Page 10 of Light Up My Life

I spun around. “Everyone comes here. Just because you’ve never bothered to before doesn’t mean it hasn’t always existed.”

“No, in here.” He pointed at the floor.

“Oh. I don’t know. I saw a light on inside.” I wanted to ask Ryan what he’d been doing hiding in the pantry, but then I looked at his phone. Right. Our phones. I hadn’t thought of them until now. I retrieved mine from my pocket and sent a text to Fiona: Save me. I’m stuck in the pantry with Ryan Moreno.

I could’ve texted Marcus or my moms. I wasn’t sure why I didn’t, except for the fact that this was a member of the Moreno family I was stuck with, and I didn’t want to cause more drama.

“Who did you text?” Ryan asked me.

“My friend. Fiona.”

“That’s her name? Like the character from Shrek?”

I rolled my eyes. “If that helps you remember it, sure. I know names are hard to learn.”

“Do you even know my name?” he asked.

“Ryan,” I said too quickly.

We were staring at each other, his brown eyes moving back and forth between mine as if trying to figure me out. I wished I hadn’t admitted to knowing his name. Or at least made a show of thinking about it.

“Jasmine,” he finally said back. For the first time his voice sounded sincere, soft.

I blinked, surprised.

“Your brothers yell your name a lot,” he said.

“Your mom.”

He gave a breathy laugh. “I frustrate her often.”

“Not surprised,” I said.

“You are frustrating,” he said.

“Ditto.”

He grunted out a sigh.

“Just stop trying to sabotage our yard, and I think we could peacefully coexist,” I said. “My mom really wants her elf back.”

“We didn’t take your ugly elf.”

“Ugly?”

“Not as ugly as the chickens, but almost.”

I gritted my teeth. “Is that how you decide what you’re going to steal? Based on how ugly it is?”

“If that were the case, your whole yard would be up for grabs.”

I felt a fresh surge of anger. “See, this is the problem. You’re a snob. Throwing money at things doesn’t make them better.”

“Disagree.”

“I guess we’ll see who wins the prize for best-decorated house then.”

“I guess we will.”