Kissing the Shy Guy - Stephanie Street Page 0,58

because their house wasn’t safe. That was a new concept to me. I’d never realized other families and homes weren’t as happy as ours. Mom told me she’d saved all of our things from when Melly and I were babies. She’d packed it up for that lady because she was having a girl and didn’t have anything for the baby.” She stopped again, and when she didn’t start up the rest of the story, I wondered if she would.

“That was nice of her,” I said, hoping to get her going again, but Jenna just snorted.

“It was nice of her. I remember thinking about how that woman said thank you and connecting the dots, you know, that she was thankful because Mom gave her all that stuff. And I was like my mom’s a hero.”

That made me smile. I imagined a six-year-old Jenna—had I known her then? I shook my head. It didn’t matter. But I imagined her staring at her mom with stars in her eyes, like a superhero.

“And she is,” Jenna continued, but her tone had changed from worshipful to bitter. “She really is. That lady wasn’t the first one to walk up to Mom in the grocery store. Or the post office. Or the hair salon. Or church. She’s touched so many lives, helped so many people.”

“That’s amazing.” I knew people like that existed, I just wasn’t one of them. And it wasn’t that I was unwilling to help, I just never went out of my way to do it. Maybe I should be better about that—something to think about another time.

Jenna’s gaze held mine, transparent and open. “It is.”

I heard it, though. “But?”

“No, there are no buts. She’s an incredible person. I’m proud of her.”

I believed she was proud of her mother. “But?” I asked again, knowing I was right.

She wasn’t going to tell me, but then her shoulders fell, and her breath expelled from her lips in a gusty sigh. “I’m a horrible person,” she said.

I chuckled. “No, you’re not. But tell me why you think so.” I touched her cheek again, cupping it in the palm of my hand.

Her hand covered mine, warm and soft. She pulled them both into her lap, staring into space before speaking again.

“She’s getting an award from the mayor. Some humanitarian award for the things she does in the community.”

“That’s awesome.”

Jenna nodded. “It is. Like I said, I’m really proud of her.”

I heard it again, that unspoken word. “But?”

Jenna nudged me with her shoulder. “Stop saying that.”

I nudged her right back. “Stop leaving me hanging. Tell me what’s wrong.” Trust me.

Jenna swallowed hard, her gaze focused on the trees by the picnic table. “They’re having a banquet. It’s the same night as the scholarship competition.”

I sat there stunned, trying to process what she’d just told me. “And she’s…”

“Not going to New York, I can tell you that.” Her voice dripped with bitterness and sarcasm.

I thought back to the night of the concert when she’d told me her family hadn’t made it to watch. She’d played it off like it hadn’t been a big deal. I hadn’t known her well enough then to see the hurt reflected in her eyes. We talked about it again later, when she told me about Melly’s meltdown… I’d thought about it then, the disappointment she must have felt when no one had supported her at her final high school concert.

“What about your dad and Melly?” Surely, they would go, but Jenna shook her head.

“No. They’ll go to Mom’s banquet.”

My mind went blank except for a four-letter word that would have my mom’s eyes bulging if she ever heard me say it—right before she killed me.

“Jenna—,” I started to say.

“No. It’s fine. I don’t know why I expected anything else. I’d been waiting for the final shoe to drop.” She cast her eyes at me. “I just thought it would come from you.”

She might as well have swung a sledgehammer at my heart. Turning on the bench, I grabbed her shoulders. “Not from me. Never from me.”

She lifted one brow. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”

I tried not to be offended. I could hear the pain in her voice. So many things that hadn’t added up about Jenna began to fall into line. The walls. The distance she kept between herself and the world. Melly was the only one she let in. How would I convince her to add me to that short list?

“I’ll keep my promises, Jenna,” I whispered.

We were so close. Her green eyes