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“You’re not the only one,” Langston says, following me out of the theater.
“You know, this is the best fake date I’ve ever been on,” I tell him.
“Thank you. So did I do good then?”
“Meh,” I say through a smile.
Langston grins. “You were impressed. Just admit it.”
I can’t help but smile too. “I might have been alittleimpressed. But don’t think that will happen on a regular basis or anything,” I add quickly before he gets the wrong idea.
We get to the bathrooms and split up. The truth is, I’m blown away by the date Langston planned. I wasn’t expecting it, and now I’m not sure how I feel about it. Who knew he could be so romantic? And is there some part of him that wants it to all be real?
6
LANGSTON
Today is race day, and my stomach is tied in knots as I head to the Blue Mountain Racetrack. The Finleys and Keiths created this racetrack years ago, and we’ve been holding races here for generations. I keep reminding myself that I’ve done everything I can to prepare and I have to let Thunder and his jockey do their jobs. I take a seat as the race begins. Jenni is sitting with her family nearby. I look over to see her all dressed up with a fancy hat and everything. We go all out when it’s racing day.
“How was your date with Jenni?” my mom asks when I take a seat next to her.
“It went well. I took her to seeLes Mis.”
“You know that’s her favorite musical, right?”
“That’s what I understand.”
My mom’s face glows with excitement. “I can hear those wedding bells already!”
Kaison leans forward. “Mom, he’s not telling you the whole story. I heard he bought out the entire theater to give her a private showing.”
“What? Langston, you sly dog! Who knew you were such a romantic?” Ashton says, punching me in the arm. He flew back from Singapore to see the race when he heard Valentine was cleared by the vet.
“I already knew that.” Mom waves her phone in the air. “I saw it on social media.” She turns to me. “You must really like Jenni if you’re treating her that way.”
“Either that or he wants something,” Kaison says.
“You hush. I don’t need that kind of negativity right now,” Mom scolds, swatting him on the arm. She turns to me.
Kaison only laughs at her.
Dad shows up with a hot dog and a large Coke and settles next to Mom. “What are we talking about?”
“Langston rented out the entire Fox Theater to impress Jenni. I just have to talk to Meera about this!” My scheming mother stands up and heads over to where the Finleys are sitting.
“That’s not embarrassing or anything,” I mutter under my breath.
“You have no idea how bad she was before Ariana and I got together. She was practically begging us to join in holy matrimony,” Kaison says.
“Where is Ariana today?” I ask.
“She’s having a girls’ day out with her cousin.”
“I’m surprised she was able to stand a moment away from you. Every time I’m around you two, I get nauseated from watching you suck face,” I say.
“So what about you and Jenni? Was there any face sucking going on?” Ashton asks with a devilish grin.
“None of your business.” I glance over at Jenni and my cheeks grow hot. The truth is, I barely even touched her, other than linking arms. She looked gorgeous though. It’s not that I didn’t want to kiss her. I thought about it several times that night. But I’m not a fan of having my face punched either. She was pretty specific about her rules. I guess I could have gotten away with a peck, but what if it was good and it turned into more? If it ever got back to Ronnie that I was making out with his sister, it would be… Well, I don’t even want to go there.