Competing With the Star (Star #2) by Krysten Lindsay Hager Page A

arms folded, talking to some people. He glanced over and smiled at me—or was it at Simone?
    I walked over to him, but she went to talk to some older guy. Nick frowned.
    “Why is she talking to him?” he asked.
    “Who? Why do you care?”
    He kept his eyes on them. “Because Chase is her jerk of an ex. He never treated her well and she’s gotta be stupid to give him the time of day. I’ve always hated that guy.”
    I shrugged. “That’s her problem, isn’t it? Not yours.”
    He looked down at me. “Yeah, but she’s my friend and I don’t want her to get hurt again. You should have seen how upset she was the last time he dumped her. She cried for hours.”
    “Well, she’s obviously not over him and who can blame her? He’s…” I tried to think of what to say, but words were failing me, so I went with the first thing that popped into my mind, “…super hot.”
    Nick frowned at me. “You think he’s hot?”
    “Yeah, he’s, like, the cutest guy here.”
    “Gee, thanks,” he said, turning away. “C’mon, let’s get her and go on back.”
    This time he didn’t take my hand as he walked over to Simone and told her we were heading back.
    “Whatever, go without me. I’m going to stay with Chase,” Simone said.
    “Yeah, but your mom didn’t want you walking back alone, so you need to come with us,” Nick said.
    “It’s cool. I’ll walk her back,” Chase said.
    “Simone, seriously, come on,” Nick said.
    “Just go without me.”
    Nick’s mouth was set in a firm line as he started to walk away from them. I had to half run to keep up.
    “He’s such a jerk. What does she see in him?” he asked. Then he stopped and looked over his shoulder at me. “Oh, I forgot, he’s super hot. Who could resist him?”
    He looked hurt. Normally I’d reassure him that I didn’t find Chase cute, but my feelings were all in a jumble after what I heard in the bathroom. And frankly, his knight in shining armor routine of running to Simone’s rescue wasn’t putting my insecurities to rest at all.
    “I can’t believe you’d go for a guy like that,” he said, and then he looked over my head.
    “Whatever.”
    “He’s not my type.”
    “Oh, so hot isn’t your type. Thank you,” he said. “This night is getting better and better.”
    “Why do you care so much what she does?”
    He stopped and stared at me. “I told you. He practically destroyed her confidence last time they dated and I don’t know why she’d even give him the time of day. I’ve known her forever and I have to look out for her.”
    Well, maybe that’s all it was—him watching out for her like a sister, but then he added, “And I care about her.”
    My stomach rolled. Maybe it was true and he did have feelings for her.
    We walked back to our moms and he was no longer trying to hold my hand. After we sat down, he grabbed a cookie and focused on it as we sat in silence. I felt so alone even though he was sitting two inches from me. My perfect, sweet boyfriend—the one who told me I could always count on him. Did the perfect guy even exist, or was Nick someone I made seem even better than he was in reality?
    “Do you want the last cookie?” he asked. I shook my head. “Want to split it?”
    I took the half. Well, that was thoughtful. As I chewed the cookie, I racked my brain, trying to see if I could recall any questionable moments between Simone and Nick. He finished his cookie and stared straight ahead at the stage even though there was nothing going on up there. His arms were wrapped around his knees and he was focused on something in the distance. A few minutes ago his focus had been all on me. I leaned back on my elbows, feeling miserable.
    “Nick, will you get me another water?” his mom asked.
    “Yeah, sure,” he said, getting up. He asked my mother if she wanted anything and then turned to me. “Do you need anything?”
    It sounded more like an afterthought. I shook my head.
    “Want me to come with you?” I