Is He Or Isn't He? (12 page)

P
aige was awakened by the sound of a ringing phone.

Opening her eyes, she groaned when she saw it was nine o'clock. Who could be calling so early on a Sunday morning?

“Hello?”

“I held off on calling for as long as I could, but I'm climbing the walls! I've been up since six. I need to know what happened last night!”

Anthony. She should have known.

Paige plumped her pillows behind her back and sat up in bed. “You can give a sigh of relief. The big question still remains unanswered.”

“What do you mean?”

“He didn't hold my hand when we were walking home and he didn't kiss me good night. All I got was a hug.”

“What kind of a hug? A tight-hold-you-close hug or a quick squeeze?”

“A quick squeeze.”

“Woo-hoo!” Anthony cheered. “That means I still have a chance! If he were straight and too shy to kiss you or hold your hand, he would at least try to cop a feel with a tight-hold-you-close hug because hugs are a gray area where extended body contact is socially acceptable.”

“You don't have to sound so gleeful,” Paige grumbled.

“Sorry.”

“I'll bet you are.”

“Hey, I get to live in my fantasy world for a little bit longer.”

Paige yawned. “At least for another week.”

“What do you mean?”

“I know what my next move is going to be.”

“Care to share?”

“In time. For now you'll just have to be patient. Talk to you later.”

Paige had never before felt competitive with Anthony, but now she did. It was as if they were in a race to see who could win Max. Obviously, it didn't matter what either one of them did because in the end it was all going to come down to whether or not Max was gay or straight.

Of course, there was also going to be a deciding factor. If Max
were
gay, would he like Anthony as much as Anthony liked him?

And if Max were
straight
, well, would he like her as much as she liked him?

Last night's walk hadn't given her any clues.

It was time to get some answers.

Paige picked up the phone again, trying to work up her courage for the call she was going to make.

You can do this
, she told herself.
You can do this.

Just dial his number. You're inviting a friend for the weekend. That's all.

But was it? Paige was inviting Max to her father's house in the Hamptons because she wanted to get closer to him and get to know him better.

Because she liked him. A lot.

At first it was because he was so cute. Then she had found out how generous he was with his donations to the school. And now she knew about his love of animals and volunteer work. The more she learned about Max, the more she liked him.

Paige dialed Max's home number, but before the line could ring she hung up the phone.

Why was she so nervous? She'd called guys before and invited them to dances and parties. What was so different this time?

It wasn't like she had spent a whole lot of time with Max. Then again, he didn't spend a lot of time with anyone. He was kind of a loner. Whenever you saw him in the halls or cafeteria, he was always with a different group of people. It didn't look like he had made friends with anyone in particular, but was just coasting from clique to clique. He'd also joined a bunch of after-school clubs: Debate, Track, Yearbook, Tennis, the school paper, Spanish Club and Drama Club. And he'd had his father buy new uniforms for the basketball and football teams, too. Everyone at Peppington Prep knew who Max was, but Paige really
didn't think anyone
knew
him.

Paige did feel like she and Max were becoming friends, though. He sat in front of her in A.P. History and they often talked before class started. He was definitely homesick for his friends in California and adjusting to a life without surf and sun. Sometimes he even shared his class notes with her—Mr. Owling talked a mile a minute and Paige couldn't keep up with his motormouth.

Paige picked up the phone again and dialed Max's number, forcing herself not to hang up.

“Hello?”

“Max! Hi! It's Paige!”

“Hey, Paige. What's up?”

“I was wondering if you had any plans for next weekend. I was going to head out to my dad's house in the Hamptons. Since the weather is still nice, I thought you might like going to the beach since you miss it so much.”

“It's Felix's eighteenth birthday party next Saturday. I was planning to go. Who else are you inviting for the weekend?”

Okay, curve ball. Why was he asking her who else was going? Was it because he didn't want to be alone with her?

She couldn't tell him she hadn't invited anyone else. She didn't want him to think she was planning anything romantic.

“Hello? Paige? Are you there?”

Think, Paige. Think!
Who else is going? Who else is going that would make Max want to come?

“I invited Colleen,” she said in a rush. “And Bianca and Rachel. You met them at Anthony's party, remember?”

“Oh yeah, I remember them. Cute girls.”

Bianca and Rachel would freak out if they heard they'd
been described as cute. Sultry was their new favorite word when it came to describing themselves.

“Is Anthony coming?”

Paige almost dropped the phone. Why was he asking about Anthony? Was it because he liked him and was hoping he could get closer to him? If that was the case, then why hadn't he already made a move?

“Anthony can't make it,” Paige said, making a mental note to herself. She'd have to make sure Anthony told Max he had plans for that weekend. And she'd have to make sure Colleen, Bianca and Rachel canceled their plans for next weekend because they were going to be spending the weekend with her.

There was silence on the other end of the line. Why was he hesitating? She was inviting him for a weekend in the Hamptons with four girls! Any straight guy would be drooling. What more did he want?

Then the light bulb went on over Paige's head and she uttered the words she knew no guy—straight or gay—could resist. “There's a hot tub.”

“I'm there!”

 

After getting off the phone with Max, Paige called Anthony and filled him in on Operation Hamptons.

“I'm impressed, Miss Paige. Very impressed, especially since he's skipping Felix's birthday bash. Very clever of you to mention the hot tub.”

“Thank you,” Paige said, feeling quite proud of herself. “You realize, though, why this has to be girls only, right?”

“Yes,” Anthony sighed. “I would have loved to have seen
Max in just a bathing suit, but I understand. Promise to take pictures?”

“Promise.”

“So let me ask you a question.”

“Shoot.”

“What happens once you get Maxie out to the Hamptons?”

“What do you mean?”

“How are you going to seduce him?”

“Seduce him?! I'm not going to seduce him!”

“Wrong word. Sorry. How are you going to tempt him? Or should I say
test
him?”

“Test him? I don't know. I haven't thought that far ahead.”

“Well start thinking. You need to come up with a game plan, otherwise you're going to stuck with one bored guy who'll be looking at his watch, wondering when the next jitney is heading back to Manhattan.”

“We're going to be in the hot tub.”

“The
entire
weekend? Trust me Paige, you're not going to look good at your most wrinkled.”

“What do you suggest then?”

“I know you're not going to like hearing this, but you're going to have to step up your game.”

“Huh?”

“Show the goods, Paige! Show the goods! You're going have to plan out every outfit you're going to wear this weekend. From hair to shoes to makeup. I know you don't like putting a lot of thought into this kind of stuff, but you're going to have to if you want to keep Max's interest.”

“You're wrong. Max isn't that kind of guy.”

“You mean he's not straight?” Anthony sighed. “Paige, for
most straight guys it all comes down to how hot a girl is. Maybe Max is the exception to the rule, but if we
really
want to find out if he's gay or straight, then you're going to have to pull out all the stops. At least for this one weekend.”

Paige sighed. “You really think I need to glam myself up? Show some skin?”

“Paige, gay guys have been advising women about fashion and makeup for hundreds of years. I think we're doing something right. But if you want the female point of view, why don't you invite Colleen, Bianca and Rachel over and have them go through your closets. They'll tell you the truth. And they won't sugarcoat it!”

“Fine, fine!” Paige huffed. “I'll have them come over this afternoon, but only to prove that you're wrong.”

“No, I'm right,” Anthony stated smugly. “You'll see.”

 

Paige hated it when Anthony was right.

Colleen, Bianca and Rachel were staring at Paige's walkin closet with horror.

“I knew it was going to be bad,” Bianca whispered, “but not this bad. I think I need to sit down.” She put a hand to her forehead, as if she were dizzy. “Where's the color? Have I gone color blind? Everything in this closet is muted. It's like somebody turned down the color on a television set!”

“It's worse than I thought,” Rachel said, fingering through a rack of pleated skirts as if they were contaminated. “Much worse.”

“Obviously we have a fashion emergency,” Colleen said.

“I thought you said you bought a whole new fall wardrobe when you were out in California visiting your
mother,” Rachel said.

“I did!”

“Then why is everything in this closet nearly identical to what you wore last season?” Rachel asked.

“Maybe because I bought a lot of pieces from last year's collections?”

“Why?” Rachel wailed.

Paige shrugged. “They were marked down. You know how I can't resist a bargain.”

“What happened to that cute low-cut red shirt I know you have?” Bianca asked. “You wore it that time Rob Kalinsky was flirting with you. You looked totally hot that night.”

“That was last Valentine's Day,” Paige said. “The night we went to that kegger party and you got sick, remember? After spending an hour with you in the bathroom Rob barfed all over me.”

“I told you I had some bad mayo!”

“Whatever. Anyway, I threw that shirt away.”

“Well, we'll have to replace it. Along with everything else!” Bianca declared. “There's nothing in this closet that's going to trap a man. Nothing!”

“Max is only seventeen years old!” Paige exclaimed. “He's hardly a man.”

“That was just a figure of speech.” Bianca stood up and twirled in front of Paige. “Take a look at what I'm wearing. Do I look like I'm seventeen years old?”

Bianca was wearing a form fitting brown suede miniskirt with a leopard print top that was low-cut.

“No, you look more like you're twenty-five. But then, you always have. Ever since we were freshmen and you stole
Victor Manning away from his girlfriend.”

“Victor was the first senior I ever went out with.”

“Until he found out you were a freshman,” Colleen reminded. “And dropped you like a hot potato.”

“But not until his ex-girlfriend spilled the beans,” Bianca shot back. “And even she was unsure of how old I was. Don't you see, Paige? We have the advantage over boys our age. We can look older if we want. If we look twenty-five and catch the attention of a guy who's twenty-five, well, obviously we're doing something right! And that means guys our age will be all over us!” Bianca took another look at Paige's hanging clothes and threw herself dramatically onto Paige's bed. “This all says safe. Secure. Boring!”

“There's nothing surprising in here,” Rachel said, sitting down next to her twin.

“Surprising?” Paige asked. “What do you mean?”

Rachel's eyes lit up. “Haven't you ever seen something in a store that you normally wouldn't buy for yourself? There's something so naughty about it, so forbidden, that you have to have it? Then you buy it and hide it away at the back of your closet, hoping you'll have the courage to someday wear it?”

“Mine's a red leather dress that laces up the sides,” Bianca confessed.

“Mine's a pair of thigh-high white boots,” Rachel said.

“Mine's a thong bikini,” Colleen admitted as Paige's jaw dropped on that one.

“Everything in this closet is blah with a capital B,” Bianca said.

“I like my clothes,” Paige said, staring at the racks of expensive clothing. They were all designer names like Ralph
Lauren and Calvin Klein. “There's nothing wrong with them.”

Bianca sighed. “Are you not listening to me?! We're young! We're beautiful! We're sexy! Why shouldn't we show it off? It's not going to last forever.”

Paige squirmed. She liked her body; really, she did. She wasn't one of those girls who thought she was too fat or too thin. She just didn't like putting herself on display for the entire world to see. What was wrong with that?

She sighed. “Do I really need to do this?”

“Do you want to land Max?” Colleen shot back.

“Yes! But it shouldn't matter what I look like. Or what I'm wearing.”

“Paige, he's a teenage boy. They think with their hormones. Or rather, they're led by their hormones and all those hormones collect in one place.” Bianca and Rachel started giggling and Colleen joined in.

“You're going to need to turn up the heat,” Rachel said. “And sizzzzle!”

“Are you up to the challenge?” Bianca asked, arching an eyebrow.