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The police officers tapped the door frame impatiently.
I didn’t like that they were here. It felt like they were sniffing too close to the truth.
“We’ll be there,” I told my mother and ended the call and lowered my voice to a barely audible whisper. “As long as I’m not arrested in the next few minutes, that is.”
24
LYRIC
Icalled Eve the moment Zepherin told me his family wanted me to come to a birthday party on the weekend. Worse, that the principal of Edgely Academy would be there. My palms had gone damp with nervous sweat, and my heart beat so hard I was sure I was having a heart attack.
Eve just laughed at me. "They’re just people, Lyric. Same as you and me.”
I wailed down the phone line. “You don’t get it! His mom is a judgmental bitch. She already hates me. Why would they even want me at their probably beautiful home?”
“Uh, because their son is in love with you?”
I scoffed into her ear. “Uh, no. We’re just… I don’t know what we’re doing, actually. But he’s not in love with me.”
I could practically hear her roll her eyes. “So let me get this straight. The man—a priest who has taken a vow of celibacy, no less—invites you to meet his parents because he’snotin love with you?”
I waved a hand around in the air dismissively, even though she couldn’t see it. “It’s not like he’s going to introduce me as his girlfriend.”
She laughed. “Lyric! He doesn’t need to. I’ve seen the two of you together. The chemistry is palpable. Like, you’re going to have his mom’s panties all wet just from the way you look at each other.”
I screwed up my face in disgust. “That’s revolting, and vaguely incestuous. Thanks for that mental image.”
Her laughing at me would have been enraging if it were anyone but Eve. But as my best friend, she got a free pass on stuff like that.
“Okay, okay, but the real question is, what are you going to wear?”
I widened my eyes and spun around to my open closet doors. It was full of the sweatpants and old T-shirts on one side, skimpy stripping outfits on the other. There was very little in between. “Oh my God, what the hell am I going to wear? I don’t have time to go shopping. My wardrobe is trash.”
There was a clink of nail polish bottles from her end of the phone. “Want to borrow something of mine?”
“I don’t have the booty to fill out anything you own!”
“Hmmm. True. Your ass could benefit from some squats.”
“Oh, shut up. My ass is great. I’m just not blessed with your genetics, and my boobs were a more pressing problem. Can’t afford ass implants as well.”
Eve giggled but sobered when I wailed some more about the party Zeph had somehow roped me into. If I hadn’t really needed to talk to the principal and explain why I was so out of it at the interview, I would have refused to go.
“Since when do you care what other people think of you, Lyric?” Eve lectured. “This isn’t like you. Zeph loves you in booty shorts and midriff tops. His parents will too.”
I sank down on the couch, because although it was nice to know Eve thought I was amazing, I just knew Zeph’s mom and I had already gotten off to a rough start. Zeph might like me, but I had something to prove when it came to his mother. I wanted her to eat her judgmental words.
Silence dragged out between me and Eve so long I thought she’d hung up. “You there?” I asked.
“Yeah. I was just thinking. What if we went over to Fawn’s place and you borrowed one of her dresses?”
I sucked in a breath. Fawn’s street style was much sweeter and more innocent than either mine or Eve’s and would be perfect for a garden party with the Harts. Fawn and I were similar heights and builds, though my boobs were bigger. But she would definitely have something that would make a better impression than my current options. “I don’t know how I feel about that…” My throat went oddly tight over even the thought of stepping inside Fawn’s space.
“If she were here, you wouldn’t think twice.”
Eve sniffed, and I wondered if she was fighting back the same set of tears I was.
I missed Fawn. But Eve was right. We all borrowed each other’s clothes. Eve had two brothers, and I was an only child. If Fawn had family, they weren’t in her life. So the three of us had become sisters.
