Aunt Betty had just shaken her head, as if she felt the same.
“But he does seem like a good man,” Mom had said with quick remorse. “Naturally I wish them the very best.”
Abby had no doubt that Mom wished her sister the very best. She also knew that Mom secretly wished that Aunt Rebecca had married a black man. However, Mom would probably never admit this to Abby. She would probably bite her tongue where Kent was concerned too. Even so, she would not be pleased to see Abby bringing home a white guy. Neither would Dad.
But what did they expect when they sent her to an almost all-white school? Northwood had just a handful of black students, including only two guys. One was a freshman. The other was a junior who was a jock and full of himself. He wasn’t the type who attracted her, and from what she could tell, he felt the same about her. However, Kent had always caught her eye, and not just because he was good looking, although he was. He was also a really good guy.
She remembered the day when Kent had given her a sample of his true colors. She’d been heading to drama with an armload of costumes that she’d picked up at the cleaners. Hurrying too fast, her foot got tangled in the plastic, and she nearly fell flat on her face. In that same moment, Kent had reached out and caught her, saving her from pain and
humiliation. She gazed into his bluer than blue eyes as he steadied her. Then he helped carry the bulky costumes all the way to the drama department. That was true chivalry.
Anyway, what difference did it make who she went to the dance with? It wasn’t like she was going to marry her first date. But even if they did fall madly in love and eventually (like after college) decided to tie the knot, what would be wrong with that? She knew of lots of perfectly happy interracial couples. Why should anyone limit themselves to their own ethnic group? Wouldn’t that make this world a totally boring place?
D
evon was actually glad to go to school on Monday. Not only did her best friend look like a completely new person, but it felt like all the girls were excited about the DG. They’d been texting back and forth over the weekend, and it seemed that each girl wanted to do her part to make this club succeed. Well, except maybe for Cassidy. She sometimes seemed like she was dragging her heels.
“That’s just the way she is,” Emma told Devon as they walked toward school together. “She’s kind of a worrywart, you know, a glass half empty instead of half full kind of girl. But I know she’s really interested in Lane Granger, and since I’m willing to work on him for her, I’m guessing she’ll do her part for the DG.”
“Bryn texted me last night that she’s been having a conversation with Harris on Facebook.”
“For you?” Emma sounded concerned.
“Of course it’s for me.” Devon tried not to look offended. “Who else?”
Emma shrugged. “I don’t know.”
“Are you saying Bryn’s not trustworthy?”
“No, of course not.” Emma shook her head. “It’s just that this is all kind of tricky. I mean, how do we keep track of which girl is working on which guy . . . for which girl?”
Devon laughed. “Well, I made a chart last night. I’ll show it to the club at lunch. The only girl not actively working on a guy right now is Cassidy.”
“Does that mean someone else is going to be left out?” Emma pushed open the door.
“No, because Bryn is actually working on two guys. Harris for me, and Kent for Abby. But it was her idea. She offered.”
“So Cassidy is getting off easy.”
“Not too easy.” Devon smiled. “I have plans for her.”
“Speaking of your plans,” Emma said quietly. “You won’t go overboard on Isaac, will you? I don’t think he’s the kind of guy you can push around, and I’m worried he’ll know what you’re up to and—”
“Emma.” Devon stopped walking and turned to look into Emma’s eyes. “Do you trust me or not?”
“I, uh, I’m not sure. I mean, yeah, I trust you. But you don’t really know Isaac that well . . . and I’m worried he’ll be suspicious and—”
“I know what I’m doing, Emma. Just trust me. Okay?”
Emma nodded, but she still looked uneasy.
“It’s not like I’m going to twist his arm or threaten him within inches of his life,” Devon told her as they went to their lockers. “Seriously, Em, he’s not even going to know I’m working on him.”
“If you say so,” Emma mumbled.
Devon stopped in front of her locker, turning again to look at Emma. Why was she acting so paranoid now? “Look, Emma, you’re my best friend. I won’t sabotage this for you.” She smiled. “Did you look at yourself in the mirror this morning?”
Emma barely nodded, glancing around in a nervous and self-conscious way.
“You look stunning. If I was going to sabotage you, would I have helped you to get that makeover?”
“No, that’s not what I’m worried about.”
“Then stop worrying.” Devon poked her in the arm. “And stand up straight. Hold your head high. Don’t go around acting like you still want to blend in with the walls. You look gorgeous now. Act like it.”
Emma looked embarrassed now. “Really? Gorgeous?”
“You’ll see.” Devon shoved some books into her locker and closed it. “Come on, let’s go see how the others react.”
Soon they found Abby, and she was blown away by Emma’s new look. “You are looking good,” Abby told her. “Really hot.”
Emma smiled. “Thanks.”
“See.” Devon waved over to Cassidy and Bryn, who were just coming into the locker bay.
“Wow—Emma.” Cassidy was suitably impressed. “Look at you.”
Emma stood a little taller now.
“What happened?” Cassidy asked.
“She had a little makeover,” Devon told her. “Remember, we all agreed to do some self-improvement.” She pointed at Cassidy. “You could use a little help too . . . if you know what I mean.”
Cassidy frowned. “Huh?”
“No offense, but your look is a little . . . well . . . ho-hum.”
The other girls giggled, and Devon could tell she’d offended Cassidy.
“I’m sorry,” Devon said quickly. “I wasn’t trying to hurt your feelings. But if you’re going to catch Lane’s eye, you might want to put a little more effort into it.”
“We can help you,” Bryn said hopefully.
“Sure.” Abby nodded eagerly. “We’ll start with your wardrobe.”
“My clothes are fine,” Cassidy snapped.
“Yes.” Bryn wrinkled up her nose. “Hoodies are so fashionable.”
“And so last, uh, century,” Abby teased.
“Hoodies are always in style,” Cassidy insisted as she pulled the navy sweatshirt more tightly around her.
“Come on,” Devon urged. “You could try harder, couldn’t you?”
“I don’t know.” Cassidy looked like she was pouting now.
“I was
going
to start working on Lane today,” Emma interjected. “But maybe I should wait.”
Cassidy suddenly seemed worried. “Yes. You should wait.” She looked from Devon to Bryn and Abby. “Fine. I’ll do some kind of makeover. Not a major one like Emma got. But I suppose you’re right. I could probably use a little help.”
“That’s the spirit.” Devon slapped her on the back. “Welcome to the club.”
“I’ll hold off on talking to Lane,” Emma assured her.
“How am I supposed to pull off this makeover magic?” Cassidy asked. “Any suggestions?”
“Why don’t you let us take you under our capable wings?” Bryn suggested with a sly smile. “Abby and me.”
“Really? You’d do that?”
“Sure. If you let us. Do you trust us?”
With an uncertain expression, Cassidy nodded, and everyone seemed to agree this was a good plan. As Devon walked to her first class, she felt confident. Everything was under control, and she felt sure that everything was going to stay under control. Creating the DG had really turned out to be a great idea. She continued in this positive frame of mind until she emerged from her fourth period class and noticed a girl giggling with Harris Martin—her Harris.
She couldn’t really see who the girl was because she was partially obscured by a post, but the two were standing noticeably close, as if they were a couple! This was news to Devon. The girl threw back her head, flipping a section of long, blonde hair over a shoulder as she leaned in closer. It seemed clear that this chick was putting the moves on Devon’s dream guy, but what could she do?
Wanting a better look, and wishing she could put a stop to what was happening, Devon approached the couple. Of course, she knew there was nothing she could do, but at least she could assess the damage. As she got closer, a shock wave ran from her scalp to her toes—the flirtatious blonde was none other than Bryn Jacobs! Bryn, who was supposed to be working on Harris for Devon, was going after Harris for herself. She was breaking rule number six of the DG.
Furious, Devon wanted to approach and confront the pair. She wanted to give Bryn a fierce warning look and even say something snarky. But she knew that would ruin everything. Besides, she reminded herself, Bryn had offered to work on Harris for Devon. Maybe that was what she was doing.
Yeah, right
, she thought as she stormed off in the other
direction. Bryn was working on Harris for herself. Not for Devon. That was what she got for trusting this task to the prettiest girl in the group. Naturally, it would backfire. Why hadn’t Devon considered this? Devon decided to take the long route to the cafeteria. That would give her time to cool off some. But by the time she entered the dining area, she was seriously vexed, and she didn’t care who knew it.
“Where’s Bryn?” she growled at Abby.
Abby looked surprised. “I don’t know. What’s wrong?”
Devon slammed her bag down on a chair.
“What’s going on?” Emma asked Devon with concern. “You look really upset.”
Devon let out a seething breath. “Bryn was flirting with Harris.”
The girls looked slightly shocked, and that in itself brought Devon a smidgeon of comfort. At least they could see that Bryn had crossed the line. Even so, Devon was still furious.
“You must be imagining things,” Abby said defensively. “Bryn wouldn’t do something like that.”
“Well, she was doing it.” Devon scowled. “I saw her.”
“That doesn’t sound like Bryn to me,” Emma said quietly.
Devon turned to glare at Emma. Was this really her best friend?
“Bryn’s not a backstabber,” Abby said.
“You’re sure about that?” Devon narrowed her eyes.
“Wasn’t Bryn supposed to be working on Harris for
you
?” Cassidy asked her.
Devon nodded grimly. “Oh, yeah . . . she was working on him, all right.”
“What happened to
innocent until proven guilty
?” Abby asked. “Bryn should get a chance to defend herself.”
“There she is now.” Cassidy pointed to where Bryn was entering the cafeteria, flanked by Harris and Isaac. All three were smiling and talking, and it seemed pretty clear to Devon that Bryn, who seemed to be in her element, was blatantly flirting.
“Look, she’s even moving in on Isaac,” Devon warned Emma. “Better keep your eye on that girl.”
“Oh, I don’t think—”
“I don’t know why I ever trusted her.”
“Devon.”
Emma sounded irritated. “Give her a break.”
Devon watched as Bryn parted ways with the guys and, wearing a big smile like nothing was wrong, practically skipped over to their table. Devon was determined to keep her cool, or at least try to get it back, and tried to disguise the fact that she was seething.
“What’s up?” Abby asked Bryn when she joined them.
“Yeah,” Devon chimed in.
“What’s up?”
Bryn’s smile faded. “What’s wrong with you?”
Devon did a quick eye roll, then shrugged. “Nothing.”
Bryn looked unconvinced.
“She’s bent out of shape because she thinks you’re trying to steal Harris,” Abby informed her.
“Rule number six.” Abby held up the little DG notebook she’d made over the weekend. “Never steal a fellow DG member’s boyfriend.”
“Harris isn’t your boyfriend
yet
.” Bryn’s voice sounded a bit snippy.
“But that was the plan,” Devon reminded her.
“That’s true,” Emma added.
“FYI”—Bryn scowled at Devon—“I was
not
trying to steal your boyfriend. I should say
future
boyfriend since it’s not even established that he likes you.”
“Then what were you doing?” Devon demanded.
“I was doing exactly what you asked me to do, Devon. I’m warming him up for you. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
Devon shook her head. “He doesn’t need that kind of warming.” She held up her own notebook now. “Maybe we need to change our game plan.”
“What’s that?” Abby asked.
“Our official notebook,” Devon explained. “I charted out which girl is working on which guy for which girl.” She knew that sounded convoluted. “To avoid confusion . . . like we’re having today.”
“But you assigned Harris to me,” Bryn pointed out.
“We didn’t assign Isaac to you,” Emma told her. “Seemed like you were warming him up too.”
“Hey, he was there. And he’s Harris’s best friend. What am I supposed to do? Ignore him?”
“No . . . of course not.” Emma looked flustered.
Devon felt like her blood pressure had gone down ever so slightly. “Let’s get our lunches and meet back here to go over this again,” she told them. “If this plan is going to work, we need to be on the same page.”
By the time they reconvened at their table, Devon had calmed down. Perhaps she’d overreacted. After all, she had asked Bryn to break the ice with Harris. Of course, she didn’t want Bryn to melt the boy down into a lukewarm puddle. But maybe Bryn couldn’t help the effect she had on guys. Why was it that long-legged blondes always seemed to have the advantage?
“So tell us about your little book.” Abby pointed to the nondescript-looking notebook.
Devon took a sip of water, then opened the book. The first
few pages were intentionally left blank, just in case someone picked it up, although Devon planned to keep it safe. Under lock and key if necessary. The first page with writing had the DG rules. She turned to the next page.
“I’ve assigned us secret names,” she explained.
“Huh?” Cassidy leaned over to see.
“In case someone found this,” Devon told her.
“Oh, yeah.” Abby nodded. “Good plan.”
“Our secret names begin with our first initial,” she told them.
“What’s mine?” Abby asked.
“You’re Angel.”
Abby laughed. “Oh, yeah, that suits me to a T.”
“I’m Desiree,” Devon said. “Cassidy is Candy. Bryn is Babe. And Emma is Ecstasy.”
“Ecstasy?” Emma frowned. “That’s a drug.”
“It’s also a word,” Devon said.
“Those sound like hooker names,” Cassidy declared.
“Or strippers,” Abby added.
Emma peered down at the notebook. “Candy, Angel, Babe, Desiree, Ecstasy—are you kidding?”
“It’s just a privacy tactic,” Devon retorted. “Who would ever guess who we were based on those names?”
Bryn laughed. “Babe works for me.”
Devon rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I figured.”
“Whatever you say,
Desiree
.” Bryn pointed her finger at Devon.
“We’re not supposed to actually
use
these names on a daily basis,” Devon explained. “They’re only for certain situations. Like if we’re texting about someone, or if you need to discreetly say something in front of someone.”
“Do the guys have fake names too?” Emma asked.
“I thought I’d let you guys make up names for your special guys,” Devon told them. “I already have one for Harris.”
“What is it?” Abby asked.
“Hunk.” Devon smirked. “It seems to suit him.”
Bryn laughed. “Sure does.”
Devon scowled at her.
“What can I call Kent?” Abby’s brow creased. “What starts with
K
?”
“Killer,” Cassidy suggested. They all laughed.
“I like it,” Abby said. “Killer it is.”
“Maybe you should call Lane
Lover Boy
,” Devon told Cassidy.
Cassidy turned up her nose. “No way.”
“I can’t think of anything good that starts with an
I
,” Emma said in frustration. “How about if I call him Newton?”