I stood in front of my mirror in my room, staring at my reflection. I felt like a dork, dressed in more taffeta and polyester than I had in my entire life combined. But, I’d promised Cori that I would go dressed as a princess for Halloween, and I didn’t want to disappoint her.

Things were going well in Tyson’s family. His mom went to rehab for a week, and his aunt came to take care of Cori. That allowed him to finally start making it to practice on time and catch up on his missed chemistry work.

I loved seeing this relaxed side of him. He was finally getting to act like a senior high schooler.

I grabbed a bobby pin and tucked an escaping curl back up. Ms. Swallow had insisted that she do my hair. Things were still strange around the house, but both her and Dad knew that I needed time to get used to it, so they made sure to give me my space.

I wouldn’t ever admit it to anyone, but I loved having her around. She was amazing and made the best cinnamon rolls ever. Plus, she helped calm Dad down when I accidently showed up for curfew a few minutes late.

I liked having her on my side.

There was a soft knock on the door. I turned and said, “Come in.”

The door handle turned and the door swung open. Tyson stood in my hallway dressed as Prince Charming. He even had the foam sword tucked into his belt. His eyes widened as he stared at me.

“You look beautiful,” he said, making his way over to me and pulling me into a hug.

I giggled as I pressed my lips against his.

“What’s rule number one?” Dad called from down the hall.

I sighed. Dad and his rules. “No bedrooms,” I called back.

I gave Tyson an exasperated look, and we shuffled out to the hallway.

“Thank you,” Dad called back.

I sighed, wrapping my arms around Tyson’s neck and pulling him down for another kiss. “You look handsome,” I said when I pulled back.

He grinned. “That was kind of what I was going for.”

I glanced around. “Where’s Cori?”

He nodded toward the stairs. “She’s showing Angelica her dress.”

I cringed. Ms. Swallow had been asking me to call her by her first name for a while now, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. “She got to you too?” I asked, rolling my eyes at him.

He shrugged. “Hey, I want to be a part of your life for a long time. So sue me if I want your family to like me.”

My heart skipped a beat at his confession. He wanted to be in my life for a long time? Was it wrong that it made me ridiculously giddy to hear that?

I kissed him again. “Good.”

He pressed his forehead against mine. “But your happiness always comes first.”

“And mine,” Cori’s voice grew louder as she appeared at the top of the stairs.

“Of course, yours too,” he said, reaching out and catching her as she ran into his arms. After he heaved her onto his hip, he kissed her cheek.

I joined in on the hug, allowing the feeling of completeness to wash over me. Sure, my life wasn’t perfect. But right now, it was pretty dang close.

“Thanks for taking a chance on me,” I whispered.

Tyson’s lips drew closer to my ear. “Of course,” he said.

I rose up and kissed him.

“Blegh,” Cori said, wiggling from his grasp.

I laughed and glanced down at her. “Ready to get some candy?”

She nodded. “Ready.”

Penelope lives by three rules. One, she never gets lower than an A on any assignment. Two, she never loses a track race. And three, she never talks to Cade Kelley.