The Truth About You Read Online Free PDF Page A

one either.
    There was some small comfort to be taken from the fact that half the girls in year eleven appeared equally sassy, even the weekly boarders, such as Skye, who’d spent a couple of weekends at Bannerleigh Cross over the past month or so. Lainey had to admit she hadn’t particularly enjoyed the experience. Not that Skye was a difficult guest, to the contrary, she was always polite, helped out where she could, and as far as teenage attitude went, if she had one she clearly left it at the door before visiting friends’ homes. It was the way Tierney had showed off in front of her that had grated on Lainey, carrying on as though having a famous dad was a total drag, and that living in a big house was more of an embarrassment than a privilege. Needless to say, she never acted that way around Tom, she wouldn’t dare, and half the time Lainey was convinced she only did it in front of her to try and provoke a reaction. Lainey had learned not to rise to it, especially since discovering that Skye’s family home, in the centre of London, was easily the size of theirs, and was actually only one of several lavish properties her stepfather had dotted around the world.
    Watching Tierney and Skye now, taking their time over saying goodbye at the gates, one so exquisitely blonde, the other so stormily dark, Lainey could only feel glad that this was an all-girls’ school. Heaven only knew what kind of havoc they’d wreak on boys of their age – actually any age – were they around them all the time. She couldn’t remember her and Stacy being anywhere near as sophisticated when they were sixteen, but maybe that was because she didn’t want to.
    ‘Hey, Mum,’ Tierney chirruped as she slipped into the car, her long bare legs seeming to take a while to come in after her. ‘How’s things?’
    ‘Everything’s fine,’ Lainey told her, giving Skye a wave as she began reversing out of her space. ‘How did the maths exam go today?’
    ‘Yeah, it was cool,’ Tierney replied, tossing her hair over one shoulder as she studied her mobile. ‘GCSEs are so peak. I don’t know why we’re bothering when everyone knows they’re a waste of time.’
    ‘Not if you want to go on to do As. So you think you did well?’
    Tierney shrugged. ‘I guess so. I answered everything anyway. Oh, by the way, Skye’s invited me to her place the week after exams are over. It’ll be so cool, hanging out in London with her and her friends. They’re completely amazing, and it’s so dead around here.’
    ‘I think we need to discuss that before you accept,’ Lainey cautioned. ‘We’ve never actually met her family . . .’
    ‘Oh Mum, lighten up, will you? Her rents are fantastic, just like you and Dad, but a bit stricter, which should make you happy. And there’s no need to have a convo about everything I do. I’m going to be sixteen by then . . .’
    ‘I’m aware of that and I’d like to know what you want to do for your birthday. Dad’s agreed to a party . . .’
    ‘Oh God, I so don’t want one. There’s no one around here to invite for a start.’
    ‘Tierney, that’s ridiculous. You’ve got dozens of friends in the area. What about Maudie?’
    ‘Oh, don’t start going on about her again. I’m still friends with her, all right? I’m just not hanging out with her quite so much. It’s not a problem, it just happens, we move on, OK?’
    ‘But I think she misses you . . .’
    ‘
Mu-um!
’
    ‘All right, all right. I’m just saying, you have lots of friends around here who you’ve known all your life, and whose sixteenths you’ve been to . . .’
    ‘Which doesn’t mean I have to have one too. I swear, I really don’t want to spend my birthday with them. They’re all so juvenile, like they really need to get out more, and I know you, you’ll only try to join in with all your mum dancing and it is sooo embarrassing.’
    Lainey had to laugh, mainly because she could see Tierney was trying hard not to. ‘Which exams do