Cupcake Girl by Catherine White Read Free Book Online

wanted to kiss her again, but was I pushing my luck? How would I do it? Would I keep holding her hand or try to hug her first? A hug? Come on, that would be totally stupid. I had to think of another way. But what if she was smiling, or talking?
    Then I realized she
was
talking. “Max? Are you listening to me?”
    “What? Oh, uh, sorry. I mean, what did you say?” I guess I just answered that question.
    “Oh, well, I was just saying that we are probably going to be gone—”
    Her words were muffled by the garble of a trash can being dragged onto the curb by Lexie’s elderly neighbor, Martin. He
waved when he saw her, and I really hoped he wouldn’t come
talk to her. No such luck.
    “Why, hello there, Miss Alexa. How are you doing on this warm summer evening?”
    Lexie started in on some polite small talk, which gave me time to get really nervous. I was noticing how much her porch light resembled a floodlight when the door burst open and Mrs. Duncan hurried down the front steps like she’d been watching for us.
    Lexie immediately dropped my hand. My hopes fell with it.
    “Oh, Lexie, you’re home,” her mom said in obvious relief. “We need to talk.” She turned to their neighbor. “Martin, I’m so glad I caught you. There’s something I need to ask you.”
    Lexie grabbed my arm, but I was staring at the beautiful curve in her lips that hinted at a pout. Maybe if we waited until everyone went in, I could still try to kiss her.
    “Uh, Max? Did you hear what my mom just said?”
    “Sorry. What?” I was fully conscious that Lexie had just caught me gazing at her mouth in a trance of stupidity.
    “I guess she needs me to come in now.” Lexie still looked at me like she was concerned for my mental stability.
    “Oh, okay,” I said, trying not to sound disappointed. “I’ll see you tomorrow, right?”
    “Yeah, of course. What time do you get off work?”
    “I should be done by five or six, but I’ll call you, okay?”
    “Yeah, but remember to call my home phone.” Lexie gave me a real smile. “See you tomorrow, Max.”
    I said goodbye to everyone before sprinting home. I just couldn’t help it. I’d spent the past year wondering what it would be like to kiss Lexie, and it was even better than I’d hoped it would be.
    The following morning I was so happy I didn’t even complain when my dad asked me to take driving duty. He’d rented out our speed boat to a group of tourists who had no idea what a twenty-two-footer was, but who were determined to learn to water-ski. It was a tedious day and required tons of patience, especially since they didn’t quit early like other groups I’d worked with. Instead, they stayed out for the full rental time—ten long hours.
    When I finally pulled the boat into the slip, I was surprised to see my mom waiting on the dock. One look at her face told me something was wrong, so I instinctively asked about Jake.
    “Oh, honey—it’s not Jake. It’s Lexie. She called about five times today and stopped by twice, but I guess they had to go.”
    “Go? Where?” Her look answered my question. “To Houston?” Mom must’ve heard the catch in my voice, because she tried to give me a hug. I brushed her off and said angrily, “Why didn’t you call me? I would have come in!”
    “We did try. I tried. Lexie tried. I even drove the truck out along the western shore to see if I could flag you down, but—”
    I grabbed my phone and groaned when I saw the long line of unanswered calls. It must have been muted, and I’d been so busy I hadn’t bothered checking it. I wanted to kick something, hard.
    “She didn’t say much—they really were in a hurry,” Mom explained, “but she did write you a note. Here.” She held out a small piece of paper that had been folded several times.
    I didn’t say thank you, but grabbed it and stormed away, not really wanting my mom to read it over my shoulder. I sprinted for a few minutes to let off some steam, and climbed to the top of