“Hey.” The door swung open, a breathless Imani on the other side, her black hair disheveled and her T-shirt a bit twisted and off the shoulder. “You leaving? Have fun. I hearCasablancais a classic.”
“What were you doing in here?” Gemma smoothed her hand over the girl’s head of corkscrew mayhem and peered into her room.
“Homework. I mean, exercises, sit-ups and push-ups, for basketball. Coach set out a routine for us to follow now that camp is over.”
“Does it require you to slam a door?”
“Oh, that, um.” Imani tugged at the hem of her T-shirt. “I fell against it when I stood up.”
Gemma regarded her for a second, fully remembering her own shenanigans at sixteen. She was both wise and stupid, careful and reckless, independent, obeying her parents while also being rebellious and arrogant—which meant sneaking her boyfriend in through her bedroom window after Mac and Mauve had gone to bed.
“Be more careful then. So, the puppies…you’re in charge. Please check them in a few minutes. Blue and Tweedy are on duty but Chandler and Phoebe were shivering earlier. Keep them warm.”
“I’m on it.” Imani folded her arms and leaned against the doorjamb. “Good thing Tina let me go early. The diner was dead. Everyone was going to the drive-in.” Imani walked with her down the hall. “Justin and Penny will be here to help.”
“Justin?”
“He wants to help.”
“He wants to be with you.”
“Is that so horrible?”
“No, but I’ll worry.”
“About what?” Imani leaned against the kitchen wall with the ’70s wallpaper, arms folded.
“You. Being sixteen with a hormone-infested sixteen-year-old boy.”
“Ooo, come on. That’s not fair. Gemma, you can trust me. I promise.”
Gemma peered into the hazel beauty of Imani’s eyes. “Can I?” Her parents thought they could trust her at sixteen.
“What do you think we’re going to do? Leave Penny and go make out in the loft?”
“Yes.” Gemma’s friend Susie used to get so mad at her for leaving with Dash to make out, leaving her alone with Dash’s geeky friends.
Imani turned Gemma toward the door. “Go, have fun. You deserve it.”
“Am I being a nag?”
“A little.”
Well then, she’d be off. Not going to lie, she looked for Justin’s truck parked behind a tree or off some side road as she headed for the drive-in—the trick she and Dash used back in the day—grateful to say she spotted nothing but a doe grazing by a stand of trees.
* * *
Gemma found Buck and JoJo by following the music and trail of fans stopping by to say hi and grab a small bag of popcorn. The crowd was extra large tonight, most of them snapping pictures of the prince.
When John spotted her, she waved and tried to act casual. Like,oh, you’re here?But when he offered his hand to hoist her into the truck bed, she felt self-conscious and wobbly.
His fragrance was clean and subtle and reminded her of the land after a cleansing rain.
“Seems we’re the popcorn providers tonight.” He handed her a small, red striped bag stuffed with popcorn. “The owner gave us these. People line up and we pass it over the side.”
“Popcorn from the king of country music and crown prince of Lauchtenland.” Gemma handed popcorn down to a dad and his two kids. “The movie will pale in comparison.”
“No one outshines Bogie,” John said, then added, “Jo didn’t say you were coming.”
