Page 43 of The Ugly Stepsister Strikes Back

I wanted to leave, but my feet felt glued to the floor. I waited for him to finish me off.

But he didn't do it. Jake crumpled up his index card and sat back in the seat next to me. Everyone still seemed shocked. Not a single person clapped for him. Ms. Rathbone practically sprinted to the podium to dismiss the assembly and to remind them to head out now and vote.

"Mattie, I didn't…"

I had no desire to listen to him. My feet finally started working and I walked backstage, away from prying eyes.

I hadn't gotten far when Jake reached out to take me by the arm, turning me to face him. "Leave me alone," I hissed at him.

"You need to let me explain. I did not write this speech. Scott did. I know that's no excuse. I should have gone through it before I read it out loud."

I yanked my arm away from his grasp. I couldn't think straight when he touched me. I was so angry, but I had to consider the facts. I thought of the speech and how little it had sounded like Jake to me. I had seen Scott hand him those cards. "Why should I believe anything you say?"

"I have never lied to you. I may have made a couple of bad choices recently, but I've never lied to you."

Everything inside me wanted to believe him. The words, "I believe you," came to the tip of my tongue. I clenched my teeth together to keep them from escaping.

"Why didn't you just write it yourself?"

He must have sensed that I was softening. "Because last night I had to choose between writing the speech and seeing you. I chose you."

How could I not melt? I knew how busy he was. After he said that, I probably would have accepted any explanation to excuse his behavior. Somebody had drugged him. He had an evil twin. He had a time machine and would go back and undo it. Anything.

I wished I felt nothing for him. Instead I was angry and hurt, but underneath it all? I definitely still loved him. I couldn't believe that I wanted to give him the benefit of the doubt.

If he was playing me, he was amazingly good at it.

I wanted to test him. "Ella's dating Trent. They're serious."

Jake looked really confused. "Um, okay. Good for Ella?"

"You're not upset? You're not jealous?"

"Why would I be? I told you that things with me and Ella were over." He sounded so sincere and so bewildered.

Maybe Mercedes didn't have the simplest explanation. Maybe the simplest explanation was the one that my heart believed. That Jake liked me. That Scott had set me up to be embarrassed and Jake really didn't know anything about it.

Jake took a step toward me, and I took a step back. That made him stop. He looked and sounded hurt. "I'm so sorry that happened. I told Scott I was thinking about dropping out because I didn't have time for it, and he said he would take care of it and help me because he wanted us all to do student council together."

What did I say to that? "Okay." His problems with his idiot friends were not really my problem.

He ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. "Look, if I win, I'm going to decline."

"I don't need your pity."

"It's not my pity. What happened today was wrong. Listening to you up there, you really believe in something. You want this school to be a better place. I was just doing this to make my friends and my dad happy. You should be president. And I won't have to decline because now I probably won't even win."

Jake and Ella. King and Queen of the Land of Delusion. In what universe would Jake Kingston not win the election? "That's nice and everything, but you sort of just humiliated me in front of the whole school, so I'm going to go now."

But before I could leave, the curtains got thrown aside, and a fire-breathing Ms. Rathbone stood there. "Mr. Kingston, in my officenow."

"Can I just…"

"Now!" She stormed off and Jake looked at me apologetically.

"I have to go. I know I don't deserve to ask you this, but will you come to the masquerade ball tonight? I think we need to talk more about this."

No, my head screamed.Tell him no! What is wrong with you?

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