Will the Real Prince Charming Please Stand Up (5 page)

“Like, as your girlfriend?”

“Well, yeah.”

My eyes widened in shock, and it was all I could do to not squeal with excitement. Instead, I nodded. I tried not to think of my friends at the window and reached up to kiss him again. This time, it wasn’t so awkward, probably because I wasn’t surprised.

Maybe kissing was something that required practice.

He climbed into his car, and I watched him drive away. When I turned to walk back up to my house, I saw my friends were still watching me. Ally was glowing, but Finn and Talia didn’t look very pleased.

“So I guess you have a boyfriend now,” Talia said when I joined them in the family room.

Ally clasped her hands together. “And you guys are so cute!”

Talia stepped forward and gave me a hug.

“Just promise me you won’t let him change you.”

As expected, Ally and I were way more excited about my relationship with Dante than Talia was. While Ally squealed with me and let me relive everything by asking me to replay all my conversations with him, Talia kind of sulked. She didn’t say anything negative, but her lack of enthusiasm was a clear indication of her disapproval.

We met Talia’s mom for brunch the next morning at the Lakeridge Golf and Tennis Club. My parents weren’t members, but Talia’s mom was, and we usually went as guests of the Nicolettis.

The clubhouse was a massive wood and stone ranch-style house that, as its name implied, rested on the edge of a lake. It was absolutely gorgeous. The rich wood throughout the clubhouse restaurant made me think of an old log cabin with its paneled walls and rustic oak furniture. Since it was a bit chilly outside, there was a fire ablaze in the large stone fireplace, and I was elated that the hostess sat us at a table beside the hearth.

“So, Brady, did you hear that Bianca has a boyfriend?” Talia asked my brother as he shoveled eggs into his mouth.

Brady choked on his food, and my dad set his tablet computer aside to firmly whack him across the shoulders. After taking a sip of orange juice, Brady was fine, and my dad went back to reading.

“What?” he demanded. “Who?”

“Dante,” she replied with a smirk in my direction. I tried to kick her under the table but missed.

“Schwartz?” Brady sounded surprised.

“Do you know him?” my mom asked, pausing her conversation with Talia’s mother.

Brady shrugged and shoved an entire strip of bacon into his mouth. “More like of him,” he said as he chewed. “He was on JV last year but hardly played. I thought he was going out with that cute little cheerleader. Chloe or something.”

“Zoe,” I corrected him, annoyed. “And Ally said they broke up last week.”

He snorted. “Someone moves fast.”

“My thoughts, exactly,” Talia concurred.

“So is that why he was hanging out at your table last week?”

“Maybe,” I said, sticking out my tongue at him.

“Oh, that’s attractive,” he said, his mouth full of eggs.

“Yeah, okay, Kettle,” I retorted.

“Tim wanted to go over there and see what was going on, but I told him to let it go.” He shook his head. “I should’ve listened to him.”

I was regretting the decision to drop Ally off at her house on the way to the club. Why didn’t I beg her to stay for at least a couple more hours? At least if she’d been there, I would’ve had a little bit of support.

“Dante’s a nice guy,” I said with a pout. Talia snorted in protest, but I ignored her. “And I like him. Can’t you be happy for me?”

Brady studied me as chewed. He took a large bite of a croissant and grunted. “He’ll do for now, I guess.” He waved the other half of his roll at me and added, “But you can do better.”

“Really? Because it’s not like I’ve had lots of other options,” I said. “It’s like you’ve been actively scaring them all off.”

“Only the losers.” He shrugged. “My guess is that this Schwartz kid is too stupid to know he should stay away from my sister.”

My brother still had that opinion Monday morning when he saw Dante waiting in the senior lot.

“Be nice,” I hissed before I hopped out of the car.

“Hey,” Dante drawled, enveloping me in a hug and holding me a little closer than I wanted my brother to see.

I pecked him on the cheek and pulled away to introduce him to Brady. “Do you know my brother?” I asked.

“Only by reputation.” Dante held out his hand. “It’s good to meet you, man.”

Brady looked at his outstretched hand for a second before grasping it. “Yeah, good to meet you,” he replied. He looked at me, his expression unreadable.

“Brady!”

My brother turned as Tim headed toward us.

“Hey, man!” They high-fived their greeting and clasped hands in a sort of a handshake.

“What’s going on here?” Tim asked, seeming to note Dante’s arm around my shoulder.

“Um, Tim, this is my boyfriend, Dante,” I said, beaming as I introduced them. It was hard to believe I was actually introducing someone as my boyfriend. “Tim’s been Brady’s best friend since they were in, like, first grade,” I explained. “He’s like my brother.”

“Ah, good to meet you.” Dante extended his hand, and Tim firmly gripped it right away.

“Yeah, same.” Tim replied. He didn’t release Dante’s hand for a few more seconds, though, and it made me uneasy. I already had Brady watching me like some predatory bird Finn would know all about; I didn’t need Tim hovering, too.

I cleared my throat. Dante stretched his fingers and inched closer to me, putting his arm around my waist this time.

“How did Saturday night go?” I asked. “Brady said you guys had a blast.”

Tim glanced at my brother, and the two of them laughed at some inside joke. “Oh, man, it was awesome,” he said, leaning on Veronica. “You should’ve gone.”

“Maybe next year,” I said with a non-committal shrug, “if Ally and Talia go. Someone’s got to be around to referee those two.”

He chuckled. “Your friends are a riot. How was the marathon?”

“Good!” I replied brightly. “We only watched four movies, though. Finn didn’t want to stay for
The World Is Not Enough
. But Dante came over for a little bit.”

Brady stared at me, surprised. “Oh, really?”

“Yeah, we had a good time.” Dante smiled at me.

“He didn’t stay long,” I said, resting my head on his shoulder, “so it was mostly me and Ally and Talia and Finn.”

“No Jake?”

I shook my head. “Bonfire had some kind of Battle of the Bands thing.” I frowned. “I don’t think it went well, though. Talia got some cryptic text from him Saturday night, and she said he was kind of down when she talked to him yesterday. And there was something about some record label guy being there or whatever.”

“Ooh, Zack can’t have been happy about that.”

“Probably. I didn’t get all the deets.” The first bell rang and I jumped. “I’ve got to run,” I said, hoisting my backpack over my shoulder. “Talia texted me early this AM, and I have to go over some notes with her before homeroom.” I turned to Dante and wrapped my arms around his waist. “Will I see you at lunch?” I asked, peering into his eyes.

“I’ll see you before that.” He planted a small kiss on my nose before I took off running for class, leaving him with my brother and his best friend.

****

Dante was waiting for me when I got out of homeroom, and I nearly skipped across the hall to see him.

“Hey,” he said, taking my hand. “I missed you.”

“Aww, I missed you, too!” I pecked him on the cheek and put my head on his shoulder as he put his arm around my waist.

“I wish we had some classes together,” he said as we walked to my next class. “Then I could see you more often.”

“We had algebra together last year,” I said.

“We did?”

“You don’t remember? I sat next to you the whole year.”

“Oh, yeah,” he said absently.

I frowned. I had a strong suspicion he didn’t remember.

He nodded greetings to a few people as we passed them in the halls. “Are you doing stuff with your friends this weekend?” he asked.

“Jake and Talia are coming over Saturday to finish up our project.”

“Will that Finn guy be there, too?”

“I don’t know. I think so,” I replied.

“You spend a lot of time with him.”

“With Finn? Um, I guess?” I shook my head. “Finn is, like, the last person you should worry about.”

He nodded, but he looked skeptical. “What about Sunday?”

I shrugged. “I don’t think I have anything going on. Why?”

“I figured you and I could hang out, maybe do some stuff together since I didn’t really get to have you to myself last Saturday.”

“Maybe. Possibly.” I smiled and glanced up at him. “We’ll see.”

We turned to go down the hall toward my English class, and I saw Tim and Chelsea Cooper headed our direction. The petite blonde had her arm linked through his, and she was staring up at him as if whatever he was saying held the answer to all of life’s mysteries. It shouldn’t have been a surprise. I mean, Ally had told us he was dating her, but seeing them together made my breakfast curdle in my stomach.

It was unsettling.

“Are you okay?” Dante asked.

“What? Um, yeah.”

“You look like you’re in another world.”

“No, I’m fine.” I kept my eyes downcast as Tim and Chelsea passed us. Dante didn’t miss it. He looked over his shoulder.

“She’s pretty.”

“Who?”

“That girl with your brother’s friend.”

My lip curled into a slight sneer. “I guess.”

“But you’re beautiful,” he said as we approached my classroom.

I beamed at him, basking in the compliment. “Thank you,” I said. I put my arms around him and tilted my head back, ready to be kissed. He didn’t disappoint.

The warning bell interrupted us, and I reluctantly pried myself away from him.

“Will I see you before lunch?”

“Probably not,” he replied, adjusting his backpack. “I have to head down to the gym after next period.”

“Oh, that’s right,” I said. The truth was that I didn’t know his class schedule, but I didn’t admit that to him. He leaned down for another lingering kiss before I ducked into the classroom.

But as I sat down near the front of the room and waited for the period to begin, I couldn’t blot out the image of Chelsea hanging on Tim’s arm.

I picked at my nails while my parents grilled Dante in the living room a few minutes before noon on Sunday. My mom was perched on the edge of an accent chair as my father, more relaxed on the couch, talked to my boyfriend. Dante wore faded jeans with a button-down shirt and sat across from my parents in the large recliner that served as my favorite reading perch. My dad asked all kinds of questions, quizzing him on everything from his favorite subject in school to the last movie he’d seen in the theater. Dante answered easily, oozing charm to win over my parents.

“So where are you kids going?” Dad asked, getting to his feet.

“Lunch and a movie,” Dante replied as he stood. “My friend Justin and his girlfriend are waiting outside for us.” He smiled at me, and I rose from the loveseat, still eyeing my parents as I tried to gauge their reaction. Mom still didn’t look too pleased, but my dad seemed at ease.

“Well, it’s good to meet you,” my dad said, extending his hand. He chuckled when Dante clasped it and said, “Have her home in a few hours.”

“Yes, sir,” Dante said with a nod.

“Hey, guys, Kira and I are meeting up with Tim and Chelsea at the lake,” Brady hollered as he bounded down the stairs. He stopped short when he saw us all in the living room. “What is this?”

“Nothing that concerns you, Brady,” Mom said with a sharp glance.

“Is this, like, a date?”

“Brady,” my mother said, a clear warning in her voice.

He frowned as he took a few steps back. “Fine. Just letting you know we’re heading to the lake. I’ll see you guys later.”

“Be home before dinner!” Mom called after him before the front door slammed.

I shifted from one foot to the other and shoved my hands into my jeans. “So, um, maybe we should get going, too?” I said, looking at Dante. He nodded again, and I waved at my parents as I hurried past them.

Once I closed the front door behind me, I breathed a sigh of relief.

“That could have gone a lot worse,” Dante said. He took my hand and led me to the dark blue sedan where his friends were waiting.

“Bianca, right?” the driver said as I climbed into the back seat. I recognized Justin Ortiz from school; he was a sophomore and one of the guys Dante hung out with. I didn’t know the pretty brunette in the front seat, but she introduced herself as Andrea.

“So, lunch first? Or the movies?” I said as Justin turned off my street.

Andrea glanced over her shoulder at me and giggled. “You’re kidding, me, right?” she said. “Dante, what did you have to tell her parents?”

“Shut it, Andrea,” he said with a glare.

“So we’re not going to the movies?” I whispered to Dante. I didn’t want Andrea to laugh at me again.

“Do you mind?” he asked. “I mean, we can’t really get to know each other at the movies.”

“Oh.” He had a point, and I really didn’t want to seem immature. “No, I don’t mind,” I said. “But where are we going?”

“Someplace very special to me,” he replied as he gazed out the window.

****

Justin pulled up to a lakefront home, and we climbed out of the car. The grass was unkempt and looked like it hadn’t been cut in months. Leaves from a nearby oak tree littered the driveway and the front lawn. The house itself was lovely, a Spanish mission-style home with ivory stucco walls and a red tile roof. But it looked rather lonely, like it had been abandoned.

The homeowners’ association probably wasn’t pleased.

Dante tossed something to Justin, and I watched as he and a giggling Andrea disappeared into the house.

I looked around. “Where are we?”

Without a word, Dante took my hand and led me around the back of the property. A large patio boasted an outdoor kitchen, a wide porch swing, and a breathtaking view of the lake. He brushed some dust off the swing cushion before he sat down and invited me to join him.

“Are we allowed to be here?” I asked as I sat beside him. It didn’t look like anyone lived at the house, but I was still afraid of trespassing.

“This was my grandmother’s house,” he said quietly. He looked out over the lake and reached for my hand. A flock of herons gathered along the rocky shoreline, probably searching for food.

“Is she home?”

He shook his head and squeezed my hand. “No, she died a few months ago, at the end of the summer.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” I said. My grandparents lived in different states, so I didn’t see them often, but I still felt bad for Dante. “You guys must have been close,” I observed aloud.

He nodded. “She was pretty amazing.”

“I’d liked to have met her,” I said, not sure if I meant it. It seemed like the right thing to say.

Dante smiled at me and released my hand to put his arm around my shoulder. I tucked my feet up onto the swing and leaned into him. I sighed as I inhaled his citrusy and peppery scent.

“This was my favorite place to sit when I was a kid,” he said. “I’d hang out on this bench and stare out at the water. Grandma would read me stories here when I was really little.”

“I take it you were here a lot?”

He nodded again. “My parents left me with her whenever they’d go on business trips and stuff.” I could feel him tense up before he cleared his throat. “I spent a lot of time here.”

“No wonder you were so close.”

He shrugged. “Probably. My folks weren’t around much. There were a lot of important things going on. More important than me.”

“Oh,” I said. I tried to imagine Dante as a little boy clutching his grandmother’s hand, tears spilling out of large hazel eyes as he watched his parents drive away. My mom was a constant in my life; that his parents weren’t always accessible was so foreign to me.

“So you know that car I drove to your house last week?”

I smiled. “The one that freaked out my mom because she somehow knew you weren’t sixteen yet?”

He leaned back to study my face. “How did she know that?”

I shook my head. “My mom knows everyone’s parents at Westgate. I would’ve been more surprised if she didn’t know.”

Dante raised his eyebrows, impressed. “That’s kind of cool, though. I mean, that she cares.”

“Sure, if by ‘cool’ you really mean ‘embarrassing.’” I shuddered. “Sorry. Yes, I remember your car.”

He looked out at the lake again. “My grandmother bought that for me.”

“Really?”

“She mostly added to my trust fund, but she wanted to give me something I could use right away and not have to wait until I was twenty-five.”

“Wow! That’s amazing!” Then, a little more quietly, I added, “You must miss her a whole lot.”

He nodded in response, but it seemed like he was in another world. I snuggled against him, not wanting to disturb him.

I smiled into his shirt, feeling a closeness growing between us. Dante adored his grandmother. He couldn’t possibly be as horrible as Talia said he was.