Read Online Rival by Sara Bennett Wealer - Free Book Online Page A

But shoes are like the one thing you can’t fake.”
    â€œI know.” She buried her face in her hands. “I must look like an idiot.”
    I sighed. “Where in ‘your clothes are really awesome’ did you hear ‘looks like an idiot’?”
    â€œOkay,” she said, and blushed. “I’m sorry.”
    â€œI’d kill for some of the stuff you’ve got.”
    â€œReally?”
    â€œTotally. The shoes are just the finishing touch—my way of putting the icing on the birthday cake.”
    She put the boots on and admired herself in the closet mirror. Downstairs, I could hear pots and pans banging. The house was starting to smell great, like slow-cooked meat and fresh bread. Through the window over Kathryn’s bed, I could see her father cutting the grass. Justlike any normal dad on a Saturday afternoon. My dad had never mowed a lawn in his life.
    â€œWhat does he do?” I asked.
    â€œHe’s an engineer. A surveyor, but he got laid off a few weeks ago.”
    â€œOh,” I said. “I’m sorry.”
    â€œIt’s okay. He’s thinking maybe he’ll get another job soon.”
    â€œHe seems nice.”
    She pulled a skirt from her closet and held it up to herself, seeing how it looked with the boots. “He’s okay, I guess.”
    â€œYou don’t get along?”
    â€œWe get along fine, he’s just…” She sat on the bed and started to unzip the boots. “All of the firms in town get slow and then they have layoffs, and it always seems to be him they’re letting go. I feel bad when it happens, but then he’s around a lot more than other dads would be, and he and my mom focus so much on my school stuff already that it’s just hard. It’s like I dread when he’s out of work, because then it puts even more pressure on me, you know?”
    I wanted to sympathize, but all I could think of was that she was crazy. Having my dad around all of the time was one of my biggest dreams.
    â€œPlus, he’s a little corny,” she added. “I mean, he stillcalls me Sweetpea, like he thinks I’m four years old or something.”
    â€œBut that’s cute,” I said. “Hold on.” My BlackBerry had started to vibrate. I slid it out of my pocket and checked the screen.
    Â 
    C.Romelli: Where r u, B?
    Â 
    I hit delete. Two seconds later it buzzed again. This time I ignored it.
    â€œDon’t you want to get that?” Kathryn asked.
    â€œNah,” I said. “It’s nobody.” Chloe had been chasing me around ever since Monday morning, when she’d hatched her Senior Keg plan. So far I’d managed to stay a few steps ahead, but every day there were more messages.
    On the phone: “Brooke, it’s Chloe. Where’ve you been? Call me.”
    In my email: OK, avoid me if you want. But you just don’t want to admit our party was a success. We won’t bite your new friend, you know. See you tomorrow? I better!!! -C-
    On IM:
    CHLOECAT: Brooke?
    CHLOECAT: B?
    CHLOECAT: U there?
    CHLOECAT: This hiding out crap? Getting old.
    CHLOECAT: GROW UP!!!
    CHLOECAT: Call me.
    Â 
    And in texts, which by that point were getting pretty pissy. Another one came through while I was helping Kathryn put the tissue paper back inside the boots.
    Â 
    C.Romelli: Traitor!!!
    Â 
    I shut off the phone and stuffed it in the bottom of my purse, then I went back to spying on Kathryn’s dad. I knew why Chloe wanted to reach me. She couldn’t stand that I had a new best friend. But I didn’t want to share Kathryn. Chloe would never appreciate her the way I did.
    Peeking around the curtains, I watched Mr. Pease finish the curbs. He turned off the mower and rolled it away toward the garage. A few minutes later, the front door slammed. Footsteps came up the stairs and went into the bathroom at the end of the hall. The shower started.
    â€œDon’t you ever help him