Free The Oracle Rebounds by Allison van Diepen

class. I can’t stop thinking about the look Jared gave me. It was fierce—hurt, angry. Does he have a problem with me having a life after him? Or did I break some unwritten rule that you have to wait a year before you can kiss another guy in the hallway? I wasn’t trying to rub Benoit in his face. And why should Jared care anyway? He broke up with me .
    The more I think about it, the angrier it makes me. Would he prefer to see me sad than happy with a gorgeous Frenchman?
    By lunchtime I’ve managed to put the matter aside. One look from Jared isn’t worth crowding my brain space. Besides, Benoit has snuck away from the exchange students to join me and my friends in the caf.
    He tells us about his morning tour of the school, and my friends laugh at his sarcastic commentary. I can tell they’re impressed and a little awed by him. I bet they can sense the chemistry between us, the air around us crackling with electricity. He’s certainly not hiding his feelings, since he’s stroking my hair and rubbing circles on my back.
    I am trying not to pay any attention to Jared, who’s observing us from a few tables away. At one point I dart a glance hisway, and our eyes meet. This time he doesn’t have the angry intensity he seemed to have before; he looks…concerned. Does he think Benoit’s going to take advantage of my vulnerable heartbroken self? I send him back a self-confident smile, letting Jared know, once and for all, that I’m just fine.
    In fact, I’m better than ever.
     
    While Benoit is off visiting the Statue of Liberty with the exchange students, I finish one of the guest blogs and send it off. Hopefully the blogger will post it fairly soon. Once I’m done that, I daydream about Benoit and find myself inspired to write a blog about chemistry.
    Do You Believe in Love at First Sight?
    The Oracle is too practical to believe in love at first sight, but the Oracle does understand how you could be intensely drawn to someone you don’t even know.
    Pheromones. Without even knowing it, you pick up on the scent of someone and your biology takes over. If the pheromones are just right, you will be fiercely drawn to this person, with all of your basic animal instincts wanting you to procreate with them.
    There are a number of scented products that claim to simulate pheromones, giving people the hope that if their natural smell doesn’t attract their crush, their new cologne will. The Oracle thinks that even though these colognes may catch someone’s attention briefly, it won’t be enough for a lasting attraction. So don’t bother.
    How can you tell if your attraction will be lasting? The kiss test, of course. A scent could briefly fool you, but not a kiss. A kiss puts you up close and personal, your pheromones mixing together, and you’ll know right away if the chemistry is there…
     
    That’s the thing about time. When you’re depressed, every hour is endless. When you’re happy, time flies.
    Mom and Erland were so right about the French guy being a distraction. I hate it when they’re right.
    Benoit and I have made the most of our two weeks. He’s leaving tomorrow. It feels like he just got here yesterday.
    “Richard’s picking us up in twenty minutes,” I say. “Are you ready?”
    “I know you by now, Kayla. The question is, are you ready?”
    I laugh. “No, I want to change.”
    “I suppose I should leave the room then?” His brows go up. He plays with it, this sexual tension between us. “I will be in my room. Let me know when you are ready.”
    Tonight’s going to be awesome. Richard, a sophomore who also has an exchange student, has organized a bush party in Scrummer’s Park. I change into a white tee and faded jeans—tight, but not so tight that I have to wear a thong. (Amy made me buy one last summer, but I never wear it, it’s just too uncomfortable.) I put on some makeup and gather my hair into an artfully messy ponytail.
    I look good. I guess romance suits me!
    Richard parks behind