First to the Altar Wins (Wattpad Reading List choice)

1. Kendall: It Starts With A Bet

BANG! Someone flung open a window, giving the four girls sitting on the roof a shock. They sat in a circle, holding bottles of liquor they'd filched. They stared back as Lilith Harper, one of the most beautiful girls in Coser, and a huge goody-goody, cast them a disapproving look. Her sky-blue eyes did a slow sweep before resting on the youngest, a honey-haired girl trying to hide in the back of the group.

"Viola Harper," she called. "Why am I not surprised? You'd better stop what you're doing and get in here now, before I tell Father everything."

Beside Viola, Kendall Moore leaned back her head of silky dark hair, downing a sip of clear liquid. "She'll do it too. You always were a tattletale, weren't you, Lil?"

"Watch your familiar tone," the other girl shot back. "That's Lilith to you. And might I ask what you were doing corrupting my younger sister? I bet your father wouldn't be happy to hear about this."

"He won't care. Believe me when I say he has no love for you Harpers. It's one thing he and I have in common."

Lilith cocked her head, realizing that her sister still hadn't moved. "What are you doing, still sitting there?"

Viola shot to her feet, giving the other girls an apologetic look. "Sorry," she mumbled. "I'd better go."

Kendall nodded understandingly. "Cheer up, Vi. I'm sure you won't have to worry about your sister for much longer. Sooner or later, some poor sap is going to make her his wife, and she'll be someone else's problem. She won't have the time to be constantly checking up on you then."

Lilith leaned out the window when she heard that, drawn to the challenge. Viola hopped over the windowsill, scurrying away to return to the Townsends' ball downstairs.

"At least I'll be married," Lilith retorted, with a fake smile on her face. It was so forced, it threatened to make her face crack. "Where will you be? Sitting somewhere, getting drunk on cheap liquor?"

"Well, we can't all afford the fancy kind."

"We're not in school anymore, Kendall. Maybe it's time to start behaving more like a lady and less like a silly teenager."

"I'm still a teenager, and so are you, remember? We were in the same class for nine years."

"Too bad only one of us has the sense to act our age."

"What's so good about acting our age, anyway?"

"It's for your own sake. Men don't want to be with ... " She paused, gesturing at the girls and the collection of bottles between them. " ... this." She said the last part like she was talking about the day's garbage.

"Oh, please. You think you know a lot about men just because you get asked to dance the most?"

"How many men have asked you to dance tonight?"

"None but - "

"Aha."

"That's because I've been up here."

"Time well spent."

"I agree," she replied, shaking her bottle to demonstrate her point.

"Honestly, Kendall. Don't wait too long, or all the good ones will have gone."

"I don't care about all that."

"You don't care or you pretend not to care?"

Kendall narrowed her eyes. "Read my lips. I don't care."

"You're pretty enough. I bet you could hook a man if you put your mind to it."

Kendall flushed angrily, and Grace and Rae, her two friends, looked on worriedly. They both knew what her temper was like. "Excuse me, I don't have to put my mind to anything."