“Me too…” I murmured, all musings on Marco evaporating into oblivion. Jacob was leaning across the truck’s center console, my heart hammering relentlessly.
This is it, I thought.Finally, my first kiss.
Jacob’s lips were warm when they brushed mine, but before I could make a valiant attempt at kissing him back, his slick tongue slipped into my mouth so he could snake it all the way down my throat.
I hoped it would get better, but oncehisdrool started spilling downmychin, all I could think was:Ew.
Ew, ew, ew.
And, for good measure,EW!!!
So much for a sparkling first kiss.
Seventeen
With Da and Dad in Newport visiting Great-Aunt Penny, it was Austin and Connor who helped me pack the car for the Finger Lakes. Yesterday my brother had dropped Katie off at Hotel Gallant before coming home to find Connor and me marathoning the latest season ofEmily in Paris. Connor had ended up crashing with the dogs on the couch. “Hold on there, sis,” Austin said now, as I heaved my full-on I’m-ready-for-Europe-sized suitcase into the trunk (Amanda’s packing list was no joke). “We need to put the cooler in first; then we’ll play Tetris around it.”
“Smart call,” Connor said. “I think we should add one more layer of ice, though.” He looked at me, hair still sleep-rumpled. “Just to top things off?”
“No, let’s wait a little longer.” I shook my head, then glanced down the driveway. You could see the heat burning off the pavement, but other than that, nothing. “Marco said he’d be here.”
Today was Friday, and I was in charge of breakfast tomorrow—a.k.a., day one of Katie’s bachelorette weekend! Originally, I’d planned to wake up super early and make a quick run to thegrocery store, but then I’d mapped our rental house and found out that the closest supermarket was an unfamiliar half-hour away. I didn’t want to get up at the crack of dawn, so Austin had dreamt up a solution: Connor and I would go into town to get everything I needed for Saturday’s breakfast spread. Then I would pack it all into the YETI for the trip.
The final piece of my breakfast would be a couple of quiches Marco had volunteered his mom to bake. The bridesmaids had loved them so much at the bridal shower that I thought they’d be a nice touch. He’d promised to deliver them this morning, but there was no sign of the Bumper Car.
Come on, Marco, I thought.Please hurry.
Because after everything was loaded into the Defender, I had to drive to Princeton to fetch the bride.You don’t mind, do you?Amanda had texted me after the car pool assignments had gone live on the Google Doc. I would drive her myself, but the rest of us need to get there early to decorate…
“Mads, forget about the quiche,” Austin said after a few minutes. “Kates is expecting you soon. She texted me to ask about your ETA.”
Frustrated with Marco, I took it out on my brother. “Why didn’t she just stay here last night?” I asked. “It’s stupid that I need to drive to Princeton to get her.”
Austin kept his cool. “It was easier for her to spend the night there,” he said. “There was wedding stuff to go over with her parents—”
“And you didn’t need to be part of that conversation?” I gave him a look. This didn’t sound like Katie and Austin’s argument over my brother’s say in the wedding had been resolved; it sounded like he’d just accepted that his thoughts didn’t matter.
“No, not really.” He shook his head. “I don’t have a strong opinion on hairstylists and makeup artists for the bridal suite.”
Connor cringed. “Dude, I wouldn’t either.”
I sighed, but my ears perked up when I heard thehumof a car. “I’m sorry I’m late!” Marco basically sprang out of the Bumper Car. “There was an accident, then a ton of traffic…”
“Wait, you drove up from the shore?” I asked as Connor accepted two white boxes and went to arrange them in the YETI. “You drove two hours—plus traffic—back here? Just to deliver a couple quiches?”
Marco nodded. “Yeah.”
Austin whistled, impressed. “Álvarez, that’s commitment.”
“Believe me, I don’t mind,” he said, scratching his neck. I squinted to see what looked like some type of reddish-purplish blemish. “It’s only been twelve hours, but the house is about to combust from so many bodies.” He shook his head. “Everyone’s telling war stories about their internships.”
Oh, right, I realized.Princeton Week has kicked off in Stone Harbor.
I felt my phone buzz in my pocket—a message from Katie:Why does your location show that you’re still at your house?
I rolled my eyes. Amanda had request-required everyone tosync up on Find My Friends.I’m leaving in a minute, I texted back.Is lunch packed? Or should I plan a pit stop at Burger King?
Because, after all, she’d offered to cover lunch. Katie didn’t know how to drive stick, so I’d be driving the entire six hours to Seneca Lake.
