Page 19 of The Bad Boyfriend Curse
Sadie gives me a little mischievous smile. “If you want to go full delinquent this summer, let me know. I’ll get the spray paint.”
I laugh at the thought of Sadie and me tagging Main Street. “Honestly, I’m still scared of breaking the law. Maybe I should date another criminal.” I say it jokingly, but as the words come out of my mouth, an idea comes to me. “Wait, that’s exactly what Ishoulddo!”
“Youwantto date a criminal?”
“No, no,” I laugh, sitting up straight. I don’t know why I haven’t thought of this before. “My motherknowsabout the curse, so she’s not going to be surprised if I date the wrong person again. Jason said I could bring someone to all those campaign events. And, conveniently, they’ve arranged for meto spend five hours a day with teens with criminal records. Why not bring one of them?”
Sadie makes a face. “Didn’t you say they growl at you? Besides, I thought you were never dating again?”
I shake my head. “Only Kennedy growls at me.” I smile widely and lean in closer to Sadie. “I’m not going to actually date anyone; I’llpretendto date one of them for all the events. It will prove I don’t fit into perfect Cherrybridge, and Jason will insist that I be far, far away for the rest of his campaign. And Mom will do whatever Jason wants.” I know I promised not to lie to Mom, but she promised that I wouldn’t have to live in Cherrybridge, and she broke that promise first.
Sadie laughs, shaking her head. “That’s positively diabolical, Meera. I love it. Who are you going to convince to pretend to date you, though? That Kennedy girl?”
I shake my head. One, because Mom knows I’m only into guys, and two, because I don’t want to lose my earbuds again. It needs to be someone I don’t mind spending time with. Someone who’s on the way to being a friend.
“I’m going to askNoah Jacobs,” I say, and Sadie’s eyes widen at the name. “You said the Jacobs brothers have a bad reputation in town. Do you think that Jason LeClair’s stepdaughter dating a Jacobs brother would be a liability to his campaign?”
“Seriously? Noah Jacobs? He might be too… bad.”
“He’s not. I don’t know him that well, but he’s a good guy. He got me my AirPods back. And he’s… funny.” I chuckle, remembering our tree puns. “Trust me, Sadie, I don’t knowabout his family, but I’m positive Noah isn’t trouble. He’s great.”
Sadie eyes me suspiciously. “Are you sure you’re not suggesting this because you actuallywantto date Noah Jacobs? He is kind of hot.”
I shake my head. “I’m going to make it clear to him that this isfakedating only. I’ve already been a victim of the curse once. There’s no way I’m going to let it get me again.”
I smile to myself. This is perfect. Noah already sort of asked me out yesterday, and we had a few laughs together today. All I have to do is get him to agree to pretend to date me, and I’ll be sent back to Toronto before that first campaign party has even ended.
“Okay, I’ll trust you. Sounds like you have a potential solution to your problem. How are you going to convince Noah to do it?”
My shoulders slump. “I have no idea.” I remember how sympathetic he looked when I told him about my family and my goals. And I remember his comment about wanting to see the looks on members’ faces if he walked into the country club. “Maybe if I explain my situation, and tell him about the delicious country club food, he’ll agree?”
I hope he does. Because this is the only way I can think of to get home.
CHAPTER EIGHTAnd We Have a Deal
After Sadie leaves, I make a chart outlining all the pros and cons of my plan, and seeing it all on a spreadsheet makes it clear: This is a surefire way to get Mom and Jason to send me home. In fact, I’d put money on me being back in Toronto by Monday, if Noah agrees.
When I get to CROP the next day, Noah is the only other kid there. Lainey hands us a weeding tool and fresh paper bags and sends us out while she waits for the rest of the kids to show up. Noah and I walk far from the picnic tables, to near the gazebo or bandstand or whatever it is, and I start pulling up weeds while he bags them. He’s kind of quiet this morning—not the giggly, punny guy he was yesterday.
I watch him carefully, admiring how well he’s doing his job. He’s just putting weeds into a paper bag, but he’s not simply dumping them in. Instead he’s carefully placing each weed in, then tapping the bag on the ground to settle the contents. I’m surprised at the conscientious, systematic way he’s working. I don’t know very much about Noah except that he’s funny, flirty, kind, and a hard worker. It makes no sense to me that so many people in this town think he’s trouble.
But there’s one major thing that I’d like to know. And maybe it’s a thing I should find out before I ask to spend even more time with him this summer.
“Hey, Noah,” I say as I spear the next weed. “You don’t have to answer this if you don’t want to, but I’m curious… how did you get into CROP?”
He turns to me, his dark brows knitted together. “Um, I walked? I don’t live very far from here.”
It takes a second for me to make sense of his answer, before I laugh. At the sound, Noah’s expression relaxes and he smiles back at me. “No, I mean, Lainey said everyone has a reason for being here. What’s yours?”
“Court-ordered community service.”
I smile. “Same as me. What’s yours for?”
His smile drops a little and he stares at me for a while, like he doesn’t know if he should answer. Which is fair. There’s literally no reason for him to trust me. I’m asking him these questions because I need to know exactly what kind of “criminal” I’m about to ask on a date. Even if it’s a fake one. I don’t want to go out with someone violent. Or someone who hurt someone in another way.
“Trespassing,” he says.
I can’t help it, I laugh, which makes him give me an even more suspicious look. “I’m laughing because that’s exactly why I’m here too,” I say. I give him a short version of what happened on my very first date.
