Bree
If Zoey and Olive brought the paparazzi to Bodega Bay, I’m going to lose my mind. Benny helped carry their bags over to Colby’s house, then slipped away, his blue eyes pinning me in place for a beat too long and filling me with heat. The moment he closes the door, my sisters turn on me.
“You guys totally hooked up,” Olive says.
“It was only a kiss.” I leave them in the entryway and head to the primary bathroom to get rid of all this extra makeup. They follow me.
“That look was loaded,” she argues. “His eyes were saying way more than I want to kiss this chick again.”
“Yeah,” I agree, pulling out all the wig clips and making a pile. “Probably something like What are your sisters doing here? They’re going to bring tons of attention with them.”
Olive has the grace to look hurt. “I told you we’d use Dash’s plane.”
“No one followed us, B,” Zoey agrees, leaning against the counter and watching me.
“Then explain how I’ve completely flown under the radar here for weeks, but tonight we were attacked by paparazzi when we got to Benny’s truck.
They were camped out in the parking lot.
” I think back to Peter’s story about Sierra and the people with cameras on the beach.
“They might have been staking out the beach all day.”
“If they followed us, they couldn’t have done that.
We’ve only been here for, like, twenty minutes.
” Olive walks through the open doorway between the bedroom and bathroom and sits on the edge of the bed.
I can see her through the mirror as I take off my wig.
She’s analyzing my face. “You don’t look like you at all. It’s kind of creepy.”
“It’s called a disguise, and it’s been working really well.”
Her brow furrows.
Zoey crosses her arms over her chest. She’s in a matching magenta jersey set and white tennis shoes. Her long dark hair is slicked back into a ponytail, and she has big gold hoops in. “Someone else must have tipped them off.”
“I didn’t tell anyone where I was, and you’re the only person I told about Benny.”
“You told Zo but not me?” Olive says. “Ouch.”
I ignore her, peeling off the wig and wig cap, then running my nails all over my scalp and tossing my kinky hair into a messy bun.
“Who has Benny told?” Zoey asks.
Nancy pops in my head, but the woman would sooner bowl down a group of paps than tip them off…
wouldn’t she? I don’t actually know Colby, but I’m staying in his house.
Doesn’t that grant me certain legal rights?
I don’t know. My brain is mush, and I hate that I still feel like I should be able to trust this family when someone has let me down.
“Who?” Zoey presses.
“Just his grandma—whom I told you about—and his cousin, who owns this house. Honestly, it could have been me.” The sound of tires crunching across gravel runs through my mind.
Or there was the teenage girl who saw me walking down the street.
I squirt face wash into my palm and turn on the warm water.
“I told Benny about some of the things that went down between Jaida and I earlier, and we didn’t know someone else was around the corner.
But they left. We heard their car leave.
If that person was eavesdropping, wouldn’t they have stuck around? ”
“Not if they heard all they needed to.” Olive pulls out her phone and scrolls. “I don’t see any photos online yet, so right now you’re safe.”
“Kind of,” Zoey mutters.
Olive shoots her a look. I catch it in the mirror right before I lower my face to the sink to wash off all the makeup. Once I’m free and my skin is clear, I pat it dry and rub on moisturizer. “You need to explain.”
“Well, it’s kind of why we’re here. You should probably sit down, though.”
And here I thought my sisters had flown across the country to offer their support.
Part of me was grateful to see them on Benny’s porch, glad to have them join my little bubble of incognito and bliss.
But the logical side of my brain saw their arrival for what it really is—a wrench in the spokes.
This is going to change everything. Even fully disguised, there’s no way the three of us can go anywhere without being spotted.
The jig is finally up.
Given all the flashes and photographers in the parking lot earlier, it has been for at least the last few hours.
Once I’m out of hair and makeup, I throw on a pair of sweats and my Bodega Bay hoodie. We all climb onto my oversized bed, and my sisters watch me like a feral cat they’re trying to corral into a crate.
“I know you wanted to be left alone,” Olive says, pushing her over-processed hair behind her shoulder. She’s been going lighter and lighter, and if she isn’t careful, soon it’s going to be white. “But Lucy has done a few jobs for me ever since you went AWOL—”
“How is she?” I miss my makeup artist almost more than everyone else combined. She’s a master.
“Fine. She’s not mad at you, if that’s what you’re wondering.”
My shoulders relax, and I lean back against the headboard.
Olive peers at me through narrowed eyes. “Do you think everyone hates you?”
“Hate is a strong word.” I chew my lip. “More like everyone has lost respect for me now that they see how petty I really am.”
“Bree,” Zoey says, scooting closer and putting her arms around me.
As the oldest Belacourt and the oldest daughter, she has the protective genes down pat.
She’s been preoccupied with her boyfr—no, her fiancé—for the last few years, but that doesn’t erase a lifetime of being the oldest. She holds me tightly, like she can squeeze her feelings into me.
“Do you know how many people drop diss tracks every year? You’re acting like this is the worst thing you can do to another human, but it’s not the end of the world. ”
“It’s not just that, though. Mine’s not a generic Bad Blood type. You guys heard it. I’m so specific and cruel.”
“I can’t really believe Mom let you release that,” Olive mutters.
“Not helping,” Zoey snaps.
“Mom loves the song. She was totally on board.”
Olive wrinkles her nose, her brown eyes piercing me. “Never mind, I can totally buy it. Mom probably thought it would throw you and Jaida into the headlines for a while.”
“Which it has,” I concede.
“You just didn’t come out on top.”
Zoey releases me and sits back against my headboard. “Jaida’s pity video wasn’t great for your image.”
“Did you guys come to help? What happened with Lucy?”
“Yeah, so…” Olive inhales. “Lonnie is going to talk to Good Morning America.”
Ice runs through my veins.
“Lucy heard about it through someone she knows—”
“His new girlfriend. Abby, right? She helped Lucy sometimes with my hair, so I’m guessing that’s who Lucy heard it from.”
Olive cringes, which is enough to prove I’m right. That absolute, utter piece of trash. I can’t believe he’s selling out the years we spent together for ten seconds of fame.
“When is he going live?” I ask.
“Tuesday morning,” Olive says.
“So we have the weekend to figure out what to do.” Zoey has slipped her business goggles on.
“We aren’t unprepared, B. This isn’t a sneak attack, and he doesn’t have to have the upper hand.
I already tried to use my contacts to see about getting him uninvited, but short of you taking his place, they want to talk to him. ”
I shake my head. “I’m not rewarding a company who’s actively trying to get dirt on me.”
“Figured you’d say that,” Zoey says with a nod. “Our next steps are to plan how to handle it. I have ideas, but I’m open to hearing yours first.”
If I suggest sinking into this bed and turning on Never Been Kissed, will they shoot me down or go scoop the ice cream?
I close my eyes, pushing out thoughts of traitorous Lonnie and his stupid new stylist girlfriend, and dragging in my support team. Zoey, Olive, Benny, Nancy. Even Colby, I think.
That’s it. Colby. The video.
“We kind of already have a plan. Benny came up with it—we wrote a song, and he has a friend who’s going to let us use his recording studio next week, and his cousin Colby is going to shoot a video so I can post it online.”
It’s obvious from Zoey’s expression that this is the last thing she expected from me. It stings a little, but I let it slide. I’m still trying to understand why they’re here and my mom isn’t.
“Can you move the recording session up? If we have everything done by this weekend, then we can drop it the morning of Lonnie’s GMA appearance and suppress any momentum he thinks he’s going to get.”
“Great idea,” Olive says.
“I’ll ask. I need to get my phone.” I climb off the bed and retrieve my phone from the kitchen drawer where I keep it hidden. When I swipe it open, the number of notifications awaiting me are overwhelming.
“In our defense, we did try to call first,” Olive says, passing me and opening the fridge. “What do you have in here? I’m starving.”
“Mostly cereal. Benny can probably pick up some food for us if he’s free. I’ll give him cash. I’m trying to keep anyone from being able to trace my cards.”
My sisters blink at me. “No wonder you were so hard to find.”
“How did you find me?”
“We found Benny,” Zoey says. “Which was actually really hard, too. His house isn’t under his name.
But Chip Paxton happened to know where Benny is, and when I said I wanted to send him some thank you flowers, he was more than happy to give me his address.
So let’s remember to never trust Chip with a secret we care about, even if his heart is in the right place. ”
Olive blinks at her. “I had no idea.”
Zoey studies her nails. “I’m discreet.”
I clear out my notifications and find Benny’s messaging thread.
Bree
Hey, big favor. Any chance we can get that recording studio tomorrow? I’ll pay as much as he needs. Hoping for a Tuesday morning release if possible.
There’s no immediate response, so I let out a sigh. “I ate at this beach bonfire party tonight, but you guys want me to find you some dinner?”
They nod, so I send another text.
Bree
Also, I need to feed my sisters. Do you have a minute to pick up some fish and chips? Or can I come steal the stuff to make them sandwiches?
My phone immediately rings, so I answer it. “Hey.”
“I was on the phone with my buddy down at the studio, and he said we can record tomorrow evening. Cleaners were there last night, so no one should bother us.”
“Thank you. Whoa.” I breathe. “I need to practice.”
“You’ve got this. As far as dinner goes, Colby brought home the extra pork from Peter’s party. I can bring over a few plates.”
“That’s perfect. Thanks.”
“See you soon.”
When I hang up, they’re both blinking. “What?”
Olive waves her hand toward me. “You guys are like…that sounded real.”
“Whose party was it?”
“Benny’s friend Peter. He had a birthday.” I slide into my messages and scroll to Noah’s thread to check in on Peanut, my dog. “Anyway, let’s move on now.”
“I want to hear about everything you’ve been doing here,” Olive says.
Immediately, I think about sitting in the dunes with Benny. Our kiss. The stars. The moment could not have been more perfect. A sweet finale to the most brilliant couple of weeks of my life.
“I’d rather hear the song,” Zoey says. “Well, both. I want to hear both.”
I’m listening to my sisters, but my attention is on my messages. After sending a text to Noah, I go in search of my mom’s thread. I don’t expect anything from my dad. He’s preoccupied with his soon-to-be bride anyway, so I’m surprised to find a message from him.
Dad
This isn’t the Belacourt way.
I check the date stamp and see that the message came in the day my song released.
Well, that tracks.
I delete his entire thread without responding, because I don’t need that kind of negativity right now.
When Benny knocks at the door, I give my sisters a look.
“Fine, we’ll stay here,” Olive says, grinning.
Which means nothing, because they’re visible from the front door.
“Hey,” I say, swinging the door open.
Benny stands there with two plates of pulled pork sandwiches, coleslaw, and corn on the cob. “Is seven okay for tomorrow night?”
“I have literally nothing else going on.”
He smiles while I take the plates, then his eyes fall to my sisters behind us. “Are you hoping to film the video tomorrow too?”
“Only if Colby is still up for it. My ex—Lonnie?”
“Yeah, I remember.”
I fill Benny in on Lonnie’s Good Morning America appearance and the reason we want to release the song and video that same morning.
“If we can shoot and record everything tomorrow and get it all edited quickly, we might actually have a shot at having things uploaded in time to release simultaneously with Lonnie’s appearance.”
“Then we can take him down,” Olive calls. She waves. “Hey, Benny.”
“Good to see you both.”
“We’ll be seeing more of you, I hope,” she says, approaching us.
“Sure.” He chuckles, handing off the plates, which she takes back to the kitchen. Once she’s gone, Benny’s expression shifts. His eyes rake over my face. “You okay?”
“Yes. I think so? I’m nervous, but we have a plan.”
“We do.” His hand slides down my forearm, his fingers curving over mine. “I’ll talk to Colby and call you in the morning. We’ll come up with a filming schedule and make sure it works for you.”
“I’ve seen his photos, so I know he has a good eye. I trust his judgment.”
Benny nods. “Good night, Bree.”
I tug on his hand softly. He glances over my shoulder before taking a step closer, his smile widening.
“Good night.” I want to pull him in and kiss him, but we’d have an audience.
He doesn’t move.
Neither do I.
“Want us to leave?” Zoey calls.
“Okay, that’s my cue.” Benny’s smile could melt butter into a puddle. He leans close and presses a kiss to my cheek, then slips outside. I close the door behind him, wondering how I’m going to leave him behind at the end of all this.