PROLOGUE
* Joanna *
“Foods before dudes.”
“Friends before mens.”
“Cocktails before–”
“Kim, lower your voice,” I hissed. “Believe it or not, there might be civilized people here
somewhere.”
Her glossy black hair was tossed over her shoulder with a giggle before Kim rolled her
eyes. “We are not leaving this table until we find a female-friendly way to say ‘bros before
hoes’.”
“We’ve always just called this ‘Girly Thursdays’,” Laura said, swirling her wine. She held it
up to the light for a second as if she were analyzing the colors. “Isn’t that good enough?”
“You heard her highness,” I said, pointing at each one of the four other girls with my own
wine glass. “Kim is convinced that we are all finding boyfriends this summer.”
Kate chuckled. “We don’t need a catchphrase to stay together as a team, with or without
boyfriends.”
“You know I’m right,” Kim said quite seriously. “We’re all due for a change. We’re all at a
place in our lives where either a great relationship or a great fling would do each of us a
world of good.”
Becca shook her head. “I’m not having a fling. It’s just not me.” Of the five of us, she was
definitely the most timid, her hands trembling slightly as she brushed back her wild, wavy
auburn hair.
The murmur of our local pub grew quieter until I could actually hear the hum of the ceiling
fans. “Me either,” I said cautiously.
Kim’s head spun in my direction, staring at me. “Joanna, you just finished saying that you
need to try new things, and break out of your shell.”
“That doesn’t mean I have to… Fling,” I laughed. “I promise that if I find a guy I really like, I will entertain the thought of kissing him. Perhaps going on a real date.”
“That’s certainly a start,” Kate said. “No matter what actually happens this summer, I think
that if we all stay open-minded and just try to get started on the whole dating process, that
would be amazing.” She always looked so calm, with her brown hair pulled back in a
sensible braid, drawing more attention to her flashing green eyes.
Laura giggled. “Kate’s going camping in the woods. The only men she’s going to meet are lumberjacks or axe murderers.”
“Thanks a lot,” Kate grumbled, dipping her last two fries into a puddle of ketchup. “What