The List by Kate L. Mary Read Free Book Online Page A

texted when he was close and Cami and I met him out front. He had a black two-door Honda Civic, so when he pulled up in front of the dorm Chris hopped out of the passenger side. He pulled the seat forward and motioned for me to climb in, but instead of letting Cami climb in the back, he ducked in next. Cami grinned at me when she pulled the door shut behind her.
    â€œSo what are we shopping for?” Chris asked as Ryan pulled out onto the road.
    â€œWe just have a few things to pick up,” Cami sang over her shoulder. “And Annie wants to get her ears pierced while we’re out.”
    â€œYou don’t have your ears pierced, Buttercup? I thought all girls got that done before they could walk.” Ryan’s eyes met mine in the rearview mirror and I squirmed. I wasn’t sure why. Was it him or the questions that would inevitably follow my answer?
    â€œMy dad was very strict.”
    Ryan nodded and turned back to the road, and I let out a sigh a split second before Chris said, “That sucks. Didn’t think anyone made a big deal about earrings anymore.” He did that little head scratching thing again and I had to press my lips together to keep from giggling. “You must have had an early curfew and all that too.”
    He had no idea. “Um . . . yeah, I guess it was kind of early compared to other teenagers,” I said evasively. If early meant I was barely allowed to leave the house, then I guess it wasn’t a lie.
    â€œWe’ll have to be sure you have fun this year, then,” he said, elbowing me playfully. “What else weren’t you allowed to do?”
    Cami laughed, but tried to cover it with a cough and I glared at her. It was stupid for me to try to hide the list. If I was going to be friends with these guys, they would find out at some point, but I didn’t know them well enough to let them in completely. It was odd that I’d been so upfront with Cami, but I’d had a feeling about her. I knew I could trust her before she’d even said ten words to me. Which was early with the way she talked.
    â€œI didn’t go to a lot of parties and stuff like that. You know how it is.” I shrugged like it was no big deal.
    â€œWhy was he so strict?” Chris asked just as we hit a pothole.
    I swayed and ended up practically on top of him. My face heated up and he grabbed my shoulder to steady me, grinning. He really was cute, but even though my heart pounded at his touch, it didn’t seem quite as exhilarating as it did in all the books I’d read over the years. I imagined being more weak in the knees than I was. It was probably just because I was nervous.
    â€œUm . . . I’m the only girl?” I didn’t mean for it to come out sounding like a question, but it did. Chris pressed his lips together while his mouth pulled down at the corners, and I chewed on my bottom lip before saying, “I have four older brothers and I just think he didn’t really know how to raise a girl.” That was partly true, at least.
    Chris moved his hand off my shoulder and swung it around the back of the seat. His arm wasn’t touching me, but he did have it around me. It made me want to squeal like a girl and hurl at the same time.
    â€œWhat about your mom?”
    There it was, the inevitable question. The simple answer didn’t bother me; it was the follow-up questions I tried to avoid. “She passed away when I was a baby.”
    I held my breath and waited, but everyone in the car seemed to freeze. It was like all the breathable air had been sucked out and they had all slipped into some kind of a coma. Cami stared straight ahead and Chris pressed his lips together. He avoided my gaze. But Ryan watched me in the rearview mirror. His gray eyes swept across the frozen strings of time to penetrate mine, like he was trying to read my mind.
    It was then that I remembered the awkward moment from the day before, right after he’d