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Chapter Fourteen

OLIVIA

I am so mad at my mom.

I was having such a great time with Liam. He’s, like, the first boy I’ve ever had a big crush on. And he actually seems to like me back. And she ruined it. For no reason!

“Are you going to give me the silent treatment the whole way home?” Mom asks as she turns onto Maple Street.

I fold my arms across my chest. “You know Liam asked me specifically to come tonight.”

“And he’ll ask you again.”

“What if he doesn’t?”

“I’m sure he won’t be discouraged that easily.”

“You don’t know that.”

“Give me a little bit of credit, Olivia. Give him a little bit of credit.”

I let out an angry huff and stare out the window. Mom knows how much I like Liam. I’ve been confiding in her about my crush the entire year. Especially since Madison is so anti-Liam, my mother has been my main confidante. She knows how excited I was about tonight.

“I think I saw him through the window,” Mom says. She’s chosen to ignore me ignoring her. I hate it when she does that, although to be fair, it usually works. “Was he the one wearing the blue T-shirt with the dark hair?”

“Yes,” I admit. As much as I want to be angry at my mother, I also sort of want to talk about Liam. I’m very conflicted.

“Oh.” She nods. “He’s really cute. I can see why you like him.”

“I know, right?” My palms get all clammy again at the thought of him. “And he’s not just cute. He is, like, one of the smartest guys in the school. You should have heard him at the debate yesterday, Mom.”

“Well, I’m sorry I made you come home, but I’m sure you’ll have another opportunity with him.”

“He held my hand.” I smile at the memory. My whole body gets tingly at the thought of it. “I mean, just for a minute because one of his friends started teasing him. But… it was…”

“You should invite him over to the house.”

“You mean while you’re home?”

“Oh God. Unthinkable. ”

“Mom…”

Mom winks at me. “What? I’ll be cool.”

Oh my God, she will definitely not be cool. She’ll probably drag out old photo albums and show him pictures of potty training.

“You can take him up to your room,” she adds. “As long as you keep the door open.”

“Do we have to keep it open? It’s not like we’re going to do anything.”

Mom snorts. But I guess maybe she’s right. If Liam and I were alone in a room…

God, the thought of it makes me all tingly again. I can’t wait to see him again.

Mom pulls up the Honda in front of our house, and by this point, I’ve mostly forgiven her. Aside from Madison, my mother is my best friend and it’s hard to stay angry at her. And she’s probably right. I don’t think I’ve blown it with Liam. Aren’t you supposed to play hard to get with boys?

So I’m in a pretty good mood when I get out of the car. Until I see who’s sitting on the front steps to our house.