The Boyfriend League Read Free Page A

house. But there would have to be rules—”
    â€œWhatever they are, we’ll follow them.”
    â€œThere can be no hanky-panky—”
    â€œPuh-lease!” Who said hanky-panky these days? “He won’t be the one—”
    â€œThe one ?” Mom asked, her eyes narrowing.
    Why don’t I just blow it here and now?
    â€œWe’re just giving him a room, Mom. I promise. I wouldn’t be interested in him if he turned out to be Johnny Depp.” I gave an exaggerated eye roll. “Well, okay, if he was Johnny Depp, I’d be interested. But seriously, what are the odds?”
    Mom’s mouth quirked at that, because she had a thing for Johnny Depp, too.
    â€œAll right, then,” she said, “you can have your ballplayer for the summer.”
    Yes! Deep inside I was doing a happy dance, but on the outside I did nothing more than smile. If my parents figured out the real plan was to get a boyfriend, they absolutely wouldn’t go for it. Not that they had anything against boys, but Dad’s always saying we shouldn’t date until we’re thirty. I’m not sure he’s joking.
    Now he nodded thoughtfully. “I’ll talk to Ed Morton. He’s the team manager, and I’m sure he can explain everything we need to do and get us the paperwork.”
    â€œBird wants to host a baseball player, too,” I told him.
    She’d called earlier with the news her parents had given their permission for her to have a summer buddy, as she’d taken to calling him.
    â€œLittle do they know our ulterior motives,” she’d said, like some evil scientist, which had made me laugh.
    â€œI’ll let Ed know,” Dad said now. “I’m sure he’ll be happy to give us a little extra consideration, since I helped design and build the field.”
    He winked at me, and I knew it was a done deal.

Chapter 3
    H is name was Jason Davis, and he took my breath away. Literally.
    Following the advice on the proper application of mascara, which Tiffany had posted on her blog at the Miss Teen Ragland website, I’d just finished applying my third layer—“one for length, one for width, one for beauty”—when the doorbell rang. Since we were expecting Jason to arrive at any moment, I knew it had to be him.
    I quickly looked at myself in the mirror. I’d decided my boyfriend plans required more than my usual T-shirts, so I’d done a little shopping. New Gap jeans and a red spaghetti-strap tank with tiny white polka dots and a wide swath of white lace along the dipping neckline and downthe center. My shoes were a corked wedge with a T-and-ankle strap. Really classy, I thought.
    I’d taken a hot iron to my hair, but had only managed to straighten my straight hair further. But I didn’t really have time for a do-over. Besides, my hair was a lost cause.
    So, with a deep breath, I headed down the hallway and descended the stairs, trying not to clunk, but trying to get to Jason before Tiffany had a chance to impress him.
    According to Stephanie, who was majoring in psychology, for guys it was all about physical attraction before anything else. “Think bright plumage,” Bird’s sister had said. “For guys it’s all about sex; for girls it’s all about love. Venus. Mars. Who wants to have sex with a dog?”
    â€œAnother dog?” Bird had asked sarcastically, which had ended Stephanie’s lesson on what was important to guys.
    Which was okay with me, because I wasn’t ready to jump ahead to the sex part. Long, slow kisses were more along the lines of what I was looking for this summer. Really long and really slow.
    So, it was important that I impress Jasonbefore Tiffany did, so I’d have an in with the team. In theory, I guess he could take both of us when he hung out with the guys. But if he only chose one of us, I wanted it to be me.
    I could see he wasn’t in the foyer and, knowing