Kiss & Sell (21 page)

“Of course,” I fibbed. “Indian sounds great. See you later!”

Cade gave me a little wave and then slipped off down the hallway. McCartney and I turned to watch him go, admiring his laid-back saunter. As soon as he’d disappeared into a classroom, I felt McCartney’s eyes attack me like death daggers. Meeting her gaze sheepishly, I held my hands up as I shrugged helplessly.

“
Soooooooooo
, funny story,” I said, laughing nervously. “After I got off the phone with Ryder, Cade called and we made plans to meet up after school to brainstorm for the dance. How weird is that?”

“I can’t believe Ryder’s taking you to Homecoming
and
you’ve managed to score a date with Cade, too,” McCartney said, shaking her head incredulously.

“It’s not a date. We’re just figuring out decorations and stuff.”

“He’s bringing food, Arielle,” McCartney said. “It’s totally a date.”

I started to argue with her, but stopped because I knew it was pointless. no matter how much I insisted that things between Cade and me were innocent, McCartney’s inner conspiracy theorist would reign supreme.

“I expect a detailed report tomorrow. And if Ryder calls back, I want to hear about that too. No more keeping secrets, capiche?”

“I wasn’t keeping secrets, eve. I was about to tell you about Cade, but then he showed up and beat me to the punch.”

McCartney looked down at the ground and then back at me. “I’ve just been feeling a little left out, lately. I miss being the first to know everything that goes on in your life.”

I automatically felt guilty that McCartney was feeling this way. She was my best friend. Of course I wanted her to know everything first. But things had been so crazy lately that I could barely keep up myself. It
was
possible that I’d left McCartney out of the loop without meaning to.

“Got it. Full disclosure from here on out,” I promised, making a cross over my heart with my right hand.

“Good,” McCartney said.

An awkward silence followed as we both tried to think of what to say next. We’d never really fought before, so this was new territory for us. Were we just supposed to move on, ignore the weirdness until it became normal again? Or was I supposed to give McCartney her space until she came to me and told me everything was fine?

Luckily the bell rang, forcing us to begin walking toward the class we had together. This was when McCartney finally spoke up.

“Since when do you like indian food?” she asked as we walked through the classroom door.

I looked at her and burst into giggles as we sat down next to each other in the last row. We were back to being us.

I pushed open the front door and ran inside, not even waiting for it to shut behind me before I tore upstairs and into my room. Bree had cornered me in the hallway after the final bell, insisting on talking to me about the dance. I tried to explain to her that I was on my way home to figure it all out, but then she started introducing me to all her friends. not wanting to appear rude, I stood there for ten minutes answering all their questions. And there were a lot of them.

When I finally snuck away—which was hard to do with everyone focused on me—I practically had to run home in order to get there before Cade. And then I still had to clean my room, since I hadn’t done it the night before. I quickly surveyed the damage before picking up the clothes that were littering my floor and bed, and then tossing it all into my closet. Sprinting over to my bed, I pulled my comforter up over my cushy mattress, a half-assed attempt to make it presentable.

With the cleanup done, I pulled off my shirt, which was officially soaked through with sweat after sprinting home, and then stood in front of my closet.
Casual or dressy? Hot or chill? What were you supposed to wear in a situation like this? not that I really knew what
this
was. Growing frustrated and knowing I was losing time, I put on my softest tee and stepped into a pair of jean shorts.

Then I ran into my bathroom and slicked on more deodorant, blotted my face with a little powder and twisted my hair up into a messy bun on top of my head. I had just enough time to dab on some gloss and spritz myself with perfume before the doorbell rang.

Taking the stairs two at a time, I hustled to the front door and sucked in some much-needed air before pulling it open.

“Hey, Cade. Come on in,” I said breathlessly.

“Thanks,” he said, before making his way into the entryway. I could smell his cologne as he passed and briefly wondered what kind it was. “As promised, I’ve got food. Where do you want it?”

I checked out the two big bags that were taking up both of his arms, and looked back toward the kitchen, and then up in the direction of my bedroom. If we ate downstairs and my mom came home, she’d want to chat with us and we’d never get anything done. She’d also likely embarrass me. But if we ate in my room, we’d be alone.

“Um, let’s grab some plates and take it upstairs,” I said. Realizing what that might have sounded like to Cade, I added, “My radio and computer and stuff are up there.”

Cade didn’t seem fazed though and followed me upstairs, still carrying our indian food with him, which I noticed actually smelled pretty good. Whatever it was. I set our dishes on the floor and then plopped down across from him, leaning back against my bed frame. Cade placed the two large bags between us and sat down as well.

“So, what do we have?” I asked, pointing at the bags.

“First off, I have to tell you that this is the best indian food you will ever eat,” he said, his face dead serious. “It might even be the best
food
you’ve ever eaten.”

I laughed. “Really? Where’s it from?”

“Sorry, but I can’t reveal my source. If word gets out about this place, then everyone will start going and it just won’t be the same.”

“But what if you’re right and this
Is
the best indian food I’ve ever had? How am I supposed to order it again if I don’t know where it’s from?” I argued.

“I guess you’ll just have to stay on my good side, and maybe I’ll order it for us again sometime,” he said, with a sly smile.

Was Cade…
flirting
?

With practically perfect timing, my stomach grumbled loudly, and Cade gestured for me to dig in. I didn’t want to seem like a pig, but it smelled so good that it was like torture not tearing into the bags. In the end, starvation won over ladylike behavior.

“You drive a hard bargain, Jones,” I said, opening up the first container.

Five minutes later, there was a lavish spread in front of us that included a dish of spicy chicken called tandori, another that looked scarily like baby poop but was actually a mixture of spinach and cheese, and this doughy bread he said was called naan (but pronounced ‘non’). I could’ve kissed Cade for opening my eyes to such amazing food. But of course I didn’t. One, because I still wasn’t sure if Cade was into me or not. And two, I had the eBay thing to think about. Which I had to admit, hadn’t been on my mind much lately.

When we were both disgustingly full, we boxed up what was left and then stood up to find more comfortable spots to brainstorm. I ended up sprawling across my bed while Cade reclined in my desk chair, arms linked behind his head lazily.

“I think I’m falling into a food coma,” I moaned, closing my eyes.

Cade just laughed. Finally, I forced myself to pick up my notebook and pen so we could actually get some work done. Flipping to a clean page, I wrote, “Homecoming” across the top and then underlined it.

“Okay. So, decorations,” I said.

“Decorations,” Cade repeated.

“Opposites attract,” I said. I tapped my pen against the notebook as I tried to think of ways to decorate a gym according to our chosen theme. “How about black and white for colors?”

“Simple, yet effective. They’re definitely opposites,” Cade said, nodding.

“We could get a bunch of shiny black balloons and some matte white ones, so it’s shiny and dull,” I continued. “Maybe half the floor could be like that fake plastic grass and the other half can be the gym floor, that way it’s rough and smooth.”

“And we should make sure the refreshments are salty and sweet, hot and cold, healthy and junk food,” Cade said.

“Ugh. Don’t even mention food right now,” I said, making a face before pushing on. “So now we just have to actually
get
everything.”

I walked over to where Cade was sitting and leaned over his shoulder, gently brushing his arm with mine as I reached for my keyboard. “Sorry,” I said, though I wasn’t really all that sorry.

“No problem,” Cade answered.

I could’ve sworn I saw the corners of his lips turn up into a smile. He swiveled around in the chair as I started to type, not seeming to mind at all that I had to lean over him to get at the computer sitting on my desk.

“Let’s see where the closest Party store is,” I muttered to myself as I waited for Google to do its thing.

Within minutes, I was printing out a list of places that sold the decorations we needed for the dance. One was even within walking distance of our school.

“You wanna hit this place after school on Monday?” Cade asked, pointing to the screen and practically reading my mind.

“Sounds like a plan,” I answered. “And oh, look! They have puppy dog costumes! Your date could go as a cat….”

“Cats and dogs. Very clever,” Cade said sarcastically. “And you and your date could go as einstein and President Bush.”

I acted shocked and knocked him with my hip. He pushed me back gently. “I’m not sure my date would agree to dressing up like Bush,” I said, thinking of Ryder. “He may be an actor, but he’s not that good at Bs-ing.” I moved to bump Cade again, but he moved at the last minute and I lost my balance.

And then fell right into his lap.

“Whoa, sorry about that,” I said, both embarrassed and slightly exhilarated by where I’d landed.

Cade reached over and brushed a piece of hair that had come loose from my bun behind my ear. I shivered at his touch, but tried to hide it by laughing nervously.

“You already have a date for the dance?” he asked, sounding surprised.

Feeling the moment getting awkward, I pulled myself up off of Cade’s lap and moved back over to my bed. I crossed my legs and tried to appear calm, even though my heart was now racing

“Um, yeah. Sort of,” I said shyly. “This guy, Ryder, asked me the other day.”

Cade’s face didn’t change, but I could tell that his mood had.

“That guy from the vampire show?”

“It’s more of a teen drama…” I started, but gave up when I saw his face. “But, yeah. See, he’s sort of a friend of mine now—a new friend, actually—”

“So, he’s just a friend?” Cade cut in.

“Uh huh,” I answered, because technically it was true. Besides, Cade hadn’t asked me if I wanted to be more than friends with Ryder. “He asked me earlier this week. See, he’s never been to a school dance before on account of his acting career and all, and he really wants to see what it’s like…”

“He asked you earlier this week,” Cade repeated slowly.

I nodded. “I’m not even sure if it’s going to happen, though. He’s in the middle of taping
Night Light
right now, and if they need him to work or something, he’ll have to cancel. But if that doesn’t happen, then yeah, we’ll go together. It’s kind of weird to say it out loud, you know? Me. Going to a small-town school dance with a TV star.”

“Yeah,
crazy
,” Cade said, running his hand through his hair.

We sat there for a moment in silence, me on my bed, and my now brooding buddy sitting in my desk chair. I faintly heard the front door open and close downstairs, but I didn’t bother getting up to see who it was. There was only one person it could be anyway. As mom began to hum to herself as she walked through the house, I turned back to Cade who was now standing up.

“So, who are you taking?” I asked, trying to salvage our conversation.

I watched him put on his jacket. “Huh?”

“Who are
you
taking to Homecoming?” I repeated.

“Oh,” he said. “I’m not sure yet. I had a few people in mind, but haven’t asked anyone. I’m not even sure I want to go.”

“Come on! It’s Homecoming. And you’re on the
dance committee
. You should at least get to enjoy the fruits of your labor,” I said, giving him a goofy smile and then touching him lightly on the arm.

Cade looked at my hand on his arm and then back at my face. We were just inches from each other and I could feel his breath lightly on my face. I wondered if he wanted to kiss me as much as I wanted to…

“Arielle—” my mom said, sounding surprised. I turned to see that she’d appeared in my doorway. Cade took the tiniest step away from me, and then shoved his hands deep into his pockets. My mom looked from me to the boy she’d never
met before, and then around my room. It was like she was trying her best to piece together the night’s events. And even though we hadn’t been caught doing anything, I still felt guilty. And kind of embarrassed.

“Hey, Mom,” I said, innocently. “Uh, this is Cade. We’re on Homecoming Committee together. We’ve been coming up with decoration ideas.”