of his drink. “Ginger actually helped make that channel.”
Mrs. Sadler and I both looked at him in shock. How did he know I’d played a part in that? He certainly hadn’t been on my list of contacts to call on launch day.
He shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “Everyone at school was talking about it—wishing they had Ginger to go YouTube famous,” Ray explained. It might have been just me, but his cheeks definitely looked a little pink.
His mom patted my arm. “Those videos are fantastic. You should be proud.”
Okay, now I was blushing. “Jordan’s mom was so good on camera, and Jordan was a great help with the editing and everything else. And then Kai Rush, his family developed Rush+, and he sent a notification out on the whole app.”
“That’s how I found out!” she said. “Way too neat.”
I agreed. I was beyond glad that Jordan’s family had begun to put themselves into a better situation—including the townhouse I’d be helping them move into next weekend.
Laura stood from the table. “I can go get the board game. Which one do you want to play?”
Mrs. Sadler named off a few options, and Laura left to get a game I hadn’t heard of, Quirkle. Within half an hour, we were all laughing and playing at the table.
“This is so much fun,” I said, grinning.
“I bet you and your family do things like this all the time,” Mrs. Sadler said.
I shook my head. “With the store, my dad works long, late hours. Mom barely has enough time to put the twins through their acting classes and go to Cori’s basketball games.”
She smiled warmly. “You sound like a great big sister.”
I could feel Ray’s gaze on me, but I kept my eyes on the table. “Thank you,” I finally said.
She pushed back from the table. “Well, I think it’s time for me to go to bed.” She pointed to the younger two. “Don’t stay up too late watching TV.” Then she pointed at Ray and me. “And you two. Separate beds. No ‘letting loose’ on my watch.”
My cheeks heated. I could have died right there. But I had the rest of the night with Ray, and I wasn’t going to waste it.
Forty-Three
“What now?” I asked.
Ray left without explanation and returned to the guest room with his laptop. “What’s your favorite movie?”
I tapped my chin. Picking a favorite movie was like picking a favorite freckle as far as I was concerned. How could I choose just one?
“It’s not for a grade,” Ray teased.
I shot him an exasperated look. “Let me think.” After a few minutes, I had it. “The Breakfast Club.”
“Isn’t that movie like a hundred years old?”
I covered my heart, offended. “Hardly. It’s the height of storytelling. Great acting. Real life. Intriguing characters...” I let out a sigh. “Perfection.”
He went to a video site and began typing. “We have to watch it.”
“Was that even a question?”
He chuckled. “Found it.” He pushed play, then halfway through the opening credits hit the pause button.
I gave him a quizzical look. “What are you waiting for?”
The mischievous look I was coming to love quirked his lips. “Two words.”
“Push play?”
He chuckled and tucked my head under his arm to rub my head. I beat at his chest, laughing. “Stop! Uncle!”
We were both laughing as he released me.
“No,” he said. “Blanket fort.”
“You’re kidding.”
Grabbing a blanket from the back of the couch, he tossed it to me. “Does it look like I’m kidding?”
For the next ten minutes, with lots of giggles and shoving, we built the world’s worst blanket fort between the bed and the desk, eventually climbing underneath and lying on our backs. The basement light cast a blue glow as it shined through the blanket, and it made Ray look even more handsome than he had before.
His eyes appeared almost black as he rolled his head toward me, the laptop on his stomach. “Ready?”
I nodded. With Ray, I was ready for anything.
The opening credits rolled, and I tried to focus on the screen instead of his face, which had to be a superhuman feat. From this angle, the slope of his nose seemed like a perfect mountain. His lips were full, and I couldn’t get the idea of what they’d feel like off my mind. And then there was the flat plane of his stomach muscles, upon which the computer lifted. I couldn’t see the screen without properly admiring that, now could I?
Gosh, I was a creep. If Ray could hear my thoughts, he’d be getting as far away