if I leave for a while?”

I nodded, and he zoomed off in the direction of the lobby. I knew he’d be back in a few minutes with that key card.