Page 29 of Scarlett and the Kiss Thief

“That sounds like a great plan. That way Liam can join us too.”

“Sweet,” Liam said. “But I’m picking the movie so Scar won’t choose a romcom.”

“What’s wrong with romcoms?”

“They’re unrealistic,” Liam said and climbed out of the car.

Yeah. Maybe.

***

I pulled on the sparkly dress that Sophie thought would be perfect. And it was. I felt as confident as I had when I first stepped into Empire High this week. Right before Gigi tripped me and Axel said he liked my glasses. I pushed the thought aside and smiled at my reflection in the mirror.

The dress was all the things I’d said before – too short, too sparkly, too much. But too much was just right tonight. It was the first party of the year and I wanted to stand out. The gold dress cut off right below my butt and the neckline dipped dangerously low down the front. My dad had confiscated my Odegaards, but Sophie was bringing me black high heels. I laced up a pair of sneakers in the meantime, checked my makeup, and was ready for the escape plan.

The only problem was…I was waiting for a text from RJ to tell me what the heck the plan was.

And waiting.

And waiting.

My phone finally buzzed. “You’ll get a text once the coast is clear.” It immediately buzzed again. “Wait for it.”

I inched closer to my bedroom door.

“Wait for it.”

“I am waiting,” I texted back.

“Don’t ruin the suspense, baby doll.”

“Stop calling me that, RJ.”

“Wait for it.”

I sighed. RJ would never stop calling me weird nicknames. I’m pretty sure it was a character flaw he picked up from his father. Because I’d heard Uncle Rob call my mother some very weird things in my lifetime. Inappropriate things. Definitely an inherited character flaw.

“Wait for it,” RJ texted.

Oh my God.I swear if this was just me walking out of the apartment when my parents were in their room, I could have done it myself. I already knew they were in there.

“Wait for it.”

“Wait,” I texted back. “Is wait for it the signal to go?”

“No. Don’t go.”

“But you said you’d text me once the coast is clear and you’ve texted me a million times since then.”

“Patience, baby doll.”

I was going to slap him whenever I saw him next. “Whenever I do go, aren’t Briggs and Porter going to see me?”

“No, Liam is busy flirting with them. Or seducing. I can’t remember what he decided on.”

“Liam, Briggs, and Porter are all straight.”

“Seducing their minds, baby doll,” he texted.

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