Marney in the Middle

Chapter 17: Reese's Party Guest

'Rule two: Find someone he's threatened by and make nice with them. Preferably another guy. This will achieve three things simultaneously: Establish that you're sought after, make him chase you and demonstrate his interest in you publicly. Nothing is worth doing if no one sees or talks about it.'

"What are you two doing out here," I ask Malcolm and Reese when I finally track them down in the backyard. Neither of them answer. It's not until I'm beside them that I notice the other guy.

Same height as Reese, he has medium-length dark brown hair combed back from his face and murky blue eyes. A light sprinkling of stubble gives him a rugged look that's complimented with worn looking jeans and a not-so-new tan jacket. I smooth out the front of my dress and offer a small smile because, well, first impressions.

He twitches his head toward me without glancing away from Malcolm, "Who's this?"

"Uh, no one. That's no one."

I squint at Malcolm for a second, but he doesn't retract his statement. Rude. Rolling my eyes, I step toward him and put out my hand, "Actually, I prefer Marney to 'no one.'"

"Right," he says in an odd tone as he shakes my hand. His hands are rough. The way his murky blue eyes stay pinned on me makes my insides squirm. Not sure if in a good way. He let's go and shoves his hands in his jean pockets.

"And you are . . . ?"

"Donny."

"You're here for the party?"

"That's right." His gaze darts to Malcolm and Reese, who both nod in agreement. They smile at me, but it's forced like maybe I walked into a private conversation. A thin shade of heat settles onto my cheeks.

Nice going, nosy.

I open my mouth to excuse myself when two guys poke their heads out of the garage side door. The larger one with tan skin and a red sweater says, "We're ready."

"Ready? For what?"

"Well, you see," Donny steps toward me and places an arm across my shoulders.

A small flip as I tense up. He smells of cologne and something else. Sweet like fruit. His face is inches away from mine when I turn to make eye contact.

Another flip.

My heart literally has no idea what it wants. Like puberty has me riled up at every guy I meet. I bite the inside of my cheek and force my expression stony, trying to hide whatever's going on with my hormones.

"Me and my boys, we're working on a science experiment. And we need the garage for space and privacy."

"An experiment?"

"That's right."

"What kind?"

He squints and runs his free hand over the stubble on his upper lip, "You sure do ask a lot of questions."

"Sorry," I mumble and glance at my feet. "Wasn't trying to be nosy."

Donny puts up his hands as he takes a step back, "No problem. Why don't you and" he points at Malcolm and Reese, who both have a wide-eyed stare "these two go back inside for now?"

I shrug and nod, "Alright."

Reese bolts past the picnic table back inside before I can even look away from this new guy, Donny. There's something . . . curious about him. He's rugged and mysterious in a way subtle movie villains tend to be. Or maybe that's just a hazy read on him; I mean, we did just meet.