Page 51 of Never Ever Getting Back Together

“I prefer to be on the attack rather than the defense. As far as I’m concerned, failing to plan is planning to fail.”

“Okay, well, can I count on you to help me there?”

“I’m on it. I’ll start your image clean-up today, Captain.”

When she smiles, I can’t help but smile with her. I didn’t realize it was so infectious. In my defense, that’s likely because she spent the last forty-eight hours scowling at me.

“Also, we need a backup plan,” I say. “Just in case one of us doesn’t make it to the end. A delayed-action grenade.”

“But figurative, yes?”

“Okay, fine, figurative works, too. But seriously, the more girls we can recruit, the better our chances. I like thirty-three percent, but I like a hundred much more.”

Maya makes a face. “That sounds like a good way for us to get caught.”

“Well, we won’t fill them in on the plan. We’ll just… open their eyes to the sort of person Jordy is. If we’re really lucky, a couple of them might drop out themselves. We just need to nudge it along.”

“Uh-huh. And how are we going to do that?”

“Maya, people like Jordy don’t cheat on two girls at once and then go on to respect and care for everyone else they ever meet. If anything, they usually get worse, because they start to learn they can get away with it. If a single girl in there doesn’t haveanyJordy red flags, I’ll be shocked.”

“Perrie dated him before us,” Maya says. “And she doesn’t have any horror stories. Not that she told me about, anyway. But she already knows about the cheating stuff, obviously, and I bet she’ll be even madder about it when I tell her he played both of us. I’m pretty sure she’s just here to get more followers, anyway.”

“What makes you think that?”

“She told me she’s just here to get more followers.”

“Ah. Well, that means she’ll be able to see him more clearly than the others. That’s a good start.”

“What about the other girls?”

I think for a second. “Francesca’s a mixed bag. She only hooked up with him, so she’s not exactly invested. But it was so short that she probably didn’t get a chance to see his bad side.”

“Maybe we leave her ’til last, then. He might do our job for us if she’s around him long enough.”

“That’s actually very possible. Then, Lauren… Lauren seems more interested in meeting the royal family than being with Jordy. Pros: she might be easier to reason with. Cons: she might not care if Jordy’s an asshole if she thinks she’ll get to wear a crown if she dates him.”

“But she won’t get to wear a crown.”

“Yes, I know, but she… you’ll see. She’s awfully attached to the whole royalty thing. And Kim, I think, actually has real feelings for Jordy still. That might make her harder to talk to, but on the other hand it actually might work in our favor. Love turns to hate quite quickly, in the right circumstances.”

“Gotcha. So, Perrie, Kim, Lauren, Francesca?”

“Subject to change.”

“Naturally.”

Maya holds out her hand for a high-five. I glance at it and raise my eyebrows.

“Come on,” she urges. “We’re a team now. We need to high-five for morale.”

With as big a sigh as I can muster, I lightly tap my palm against hers.

“Close enough.”

“We can start today,” I say. “Lunch is probably the best time, because we’ll all be forced together. I’ll start a conversation with you, and we’ll just act like everything’s normal. The other girls have no reason to dislike you outside of what happened between you and me, so if I don’t have an issue, they won’t either. Theoretically, at least.”

“Won’t they ask what’s changed?”

---