Page 79 of Nerdy or Nice
"So change." I felt like a dick for saying it, but the excuses were a smokescreen at best. I knew what this wasreallyabout.
"Well, sure, Icould,"Gwen said. "But Lexie's all the way across the street. And she's talking to the neighbor guy, so I'd hate to interrupt." She lowered her voice. "We think she might be dating him. You know, in secret."
More secrets.This shouldn’t have been a surprise. But I didn't care about the neighbor guy. I cared about Gwen. And I cared aboutus.
If I was the only one who felt this way, I needed to know. "So bring her a different coat, ask her to switch them out."Yeah, I was pushing the issue, but it wasn't because of the coat.It was because I was done sneaking around, and I wanted Gwen to be done, too.
Gwen chewed on her lower lip. "So, you want me to…grab a coat from Lexie's bedroom?"
"From wherever," I said. "It makes no difference to me."
She looked ready to argue, but then apparently reconsidered. "Fine." She stalked to the bedroom door and yanked it open.
She was obviously ticked.But the wayIsaw it, that was agoodthing.
If the situation with her cousins was causing her to sneak around, some righteous anger was long overdue.
Just before leaving, she turned back to say, "First, tell me something."
"What?"
"You're not gonna go out there and ask Lexie for your coat on your own, are you?"
The thought hadn't even occurred to me. "WhywouldI?"
"I don't know, but you've got that look."
I knew what I wasfeeling, but whatever she saw, I could only guess. "What look?"
"Like you're ready for trouble." She glanced toward the front of the house. "You're not gonna go over there, are you?"
"Into the guy's yard?" I gave it some thought. "No."
She studied my face. "And you're not gonna talk to Lexie?"
"Wasn't planning on it." But now that Gwen had brought it up, the idea was taking hold. I suddenly recalled that my house keys were still in my coat pocket, so unless I wanted to break a window or wake Gramps in the middle of the night, I would be needing that coat.
But this wasn't therealproblem. The real problem was that all of this sneaking was making both of us crazy.
From the open doorway, Gwen gave me an anxious look. "So you promise?"
I felt a slow smile spread across my face. "Sure, why not?"
Chapter 46
Gwen
I'd just reached the top of the stairs when I heard the front door open and shut. I stopped and looked toward the sound.Lexie?
Ithadto be.
Thank God.
If I was lucky, she would return the coat to the sofa, where I could snag it with nobody being none the wiser.
I practically flew down the stairs only to pause in the darkened living room.Nobody was there.I glanced around but saw no sign of Drake's coat. So Lexiehadn'treturned?
I rushed to the nearest front window and felt my eyes widen in surprise.
