“It could definitely use sprucing.” The seed of a brilliant scheme plants itself in Kat’s mind. Now that she’s sixteen, she could have a summer job. A real one, instead of working at Arden. And she loves cats. She’s always wanted one of her own, but Des is super allergic. “Wait a minute. How much sprucing? Like…a total makeover?”
Suri darts back across the room and stands on her hind legs to bat at the feather toy. “I don’t know about that. Sales are down. Adoptions are down,” Mase says. Miss Lydia works with the local rescue to feature cats available for adoption, as well as the ones that she’s adopted herself.
“Bummer.” Kat crouches—not easy in three-inch platform heels—and pets Suri. “Well, I know how to make things look cute for cheap. We aren’t exactly rolling in cash. Would you put in a good word for me?”
“With Miss Lydia? I guess, but—” Luna nudges Mase till he pets her again. “Not to be self-absorbed, but how does this help me get Brandon back?”
“Between your good word, my natural charm”—Kat tosses her hair—“and what I’m assuming will be a real lack of applicants, I’m a shoo-in. And I have big ideas for this place.” She looks around with a critical eye. “This could be cool. We could make it cool.”
“We could?” Mase raises his well-sculpted eyebrows, clearly dubious.
Kat stands. “Yeah. I follow some cat cafés on Instagram. We’d have to get rid of the furniture first. Toss all those hideous figurines and china plates and cat pillows. Keep the pink wallpaper. Maybe paint this wall with chalkboard paint, and make signs for selfies.” Kat strides around the room, pointing, with Suri trotting after her.
“Selfies?” Mase echoes. “Who’d want to take selfies here?”
Kat runs a finger over the textured pink wallpaper. “Everyone, once we’re finished with it. We’ll get futons with slipcovers so we can wash off the cat hair, and shaggy pink and black throw pillows. Think modern. Sleek, but super cute. Still a place that little girls want to come for birthday parties, but also a place that people our age would come and hang out and play with the cats. You get teenage girls, you get money. We’re tastemakers. Don’t you read Teen Vogue? Teen girls are totally leading the resistance.” The more she talks, the more she loves this plan. “Brandon will see the place blowing up on social media, and he’ll be intrigued.”
Mase shakes his head. “Brandon doesn’t care what’s going on in Remington Hollow. He’s moved on.”
“That’s part two of my plan. Maybe you should move on too.” Kat grins. “Make him jealous.”
Mase stares sadly at his retro wingtip shoes. “I don’t think I’m ready to date anybody else, honestly.”
“I know.” Kat pats him on the shoulder. “But how about fake dating?”
Mase rolls his eyes. “Like, invent some other guy? Isn’t that kind of pathetic?”
“Not a guy, and not made up.” Kat twirls in a circle and does jazz hands. “Me!”
“You?” Mase stares at her, clearly thrown. “What?”
She sighs. “Mase. It’s so obvious. You want to make Brandon jealous. I want to make Adam jealous. We’ll be spending a lot of time together anyway between the play and me working here. It’s brilliant.”
“It’s crazy.” But she can tell he’s considering it. He’s eyeing her like he’s evaluating whether they’d take good selfies. And they would. She’s already thought this through. They both have great style. Mase is cute, in a punk sort of way, with his fauxhawk and guyliner and skinny jeans. He’s got…what’s the word Gram uses? Moxie. Kat digs moxie. It can’t be easy being a bisexual Korean American drama nerd in a small town, dating another guy, and working at a cat café. When they were younger, back in middle school, Mase got bullied a lot. Then his brother, Jacob, kicked Troy Randall’s ass and let it be known that he was coming for anybody who came for Mase, and nobody messed with Mase again.
“Come on. Your current strategy is clearly not working, right?” Kat insists.
Mase shrugs. “Truth. So, hypothetically speaking…how would this work? We post a cute Insta story?”
“No, that’s not big enough. We have to stage it.” A smile creeps across Kat’s face. “You aren’t averse to public displays of affection, are you?”
Mase shrugs. “Nah. It’s like stage kissing.” He stares at her. “If I say yes, am I going to regret it? How do I know I can trust you?”
“What have you got to lose?” Kat fires back.
“If this gets out…my dignity? Self-respect?”
“It would be even worse for me. Everybody already thinks I’m a hot mess. I’m the stereotypical jealous ex-girlfriend,” Kat admits. “But nobody will find out. I promise.” She thinks for a minute. “What if we make our debut tomorrow night at Spencer and Dylan’s party?” Spencer Pennington is totally obnoxious, but the parties she and her brother throw every summer are legendary.
“Your confidence is weirdly convincing.” Mase nods. “All right. I’m in.”
Kat grins. “This is going to be so much fun. Trust me.”
Chapter Eight
VI
Vi is setting a trap.
She has very slowly meandered the eight blocks from home back to Arden. In one hand, she holds the new Nina LaCour book. In the other, she holds a leash that leads to a sweet, fluffy white chow chow named Juno, who stops to sniff curiously at every flower, tree, bush, and telephone pole they pass. Vi is dog sitting while her next-door neighbors, the Mitchells, are on vacation.
Vi has decided to take Des’s advice and stop hiding from Cece. She overheard that Cece wanted to read this book, the bookstore was sold out, and Vi had a copy on her bookshelf at home. It was easy enough to go home and grab it, pick up Juno for her evening walk, and then head in the direction of Tia Julia’s, where Cece works most Friday nights.
Not that Vi has memorized Cece’s schedule or anything. She’s just noticed when Cece’s there and when she’s not, since Tia Julia’s is right next door. Vi is very observant.
Especially when it comes to Cece Pérez.
And Juno is the perfect Cece bait.
Vi takes a deep breath, runs a hand over her carefully rebraided hair, and walks past Arden. Des has dragged the chalkboard sign advertising tomorrow’s story time inside and is closing up. Vi has stalled as long as she possibly can. If she wants to get home in time for family dinner, she has to put her plan into action now and then return Juno to the Mitchells’. She tugs the dog along the brick sidewalk, past the couples sipping sangria and bright frozen margaritas in the front windows of Tia Julia’s. Cece is stationed behind the outdoor hostess stand in the courtyard. Her dark hair is pulled up into a high, bouncy ponytail, and she’s wearing a black dress that falls right above her knees. She is so, so ridiculously pretty.