My Know-It-All Nemesis - Maggie Dallen Page 0,23

she didn’t care what I did…at all.

So yeah, I guessed that made me lucky?

Maybe.

Maybe not.

“Where’d you even get that suit?” Claire asked when she headed past me to grab a drink from the outdoor fridge.

I looked down with a smirk. “Ordered it online, obviously.”

“Looks like it could’ve been your grandpa’s,” she laughed.

Maybe my great-grandpa’s, even. Baby blue and totally ridiculous, my suit was straight out of the fifties. I adjusted my thick black frames with no lenses and ran a hand over my slicked-back hair.

I had to say, as far as costumes went, mine was rather inspired. Kate and I were hosting this together, right? I figured if I’d started those jokes at her expense, I might as well take back ownership. Kate would show up looking like…well, looking like Kate. And she and I would turn the joke around, make it our own.

At least, that was the plan.

I heard a guy behind me let out a whistle. “Whoa, who’s that?”

It took me too long to figure out who he was referring to, but the moment I spotted the girl in black, I knew it was her. The hottie with the long blonde hair was heading straight for me and—

Oh my…

No way.

“Is that—” someone started to say beside me.

“Kate Andrews,” I finished.

But this was Kate Andrews as we’d never seen her before. Gone was the bubbly smile—that was oddly the first thing I registered. I mean, sure, her looks were…crazy.

Crazy hot.

She looked incredible. But it was the lack of that perma-smile that had me blinking to make sure this was Kate.

“Who are you supposed to be?” she asked when she reached me.

“I—uh—I—” I couldn’t speak. I’d officially lost the ability to put two words together, let alone form a sentence.

Holy crap, Kate Andrews was hot. I always knew she was pretty, cute, adorable…take your pick. But hot?

I’d had no idea.

Those big blue eyes blinked up at me, and her pink lips curved up in a smirk. “You like the new look?”

Yes. Holy cow, yes! Too much yes.

I cleared my throat. “You look incredible.”

Something flickered in her eyes, and I was horrified to think it might be…disappointment. I hurried to add, “You’re always beautiful, Kate, but this…”

She heaved a deep breath. “This isn’t me.”

I glanced down at my suit. “And this isn’t me. Doesn’t mean it’s not fun to be somebody else for a night, now does it?”

Something sparkled in her eyes. Laughter, maybe. “You sound like my sister.”

“Your sister sounds very wise,” I deadpanned.

She smiled, and my heart slammed against my ribcage. That was a first. The first time I’d ever gotten an honest-to-goodness smile from her.

It was even better than I’d imagined.

“So?” she said, gesturing toward my outfit.

“Buddy Holly,” I said.

Her smile slipped a bit, and she met my gaze. “Is this you making fun of me again, Miller?”

The question was straightforward and genuine and…so very Kate. “No,” I said. “This is me making the joke our own.” I nudged her elbow with mine. “Solidarity, sister,” I teased.

Only a hint of wariness entered her eyes, and I could have sworn I saw the moment she decided to believe me.

“And this?” I nodded toward her tight dress and the heels that made her legs a traffic hazard. Literally, pedestrian traffic was grinding to a halt around us as the males of our class stopped to ogle the hottie in their midst.

She bit her lip for a second. “This is me being somebody different for the night. Somebody who’s…” She shrugged. “Somebody who’s not a freak.”

The word hit me like a punch in the gut. Or maybe that was the look in her eyes.

She knew.

“You heard that, huh?”

I tried to play it cool, but it was hard. I had this sudden and ridiculous urge to pull her in for a hug. To tell her that no one ever should be knocking her because she was the coolest, strongest, most kick-butt girl I’d ever met.

But if I did that…well, then I’d be the freak, and she’d be shoving me away from her so she could smack me silly.

“I heard,” she confirmed.

“Tim’s an idiot.”

Her lips twitched upward. “And I’m a freak.”

“You’re not a freak,” I said.

“Aren’t I?” She sounded more amused than hurt, thank goodness.

“You’re unique,” I said.

She arched a brow. “Same difference.”

“Yeah, but one sounds way better.” I leaned forward, lowering my head so I could meet her gaze head on. “Raise your freak flag, baby.”

She let out a choked laugh and then looked down at herself. “I don’t mind being a