The Boyfriend Project (12 page)

When we arrived at the party, Fletch and I left the girls by the pool and went to get drinks. We'd been to a party here before graduation so we were pretty familiar with the setup. The hard liquor was in the kitchen. Beer was in ice coolers near the deck that ran along the back of the house. As we neared, I caught sight of Chase. He was holding Jade in his arms, lifting her up and down like she was a set of barbells and he was doing a workout. People standing around were counting off the reps.

“That's him,” I said to Fletch.

“Who?”

“Chase. Over there with Jade.”

“Impressive.”

I scowled at him. “You're not supposed to be impressed. You're supposed to be pissed. He's such a show-off.”

We reached the coolers. I opened one, grabbed a beer, twisted the cap, and took a long, slow swallow.

“We can beat him,” Fletch said.

“I don't know. I've been doing the crunches until they almost kill me, and I'm starting to see some definition but realistically—look at that guy.”

“But he's showing off everything he's got. We're more subtle. That's better. And we'll have a secret weapon.”

I finished off the bottle, tossed it into a nearby trash can, and reached for another. “Oh, yeah? Fill me in on that.”

“This guy who brought his car into the shop is a personal trainer. Totally buff guy. So we got to talking about tricks of the trade and he said if we add just a dash of grape seed oil to our abs, biceps, shoulders, it'll really make them pop.”

I felt this wave of appreciation. “You could have kept that to yourself, given yourself an edge.”

“Probably would have if I was having to watch this guy flirt with Avery. Although it looks like maybe he's moved on to Jade.”

The counting came to an end with a round of cheers and applause. Chase bowed, then he and Jade wandered off.

“Maybe.” I downed more beer.

“Shouldn't you take it easy with that?” Fletch asked.

“You're designated driver.” I dug my keys out of my jeans pocket and tossed them to him. “I'm in the mood to party, especially now that we have a secret weapon.”

When the bottle was empty, I did a free throw move to get it into the trash can. I grabbed three more beers. “Let's get back to the girls.”

We were halfway there when Jade was suddenly standing in front of me. “Hey, handsome.”

No one had ever referred to me as handsome. Cute, maybe. But not handsome. I vaguely wondered where Chase was. Then I was struck with this crazy thought that she had abandoned him so she was free to come over to speak with me. I dug the possibility that she might have tossed him aside in favor of me. Served him right for flirting with my girl. More surprising, however, was the realization that Jade didn't even seem to notice that Fletch was standing beside me. I was used to him getting the attention when we were together. I had to admit that I liked being noticed. I liked it a lot.

“Can you believe they broke up?”

Tamara Dailey, who had barely given Avery and me the time of day while we were in high school, was suddenly acting like we were best buds. As soon as the guys had walked off to get us something to drink, Tamara—one of the biggest gossips in high school—had rushed over like she'd just heard Channing Tatum was going to make an appearance at our sides. But her news was more sobering: Amber Montgomery and John Ramirez had called it quits.

“They've been together, like, forever,” Tamara said. “Since freshman year.”

“He's going to Stanford, isn't he?” Avery asked. She knew all the smart people.

“Yep,” Tamara said. “And Amber is going to the junior college.”

“It's hard to have a long-distance relationship,” I said.

“But they don't know that yet. He hasn't left.”

“Well, maybe they just decided it was best.”

“But if they can't stick it out, what does that mean for the rest of us?” Tamara asked.

I wasn't a big fan of spreading tales about other people, so I decided to call out Tamara on her unnecessary dramatics. “I forget. Who are you with?” I asked.

She jutted out her chin. “No one, but now I don't know if there is any point in getting together with someone.”

With that pronouncement, she marched off.

Avery released a small laugh. “Wow. Talk about sweeping generalizations.”

“They were together a long time, though.”

Avery shrugged. “Our world starts to expand after high school. We have new experiences, meet new people. Not everything stays the same.”

Boy, that was true. Uncomfortable, I shifted from one foot to the other. “Maybe we shouldn't have come.”

She furrowed her brow. “Why?”

Because it was Jade's idea. “I don't know. Just one of those things that didn't stay the same. It's louder, a little wilder.”

“Seems the same to me.”

“What seems the same?” Fletcher asked as he handed us each a beer.

“Scooter's party. It doesn't seem as though it's changed much since we were here just before graduation,” Avery said.

He grinned. “You got plastered that night.”

“I did not. Well, maybe a little.”

Fletcher had given her a ride home, and that was the start of them getting together.

“Where's Jeremy?” I asked.

“He got waylaid.” Fletcher jerked his head back over his shoulder.

I followed the direction of his motion. Jeremy was standing at the edge of the pool talking with Jade and her usual partner in crime, Melody Long.

“What's he doing with them?” Avery asked.

“Jade has the hots for him,” I answered.

“Really?”

I glared at her. “Why do you find that so odd? He's the complete package.”

“Well, yeah, I know, I just always thought Jade went with guys who looked dangerous.”

Had she not taken a good look at Jeremy tonight? Probably not. Her focus was completely on Fletcher. While mine was on Jeremy. He was wearing a gray T-shirt tucked into jeans that hadn't been pressed. Both were a snug fit that didn't leave any doubt that his body was firming up as he worked on the construction crew. He hadn't
shaved. His hair looked as though he'd just run his fingers through it—or someone had. I didn't want to consider that it looked a little more mussed than it had when he picked me up. Surely it was because the breeze was ruffling it. He wouldn't let another girl—

I shook my head. He wouldn't.

“I'll be back,” Fletcher said, and he wandered off to talk with a couple of guys. I wondered if he thought I needed a few private moments with Avery.

“Is everything okay with you guys?” she asked.

“Yes.” But I didn't sound sure enough to convince a jury. I'd gone with Jeremy once to watch his dad in action in the courtroom, and Jeremy had snuck over to my side to narrate everything the lawyers and judge did. I missed those moments we shared. I capitulated. “Not really. I think I'm losing him.”

She looked at me as though I'd just announced that I'd spotted a spaceship landing. “Why would you think that?”

“He doesn't text me anymore.”

She gave me a blank look. I realized Fletcher would not be the texting sort, so she probably didn't know what I was referring to. I'd convinced myself the lack of texts was because he was so busy at the construction site that he didn't have time, and then I was with him on his breaks. . . .

“Jeremy used to text me during the day—just quick little messages so I'd know he was thinking of me. He hasn't
done that since we were at the beach. And now look at him with them.”

Her brow furrowed. “They're just talking.”

It was more than that. Jade and Melody were in his personal space and he was standing his ground, letting them in. They were in bathing suits, all that bare skin just inches from him, and he wasn't uncomfortable with it. If he was, he would have backed up.

Because Avery was my best friend, because I trusted her, I knew I could tell her the truth, and she wouldn't judge me. Or if she did, she'd do it kindly. “I've been asking him to change.”

She blinked. “To change what?”

In my head, it all sounded so stupid now. “His clothes, his hair, his . . . I don't know. He's always so nice. He never seems to get attention.”

“Is that what this gun show thing is all about?”

“Sorta. I guess. Yes. He was a geek. Not that there's anything wrong with being a geek. I thought I wanted him to not be so geekish. But now I'm wishing I had my geek back.”

As I watched him flex his muscles, I realized that it might be too late for that. Both Jade and Melody pinched and prodded his arms like they were trying to decide if he was fruit ripe for plucking. I downed half my beer before handing it off to Avery. “I'll be back.”

I marched toward them, sidestepping a couple of weaving guys, darting out of the way when someone in the pool splashed water at me. I finally reached them and came to a stop. “Hey.”

“Hey,” Jeremy said, smiling brightly, a little too brightly. “I was just telling them about the gun show.”

I didn't see the point. Jade already knew about it.

“Looked like maybe you were demonstrating the gun show,” I said. “Why would they donate to the shelter if they've already seen it?”

“Oh, we'll donate,” Melody said. “Don't you worry about that.” She clucked and winked at Jeremy. “Catch you later.”

They walked off.

“What did she mean by that?” I asked.

Jeremy shook his head. “I'm not really sure. I didn't catch most of what they were saying.” He placed a bottle to his lips, tipped his head back, and gulped several times. Then he gave me a speculative once-over. “Are you jealous?”

“I just don't like to see girls pawing at you.”

“They weren't pawing.”

Not technically maybe.

He slung his arm around my shoulders, staggered into me a little. “I don't remember these parties being so much fun.”

I was glad one of us was having a good time. No, I wasn't. I didn't want him having fun with other girls. He never gave other girls the time of day. What was going on?

“You need another drink,” he said.

“No, I'm good.”

He tilted his head like an inquisitive dog. “You don't seem good.”

“Maybe we should go.”

“We just got here. Come on.” With his arm around my shoulders, he led me toward the house.

I slipped my arm around his waist, slid my hand into his back jeans pocket. It was silly for me to let Jade and Melody upset me. This was a chance to spend time with Jeremy. That's all I wanted. To be with him.

Very few lights were on inside the house, but I could see shadows moving in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows that provided a wonderful view of the lake.

We went up the stairs to the deck. People were lounging around. Some were kissing. I thought one guy was sleeping or maybe he was passed out. It didn't matter. None of these people mattered. Only Jeremy did.

He slid the door open and we walked into the kitchen. A blender was whirring. A guy we knew from high school was standing near it.

“Hey, Marc, we'll have one of those,” Jeremy said as he tossed his beer bottle into a trash can before reaching
down to a cooler and grabbing another bottle.

“How many have you had?” I asked, because it wasn't like Jeremy to throw orders around. Normally he would ask if we could have something. He was always extremely polite.

“Not keeping count,” Jeremy said.

“Shouldn't you be?”

“I'm not driving. Just here to have fun.”

Only this wasn't fun. It was like being with someone I didn't know. Just then he smiled at me, placed the flat of his palm on the small of my back, and gave me a sweet, but quick, kiss. This was Jeremy. I realized I was just feeling insecure because of the attention he'd given Jade and Melody. They were the flirts. Not Jeremy.

Marc poured the pink mixture into a plastic cup and handed it to me.

“Thanks,” I said.

The last time we were at a party here, I hadn't come into the house because it was make-out central. I figured we'd leave after we got our drinks, but Jeremy put his arm around my shoulders again and guided me through a darkened dining room into a huge dimly lit living room. Music was thrumming. Candles were burning, providing the only light.

As my eyes adjusted, I saw shadows writhing on the sofas and chairs. Some people were sprawled over huge
pillows. The temperature of the room was stifling. It was like all the air had been sucked out of it.

Rising up on my toes, I spoke loudly into Jeremy's ear. “Why are we here?”

“Thought you wanted to explore things. Not be boring.”

“Not this, not like this.”

“Why not? I'm getting mixed messages, Kendall. You want something different, but when I offer it you don't want it.”

“This isn't different. It's more like awkward.”

“I'm not feeling awkward.” I watched as he gulped down the beer, then set the bottle in the middle of a potted fern.

“Jeremy, are you drunk?”

“No.” He said it fast and harsh, like he was offended. “I'm having a good time. We can make out by the pool.”

I didn't think I'd be up for that, either, but I didn't say anything because I just wanted to get out of the house. Taking my hand, he led me back the way we'd come. In the kitchen, he snatched another beer.

He staggered down the steps, nearly missed the last one, and laughed. He slung his arm around me. “Do you think I'm handsome?”

“Of course I do.”

“I think you're pretty. We should tell each other things like that.” He gave me a goofy grin. “I'm going to win the
gun show. I have a secret weapon.”

“What is it?”

He waved his finger back and forth in front of my nose, and I realized he'd had a lot to drink. A lot. And that wasn't like him, either.

“I can't tell you.”

He began leading me toward the pool, although he was leaning heavily on me and his steps weren't quite so sure. He drank as we went, then tossed the empty beer bottle onto the grass. That was so not Jeremy.

“I'm thinking we need to go,” I said.

“Thought we wanted to have fun.” He stopped walking and pointed to my plastic cup. “Are you going to drink that?”

“I don't think so.”

He took it from me and gulped down the drink. The cup went the way of the bottle before it. I glanced around. I needed to find Fletcher.

“Jeremy, we need to leave.”

“Why? It's just starting to get interesting.”

“You've had a lot to drink.”

“And you haven't had enough. You need to relax, Kendall. Enjoy the moment.”

How could I when this wasn't us? During the last party, we'd had a couple of drinks, but mostly we'd danced and kissed a little in the shadows. We'd focused on each
other. Tonight I felt alone, even though there were so many people around and so many things going on.

There was a high-pitched yell. Jeremy released his hold on me, turned—

Someone slammed into him and catapulted him into the pool, then followed him in. They both came up laughing and sputtering. The girl combed her fingers through her short, black hair.

Jade.

“Told you I'd get you into the pool before the night was over!” she yelled.

Jeremy laughed again, but it didn't sound like his laugh. It was like some stranger or an alien had taken ahold of him.

Melody cannonballed into the pool and was soon bobbing beside them.

I stared in disbelief as the two girls began climbing all over my boyfriend. All I could see were arms and legs. Jade and Melody were wearing two-piece bathing suits. Their bared skin flashed in the Japanese lanterns that were hung around the pool. Their shrieks and laughter echoed toward me. They weren't the only ones in the pool, but they were the only ones I could really see and hear.

Or at least, I would have sworn that they were the ones I was hearing.

Jeremy finally broke away and swam to the edge of the
pool. He hauled himself up and sat on the edge. He dragged his T-shirt over his head, wadded it up, wrung it out.

In stunned fascination I watched the muscles ripple over his torso and arms. Over his abs. Where had those come from? I knew he was in shape because of baseball. I'd seen his bare torso at the beach and when I gave him the massage. It seemed impossible that he could have changed so much in such a short time, so maybe it was just the way the shadows and light played over him but it looked like he was now sporting a six-pack.

“Come on, Jeremy,” Jade whined, bouncing up and down in the water. “I got you into the pool. You have to stay for a while.”