Like You Mean It

  Danni forced herself to smile. “Hey, what are you doing here? You don’t usually come this way.”

  “Can you believe this shit?” Darren demanded.

  “I’m guessing you’re not happy about the homecoming thing.”

  “No, I’m not happy. Don’t you see what’s going on?”

  Danni frowned. “The most popular guys in school got nominated for homecoming king?”

  “Wrong! Four of the most popular guys and the school freak got nominated!”

  “Maybe you won’t win.”

  Even as she said the words, Danni didn’t believe them. Darren had won everything since freshman year, so why should this be any different? Just because he didn’t want that life anymore didn’t mean the rest of the student body was ready to let him go.

  “Or maybe all these assholes will vote for me just so they can see me on display for the whole school,” Darren said.

  “We could always stuff the ballot box so you don’t win,” Danni suggested. “Or we could make posters for the other candidates and plaster them all over the school so people forget you were even nominated.”

  Darren’s eyes narrowed as he mashed his lips together.

  Undeterred by his silence, Danni snapped her fingers. “I know! We should steal the ballot box. They can’t vote if they don’t have a box. I guess we should steal the ballots too. Wait, I have a way better idea. We could make signs telling everyone the voting got moved to the library. Since like ninety-nine-point-nine percent of the students here probably don’t know where the library is, no one will be voting. If that doesn’t work we’ll just have to steal the keys for the leadership room so no one can get in there to vote. What do you think? Any of those ideas work for you?”

  Staring at his expressionless face, Danni waited for Darren to unleash his anger. For a few seconds he didn’t say a word. When he suddenly burst into laughter, she exhaled.

  “Do you know how much I love you?” he asked.

  Danni pretended to look thoughtful. “You know, I don’t think I do.”

  Darren wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her close. Danni wound her arms around his neck. Instead of giving her the usual soft and sweet kiss, his lips crashed against hers.

  “I love you that much,” he said, resting his forehead against hers.

  “I love you too.”

  “This thing scares me, Danni.”

  “What thing, D.J.?”

  “Even if I don’t win, I’m going to be on display for the whole frigging school to see,” Darren explained. “What if that’s what they want and that’s why they nominated me? They want to see the one-armed man and laugh in his face.”

  Danni tightened her hold on Darren. She wanted to tell him no one could be that cruel, and that even if it did happen they would face it together and everything would be okay. She wanted to say it, but she couldn’t. Danni had never lied to him before and she wasn’t about to start now.

  * * *

  Chelsea and Marcy were already waiting on the front lawn when Danni met them for lunch. Both girls wore solemn expressions.

  “How’s Darren?” Chelsea asked. “Is he pissed about the homecoming thing?”

  Danni smiled. It was the first time her friend hadn’t asked where he was.

  “Never mind.” Chelsea nodded her head over Danni’s shoulder. “He looks pretty pissed.”

  “Not really,” Marcy said.

  Danni turned and frowned. Chelsea was right. Darren was wearing the same grim mask she’d seen after first period. No doubt he had worn it all day.

  “Yeah, he does,” Chelsea insisted.

  “No offense, Danni, but that’s his normal look,” Marcy said.

  Danni couldn’t argue. ‘I hate school’ was written all over Darren’s face from the moment he set foot on campus every morning until the minute he climbed into J.J.’s car at lunch time. For the first time, she wondered if it had been a mistake to talk him into coming back.

  As soon as he came to stand with the group of girls, Darren placed a kiss on Danni’s cheek. “Hey.”

  “You okay?” Danni asked, and he shrugged.

  “Do you want to win?” Chelsea asked.

  Darren blanched. “Homecoming king? You can’t be serious.”

  “I guess we’re going with plan B then,” Chelsea said.

  Danni frowned at her. “Plan B?”

  “Yeah, plan B – make sure Darren loses,” Chelsea said. “Plan A would’ve been to do everything we could to make sure he won. Since he doesn’t want that, we’re going with Plan B.”

  “How do we make sure he loses?” Marcy asked. “Darren’s the most popular guy in the whole school.”

  “Since we might get in trouble for cheating, we’ll have to sink a little lower,” Chelsea answered.

  Marcy drew her eyebrows together. “What’s lower than cheating?”

  “We launch a smear campaign against Darren, and I’m talking low down and dirty. We’ll pull all the worst skeletons out of his closet,” Chelsea explained.

  Marcy rolled her eyes. “Darren Jacobs doesn’t have any skeletons in his closet,” she said, and then glanced at him. “Do you?”

  “Nope,” he replied.

  Chelsea arched her eyebrows. “Come on, there has to be something. You used to beat up kids and steal their lunch money? You pirate music and movies? Wait, scratch that, nobody will care about that one. You once hit a girl? You sleep with girls and never call them back? You sleep with guys and never call them back?”

  Darren grimaced. “Sorry, I never beat up kids for their lunch money, never hit a girl, never slept with a girl and not called her back, and I’ve never slept with a guy.”

  Chelsea shrugged. “Then I guess we don’t have any choice. We’ll have to get serious.”

  “More serious than beating people up or breaking hearts?” Danni asked.

  “I’ve already got the slogan,” Chelsea said. “Do you really want a one-armed homecoming king?”

  Marcy stared at her with wide eyes while Danni sucked in her breath.

  Chelsea glanced at each of her friends. “What do you think?”

  Darren grinned. “You think they would’ve nominated me if they gave a shit about that?”

  “Good point,” Chelsea said, and Danni exhaled. “We don’t want it to backfire and have you flooded with sympathy votes. I hate to say it, but you might be screwed.”

  Darren snorted. “Tell me something I don’t know.”

  “Okay, you’re probably going to win, but not because people love a tragedy, which they do,” Chelsea said. “You’ll win because they’ve probably had your name on the trophy since freshman year.”

  Though Darren chuckled at her joke, Danni knew better than to buy his laughter. Chelsea was right. Darren was going to win and that terrified him.

  * * *

  After school, Danni and her friends piled into her car. As usual, they had to wait for the traffic to clear before they could leave.

  “So what’s the plan?” Chelsea asked.

  “I vote for Danni’s house,” Marcy said.

  Chelsea laughed. “You mean you vote for the chance to see Nick?”

  “We can go to my house, but even if Nick’s home, Natalie might be there too,” Danni replied.

  Marcy groaned. “Are they seriously still together?”

  “Sure they are,” Chelsea said. “They’re probably going to get married and live in a perfect house and make a bunch of perfect babies, and that bitch probably won’t even get fat.”

  The ringing of Danni’s cell phone through the speakers drowned out their laughter.

  “Incoming call.”

  “No shit, car!” Chelsea laughed.

  Danni tapped the Bluetooth button on her steering wheel. “Hello?”

  Darren’s voice filled the car. “Hey, baby.”

  Chelsea and Marcy traded sly smiles. “Hey, Darren,” they chorused.

  “Speaker phone?” Darren guessed.

  “Speaker
phone,” Danni echoed.

  “You want Danni to get you off?” Chelsea asked, giggling. “Speaker phone, I mean.”

  “Ignore her,” Danni said. “What’s up?”

  “You’re invited for dinner tonight,” Darren answered. “My mom wants to celebrate the homecoming thing. It’s nothing major, just pizza and sodas and maybe a movie. Chelsea and Marcy can come too if they want.”

  Danni frowned. “They can?”

  “Yeah, J.J. doesn’t have to work tonight so he’s coming, and I know Chelsea won’t want to miss that,” Darren said, and Chelsea sank lower in her seat.

  “Please tell me you didn’t tell your brother about my tiny little crush on him,” Chelsea pleaded as her cheeks flushed.

  “Nope, but I did tell him about your huge and scary, stalker-like obsession with him,” Darren joked.

  This time it was Danni who laughed with Marcy. “So, what time should we be there?” she asked.

  “Come now if you want,” Darren offered.

  Chelsea shook her head so hard Danni thought it might fly off her neck. “Um, we’ll be there in like an hour or so if that’s okay,” she replied, and Chelsea nodded her agreement.

  “Cool,” Darren said.

  “You need us to bring anything?” Danni asked.

  “Nah, my mom’s got it covered.”

  “All right we’ll see you later.”

  “Love you,” Darren said.

  “Love you too,” Danni repeated. As soon as she ended the call, she turned to Chelsea. “So, why can’t we go over there now?”

  “If Justin’s going to be there, I need to go home and get sexy,” Chelsea replied.

  Danni groaned. “Please tell me you’re not serious.”

  “I’m as serious as a heart attack.”

  Danni heaved a sigh. Why couldn’t her best friends find guys their own age instead of falling for the ones who were never going to give them a second look?

  * * *

  Getting sexy involved Chelsea changing into a cleavage revealing T-shirt and her tightest jeans and then straightening her hair and putting on make-up. Danni had to admit her friend looked good, but Justin wasn’t going to care. Even if Chelsea was his type, Justin didn’t seem like the kind of guy who would go for an underage girl.

  “Looks like you got sexy for nothing,” Danni observed as she drove her car along the curb in front of Darren’s house. “I don’t see Justin’s car.”

  “You don’t think Darren was kidding about him coming, do you?” Chelsea asked. “He better be here after all this trouble I went to.”

  The girls emerged from the car and headed up the walkway. When Danni rang the bell it was Darren who pulled the door open a few seconds later.

  Now that’s sexy, Danni thought as she smiled up at him.

  Darren was wearing the same clothes he’d worn to school: jeans, a long-sleeve T-shirt and tennis shoes. It wasn’t the clothes that looked good; it was him. It was that perfect smile and the way his hair fell across the scar on his forehead and the way he smelled. Everything about him was so irresistible.

  “Hey, baby.” Darren leaned down to give her a kiss.

  “Where’s your brother?” Chelsea asked.

  A frown flickered across Darren’s face as he straightened up. “He’ll be here in a little while.”

  “You should probably let us in before your mom starts yelling about all the heat you’re letting out,” Danni said and Darren grinned at her.

  He led the way into the house and the girls followed. His parents already sat in front of the television in the family room.

  Ann beamed as she rose from the couch. “Danni, we’re so glad you and your friends are here,” she said, looking from one girl to the next. “Now, don’t tell me, I remember. You’re Chelsea and you’re Marcy.”

  “You’ve got a great memory,” Chelsea said.

  Ann’s smile widened. “Do you girls want anything to drink?”

  “I’ll take anything diet,” Chelsea replied.

  Danni frowned at her. Since when was she on a diet? “Water’s fine for me.”

  Ann glanced at Marcy. “What about you, dear?”

  “Oh, um, water’s okay for me too.”

  “Darren, Gerald, do either of you want anything?” Ann asked.

  “Dr. Pepper for me,” Darren said while Gerald declined the offer.

  “Do you need some help, Mrs. Jacobs?” Danni asked.

  “Oh no, sweetie, you all just sit down and make yourselves comfy,” Ann replied. “I’ve got everything under control.”

  While Danni and Darren settled on the love seat, Chelsea and Marcy sat on the couch. The way they were clustered together at one end, they might as well have been sitting in each other’s laps.

  Gerald smiled at the newcomers. “There’s no helping Ann, even during the holidays. She loves to play the role of hostess. Not that we mind, huh, son?”

  “Doesn’t bother me at all,” Darren replied with a grin.

  “Justin should be here with the pizzas in about an hour,” Gerald said. “You know what that means, don’t you?”

  Darren’s expression sobered. “I’m scared to ask.”

  “Danni, did Darren ever tell you how I met his mother?” Gerald asked.

  Danni giggled. “No, I don’t think he did.”

  “I’m shocked,” Gerald said. “After all, it’s such an amazing story.”

  “Amazing?” Chelsea repeated.

  “I saved her from a vicious dog attack,” Gerald replied, keeping his face straight.

  “Dad,” Darren groaned. “Tell the truth.”

  Gerald’s smile became even bigger. “All right, I didn’t save her from a dog attack. It was actually a large grizzly bear, but I didn’t want to toot my horn so I downplayed.”

  “Downplayed what?” Ann asked as she returned with her arms full of drinks.

  “Your rescue on the day we met,” Gerald said.

  Ann laughed. “What was it this time, a rabid dog or a man eating tiger?”

  Gerald snapped his fingers. “Damn, I didn’t even think of the man eating tiger. I’ll have to keep that one in mind for next time.”

  “So, how’d you really meet?” Chelsea asked.

  “I’d tell you, but then I’d have to kill you,” Gerald said with a wink, and Darren rolled his eyes.

  As Ann settled into the big chair beside her husband, Danni smiled at the cute couple they still made. They reminded her of Darren and herself in reverse, with one major difference; she couldn’t imagine being with Darren in thirty years. It wasn’t that Danni didn’t like the idea, but she couldn’t imagine herself at thirty years old, let alone in thirty years’ time with a husband and kids. If it did end up happening, she wouldn’t mind having Darren as her husband.

  * * *

  An hour later, Justin blew in the front door without even bothering to ring the doorbell. The smell coming from the pizza boxes he carried in his arms made Danni’s mouth water. Chelsea gave him a longing look, but Danni couldn’t be sure if she was hungry for him or the food.

  “Where do you want these, Mom?” Justin asked.

  Ann took a box from the top of the pile. “Right here in the family room is just fine with me.”

  They laid four pizza boxes on the coffee table. Danni smiled to see two of them were her favorite, pepperoni.

  “Justin, why don’t you get drinks for everyone, and I’ll get the plates and napkins?” Ann suggested.

  “Man, how do you like that?” Justin said to no one in particular. “Bring pizza for everyone and she puts me to work.”

  Chelsea jumped up. “I can help you guys get drinks and stuff.”

  “Cool,” Justin replied.

  From the way Gerald smiled after them, Danni was pretty sure he suspected Chelsea had a crush on Justin. Of course, anyone would have to be blind to miss it. Chelsea was practically drooling as she trailed after the guy. Moments later the two of them returned with sodas and waters as Ann passed around some pl
ates and napkins.

  While everyone else dove for the pizza boxes, Chelsea hung back. Danni was all set to threaten her life if she didn’t eat when she realized what her friend was doing. As soon as Justin seated himself on one end of the couch, Chelsea piled two pieces of pizza on her plate and sat down next to him.

  “Isn’t this just so exciting?” Ann asked.

  “It’s just pizza,” Justin said and laughed.

  “I meant Darren being nominated for homecoming king,” Ann said. “Just think, the family tradition continues.”

  “Were you homecoming king, Mr. Jacobs?” Marcy asked.

  Gerald laughed. “Me? Heaven’s no.”

  Chelsea turned to Justin. “You were homecoming king?”

  Justin nodded. “Yeah, a long time ago.”

  “I’ll bet you were prom king too, weren’t you?” Chelsea’s question sounded more like an accusation.

  “Yeah, but it’s not a big deal,” Justin replied. “Believe me when I say it doesn’t make any difference when you’re trying to get into college or get a job after you graduate.”

  “Or find a wife,” Ann added.

  Justin laughed. “Oh, shit, here she goes again.”

  “What’s wrong with wanting my son to settle down with a nice girl and maybe give me some grandkids?” Ann asked.

  “Maybe D.J. and Danni can give you some,” Justin said, grinning at his brother.

  Ann smiled at them. “That would be just fine, after they graduate college of course.”

  “Damn, D.J., I don’t think I’ve ever seen you turn that red,” Justin teased.

  “Why aren’t you married? Still haven’t found the right guy?” Darren retorted, and Chelsea’s eyes widened.

  “Not yet, but when I do I’ll let you know,” Justin replied.

  “Finally coming out, huh?” Darren asked.

  Justin shrugged. “Nah, I think I better stay in the closet a little while longer, at least until Mom gets over your accident.”

  “Justin Michael Jacobs!” Ann cried.

  “Shit, middle name, that means big trouble,” Justin said while Darren smirked. “Mom, I’m kidding. I’m not gay, and judging from that reaction, it’s a good thing.”

  “Being gay is fine, but that’s a horrible way to tell your family,” Ann informed him.