"I'm a ... Sex pixie!" she sang, giving it a footstomping rhythm.
"No, you're not, " Phillip said with devastating calm. "And why don't you put some clothes on?"
Holding the refrigerator door open, Poppy looked down at herself. She was wearing the oversize T-shirt she'd slept in. It covered ' her like a, minidress. "This is clothes, " she said serenely, taking a Diet Coke from the fridge.
There was a knock at the kitchen door. Poppy saw who it was through the screen.
"Hi, James! Come in. "
James Rasmussen came in, taking off his wraparound Ray-Bans. Looking at him, Poppy felt a pang-as always. It didn't matter that she had seen him every day, practically, for the past ten years. She still felt a quick sharp throb in her chest, somewhere between sweetness and pain, when first confronted with him every morning.
It wasn't just his outlaw good looks, which always reminded her vaguely of James Dean. He had silky light brown hair, a subtle, intelligent face, and gray eyes that were alternately intense and cool. He was the handsomest boy at El Camino High, but that wasn't it, that wasn't what Poppy responded to. It was something inside him, something mysterious and compelling and always just out of reach. It made her heart beat fast and her skin tingle.
Phillip felt differently. As soon as James came in, he stiffened and his face went cold. Electric dislike flashed between the two boys.
Then James smiled faintly, as if Phillip's reaction amused him. "Hi. "
"Hi, " Phil said, not thawing in the least. Poppy had the strong sense that he'd like to bundle her up and rush her out of the room. Phillip always overdid the protective-brother bit when James was around. "So how's Jacklyn and Michaela?" he added nastily.
James considered. "Well, I don't really know. "
"You don't know? Oh, yeah, you always drop your girlfriends just before summer vacation. Leaves you free to maneuver, right?"
"Of course, " James said blandly. He smiled.
Phillip glared at him with unabashed hatred.
Poppy, for her part, was seized by joy. Goodbye, Jacklyn; goodbye Michaela. Goodbye to Jacklyn's elegant long legs and Michaela's amazing pneumatic chest. This was going to be a wonderful summer.