Page 27 of The Enemy Plot
“Ah, there they are!” Lola exclaims, hurrying toward a group of girls. They turn around, and I don’t like the looks on their faces when they smile at Lola. It seems a little too much like the look Regina George sports inMean Girlswhen she tells Cady she likes her bracelet.
Lola introduces us to Stephanie, Brianna, and Khloe, who are all in her class. They’re dressed up like mini adults, with short skirts, crop tops, and way too much makeup. They all have their phones out, and I notice they’re on Instagram.
I’m not exactly sure why Lola is friends with them, but I was pretty unpopular at school as a flat-chested nerd, so I understand the need to fit in.
Emma’s scrunched face tells she has a similar opinion of the clique, but she doesn’t say anything, instead slipping away to get us all some drinks.
“What an interesting jacket,” a girl named Stephanie says to Lola with a smile that can only be described as forced. Or Regina-like.
“Thanks.” Lola’s smile is bright and definitely not fake. “It was my mom’s.”
“Oh, I’m sure it was,” Stephanie says before sneaking a glance at her two friends, who chuckle quietly.
I don’t know if Lola didn’t catch that, or if she just chose to ignore it, but all my alarms just went off. I listen carefully to the rest of the conversation, but it seems to have settled back into a normal teenage discussion.
The show is about to start, so we walk closer to the stage. The atmosphere is even stuffier now with so many people crowded around us, and Lola is beaming, chatting with her friends. Then, I notice the girls giggling and pointing off to the side. Following their gaze, I land on a group of guys around their age.
“Uh-oh,” Emma says with a light chuckle. “I spy a high-school crush.”
“Oh, yeah.” I sigh. “I miss those times.”
“Really?” She quirks an eyebrow. “I hated high school, and teenage crushes are the worst.”
“Wait.” I wheel around to face her. “Did you have a crush in high school?”
She crosses her arms over her chest, her eyebrows raised.
“Oh my gosh. I would have never guessed.” It’s so weird to imagine the hardened Emma as a carefree teenager whose only concern was getting a boy’s attention. But then again, that was before her life completely shifted.
“Not my finest hour.”
“What happened?” I ask, sipping my diet coke.
She looks down. “He moved away.”
“Oh, crap. Well, mine didn’t even know I existed, so . . .”
“Ugh. Men are jerks at every age,” she growls, shaking her head. “Maybe they only reach maturity when they’re older, like forty.”
“Mm,” I say. And of course, I’m daydreaming about Deacon again. I don’t think he’s forty, but he does seem more mature than most men I’ve dated. Or at least more interesting.
When the guys notice Lola and their friends, they come over to talk to them. We watch them interact, but we don’tintervene. Even if we’re not her parents, I know she’d be mortified if we even just said hi.
Stephanie seems to really like one of the guys, but Brianna is less subtle. She already has her tongue down another one’s throat. Lola glances at the one sporting a skater look and wearing a beanie. He seems like the quiet one of the group, and like Lola, he kind of clashes next to his friends.
Soon, the concert starts, and everyone’s attention focuses on the stage.
Jack Rose steps out, belting out his first song, and I must say I’m impressed. I was never much of a fan, but the music is pretty good, and the dancers and light effects tie the show together neatly.
“New York!” Jack Rose says into the microphone after his first set as he grabs his guitar.
Cheers and screams ripple through the crowd.
“This city will always hold a special place in my heart,” he says, sitting down on a stool before adjusting the height of the microphone stand. “It’s where I met my wife.”
The cheering intensifies, and I’m pretty sure my left eardrum is now ruptured. Jack glances to the side of the stage. “L, this is for you.”
Lola, her friends, and every other girl in the crowd are swooning big time. And I must say, the guy’s got moves.His hit songOnly Girlstarts playing, and everyone sings along.