Page 66 of Irresistibly Wicked

“I hate clingy guys who text all the time,” Lettie said.

“Zander doesn’t know the meaning of the word clingy,” Reese said, and they all laughed.

Shauna’s phone chimed with another text, and the girls raised their eyebrows.

“Clingy,” Lettie said in a singsong voice.

“He’s not clingy,” Shauna said. “We text all the time. It’s just a friendship thing.”

“Careful,” Chloe said. “Texting is innocent until it starts to include devil emojis and eggplants.”

They all laughed.

“He does not send me eggplants,” Shauna said, laughing as she opened and read the text.

Zander: Don’t change. I like you just the way you are.

Her heart stumbled, and as she read it again, her phone chimed, and a flame emoji popped up.

Madigan leaned in, scanning the text before Shauna could think to close it. Her eyes lit up and she read it aloud. “Don’t change? I like you just the way you are?”

Shauna’s cheeks burned as the girls exchanged curious looks.

“That doesn’t sound fake,” Sidney said.

“That doesn’t sound like Zander,” Reese said.

“Are you sure there’s not something real going on between you two?” Emerson asked.

“Yes. He’s just being sweet,” Shauna said to herself as much as to them, and pocketed her phone.

“Well, you’d better tell him to stop, or I’ll start rooting for you two to be a real couple,” Madigan said.

“That’s not going to happen,” Shauna said with a hint of discomfort that she needed to squash. “This is already the weirdest day of my life. I’m getting married for real to a fake husband. Can we not make it any weirder, please?”

“Yes, girls, give Shauna a break,” Reba said. “We have a wedding to prepare for.”

“Time to work our magic,” Madigan said excitedly, guiding Shauna into the chair.

There was a flurry of activity as Madigan began brushing Shauna’s hair, and the girls chatted about hairstyles and makeup. “Do you know how you want to wear your hair?” Madigan asked.

Shauna shrugged. “I never style my hair. I usually wear it up.”

“Then leave it to us,” Madigan reassured her. “You’re going to knock Zander’s socks off.”

As they primped and curled and applied her makeup, they asked Shauna about her work and told her about theirs. Shauna was fascinated to hear that Reese was a forensic scientist. She also learned that Chloe was the administrator for the assisted living facility where Zander’s grandfather lived and that Emerson was a part-time editor and an extraordinary baker who sold her cookies at the Salty Hog and other places around Bayside.

“I can’t cook worth beans,” Shauna said.

“We can teach you,” Reba offered. “The girls and I love getting together to cook.”

“And gossip,” Sidney added.

“Lots of gossip.” Lettie rolled her eyes. “They gossip more than my friends.”

“Nobody gossips more than high schoolers,” Reese argued.

“Wanna bet?” Lettie said, laden with teenage attitude.