Read Any Way You Slice It for Free Online Page B

of something woodsy and my knees suddenly feel like Jell-O.
    I cannot tell him I hadn’t slept all weekend; that I had only thought about him and hockey; the rush of air as I approached the puck, the pure exhilaration of hitting the top corner of the net. How his eyes lit up when I crushed the shot.
    â€œNot sure yet.” I walk into homeroom without a backward glance, leaving him in the hallway.
    â€œSo … Jake Gomes,
hmmm
?” Caroline Chapman coos, strolling in behind me. “Cutting edge, Pen,” she whispers. “He’s still got a smidge of that middle school ’tude, but he’s filling out those jeans. You’re not the only one looking.” She taps the small notebook protruding from her bag. “The list has been morphing since November. Who knows? Jake might actually be on the eligible list by prom.”
    I don’t care in the slightest what Caroline thinks. Or so I tell myself. But I’m sort of glad he’s not still on the ABSOLUTELY NOT list.
    At lunch, I practically fall face-first into my Tater Tots and realize I’ve dozed through all my morning classes. If any teacher assigned homework, I’ve got no clue.
    Lori plunks down next to me, spilling her carefully arranged salad all over the table. “So, are you going to play or just watch?”
    â€œI don’t know.” I jab a fork into one of her escaped tomatoes. “It’s all I can’t think about, though. No one can find out. My dad will ground me for life for even thinking about it.”
    â€œHow on earth are you going to pull this off? You do remember we live in a small town.” She reaches over and grabs a fry off my tray.
    â€œI’ve got it all figured out.” I give her my best hangdog look and cross my fingers behind my back. “You’re going to help me.”
    Lori looks at me like she just found out Jorge’s been adding anchovies to her favorite vegan pizza. “No way.” She shakes her head. “I said I’d drive you to watch practice this afternoon. I never said I’d help you sneak around behind your parents’ backs.”
    â€œRight. Okay.” I nod. “No problem. I’ll figure it out.”
    But she’s going to help me. She has to. It’s the only way I’m going to be able to pull it off.

Chapter Six
    I push my mittens against the Plexiglas wall and try to look like a casual spectator. I don’t want Jake to know I’m here yet. I told him I
might
stop by.
    Lori looks like the Michelin Man standing next to me in her white down ski jacket. She scans the ice. “What are we looking at?”
    I bite my tongue rather than say something I’ll regret. I’m grateful to her for agreeing to get me here. It cost me ten bucks, but it was totally worth it.
    â€œI don’t get it. Lots of people play sports,” she says. “It’s not like you’re sneaking around doing drugs.”
    The thing is … it would be like sneaking around doing drugs to my dad. But it’s amazing the power of a little white lie. It’s not a huge lie. I
do
have a paper due next week. I’m just already finished. No need to be at the library all afternoon. But my parents don’t have to know the truth.
    â€œYou don’t understand.” My voice comes out shriller than I intend. “They are way too distracted by this Restaurant Network thing. Dad spent all weekend in meetings, on the phone, and locked in his office when he was home researching the benefits. He really thinks it’s going to ramp up our business. But I’m not sure he’s actually watched the show.”
    This morning, Grams left the house before the bus picked me up to load up on cleaning supplies. I’m pretty sure she’s as worried about this thing as I am. She and I watched
Local
Flavor
on demand for three straight hours on Sunday night, and we agree. There’s no way we’re coming out