I grinned. “No, it’s Kesley and Holden. Don’t let that spill though. I can’t send them away until after the garden party airs.”

“That won’t be a problem. Neither of them really speaks to me anyway.”

“No?” I asked as he handed me my tiara.

“I’ve heard they thought me being a part of the Selection was unfair. And then seeing our kiss plastered everywhere sealed that opinion.”

I placed the tiara on the shelf with the others. “Made a good call then, didn’t I?”

He chuckled. “Oh, I brought you another present.”

“I love presents!”

“You’ll hate this one, trust me.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out that spectacular disaster of a tie.

“I figured if you were having a bad day, you could take it to the garden and burn it. Get your aggression out on something that won’t cry. Unlike Leeland.”

“I wasn’t trying to make him cry.”

“Sure you weren’t.”

I smiled, taking the wound-up fabric from his hand. “I actually really like this present. It assures me that no human will be forced to wear it ever again.”

Looking over at him, at his hitched-up smile, I was able to push away everything for a minute. It felt like the Selection wasn’t even happening just then. I was a girl with a boy. And I knew what I wanted to do with that boy.

I dropped the tie on the floor and put a hand on his chest. “Kile Woodwork, do you want to kiss me?”

He let out a whistle. “Not shy at all, are you?”

“Stop it. Yes or no?”

He pursed his lips, pretending to think it over. “I wouldn’t mind it.”

“And you understand that me kissing you doesn’t mean I actually like you and that I would never, ever marry you?”

“Thank goodness.”

“Right answer.”

I wrapped my hand around his head, pulling him to me, and an instant later his arms were around my waist. It was the perfect balm for a long day. Kile’s kisses were direct and slow, and he made it impossible for me to think about much else.

We toppled onto the bed, holding each other as we laughed.

“Of all the things I thought would happen when my name was called, I never dreamed I’d ever kiss you.”

“I never dreamed you’d be good at it.”

“Hey,” he said, “I’ve had a bit of practice.”

I propped myself up on my elbow. “Who was your last kiss?”

“Caterina. When the Italian family visited in August, right before I left.”

“That doesn’t surprise me at all.”

Kile shrugged, not ashamed in the slightest. “What can I say? They’re very friendly.”

“Friendly,” I repeated, rolling my eyes. “That’s one word for it.”

He chuckled. “What about you?”

“Ask Ahren. Apparently everyone already knows.”

“Leron Troyes?”

“How did you find out?”

We lay there, laughing so much we were nearly crying. I played with a button on his shirt, and he twirled a piece of my hair between kisses, and the world shrank to just the two of us.

“I’ve never seen you like this,” he commented. “I didn’t know it could be so easy to make you smile.”

“It’s not. You must be in rare form today.”

Kile wrapped an arm around me and placed his face inches from mine. “How are you feeling? I know this has got to be a crazy time for you.”

“Don’t,” I whispered.

“Don’t what?”

“Don’t ruin this. I like having you here, but I’m not in need of a soul mate. You can be quiet and go back to kissing me, or you can leave.”

He rolled onto his back, silent for a few minutes. “Sorry. I just wanted to talk.”

“And you can. But not about you, not about me, and definitely not about you and me together.”

“But it seems like you must be lonely. How in the world do you deal with all this?”

I huffed, standing and pulling him to his feet. “If I need advice, I talk to my parents. If I need a friendly ear, I have Ahren. You were helping for a minute, and then you had to start with the questions.”

I turned him around and pushed him toward the door. “Do you realize how unhealthy that is?” he asked

“Are you the model of adult behavior? You can’t even get your mother to cut the apron strings.”

Kile rounded back, staring me down. I was sure his anger was reflected in my face. I waited for him to scold me again, as he’d done a thousand times growing up. But his eyes softened, and before I knew it, his hand was at the base of my neck, pulling me to him.

He crushed his lips to mine, and I simultaneously hated and adored him for it. All I could think of was the way his mouth moved and how I seemed so fragile in his hands. The passion slowed, until the kisses were so soft they tickled.

When Kile finally pulled away, he kept his fingers teasingly close to my hair, rubbing the skin absentmindedly.

“You are so spoiled, and you are so obnoxious . . . but I’m here.” With a final kiss, he opened the door and left.

I gazed around my room, dizzy with confusion. Why was he trying to get me to open up when he clearly couldn’t stand me? And I didn’t like him either! Sometimes he could be just as bratty as Josie.

I went toward my closet to get ready for bed and saw his ugly tie on the floor. I’d be doing everyone a favor if I threw it away now.

Maybe I would set it on fire the next time I was having a particularly wretched day. For now I tucked it into a drawer.