Free How to Meet Boys by Catherine Clark Page A

friend.
    Hey, it could happen. It happened to other girls all the time. Maybe it was our turn.

UNCORRECTED E-PROOF—NOT FOR SALE
    HarperCollins Publishers
    ..................................................................
CHAPTER 10
Mikayla
    Wednesday at noon, I rode my bike out to the Club beach. It was my first day off since Sunday, but I was headed there because a bunch of people had talked about playing volleyball. It was probably a ridiculous idea, but if there was any chance the mystery guy might be there . . . I hadn’t managed to run across him, despite the fact I’d ridden my bike all over town—multiple times—in the past three days.
    When you wanted to be hit by a car driven by a cute guy, it would never happen. I’d learned that. Maybe that was a good thing, but I was starting to feel pretty hopeless. I’d even pathetically gone to Earl Grey’s with Lucy the night before, hoping I’d run into him. It was like he’d vanished into thin air. I hadn’t seen him anywhere.
    I’d been about to lose hope. I figured he’d bailed and gone back home, due to the fact I’d semi-stolen his job.
    I knew I could just ask Henry and Sarah who he was and where he worked, but I didn’t want to mess things up. I’d only been in town a week and a half—and at the Club for a week. I didn’t want to be that girl. The one who showed up and assumed everything that existed was there for her to take.
    I’d spent the morning talking to my family, who I was missing more than I thought I would. “Be careful,” my mom said at the end of the call. “Don’t do anything you’re going to regret.”
    I don’t know what she thought was going on up here. “I can assure you, Mom,” I said. “It’s really no different from home.”
    I waved at Liam as I rode past him at the gate and on through the parking lot, to the end of the beach with volleyball net. I leaned my bike against a tree and took off my helmet, shaking out my hair.
    When I looked up, I realized it wasn’t just club people playing. He was at the net. Whoever he was. Cute Near–Car Crash Coffee-Shop Guy.
    That was a really long nickname. I definitely needed to learn his real one.
    He was looking at me. Kind of staring, actually. I wasn’t sure whether to wave or say hi. Both seemed awkward, so I didn’t do either, which was probably just as weird. Instead I immediately looked down and walked over to stand by the net and observe.
    We didn’t say anything initially. But when Sarah had to go back inside to work, I took her spot—which was right beside him, in front at the net.
    “Hey. Where’ve you been hiding?”
    “Hiding? Me? I’m here every day,” I said, feeling nervous just to be around him again.
    “I haven’t seen you around town,” he said.
    I smiled. If he only knew how around town I’d been, looking for him .
    “What’s so funny?” he asked, coming closer to give me a little hip check.
    “Nothing. Just—what are you doing here?” I asked as we started to play. “Did you come to get your old job back?”
    “Ha. No such luck. It’s just my day off,” he said.
    I hit the ball out of bounds. We lost the point and he turned to me. “Didn’t you say something once about playing a lot of sports?” he teased me.
    “Hey, I just got here!” I said, laughing. “I’m warming up.” A minute later, I jumped up and nailed a spike at the net, making Henry lunge for it and fall into the sand. “That better?” I asked.
    “Not cool, Mikayla!” Henry yelled to me. “Not cool!”
    “Wow. You have a serious spike,” Near-Car-Crash Guy commented as we started the next point. “I’ll set you up next time.”
    “Sounds like a plan,” I said.
    “You play on a team?” he asked.
    I nodded. “I’m kind of the team captain.”
    “Stand back, people!” he told everyone, holding up his hands. “We have a ringer here, we have a ringer. I’m so glad you’re on my team.”
    “Same here,” I said. “I mean, that you’re . . . on