Private 09 - Paradise Lost (6 page)

Not that I was going there.

"She's right. It's perfect. Sexy, but not slutty," Noelle said as she shoved aside hanger after hanger on the round rack in the center of the store.

"Kind of like you!" Taylor added, earning a laugh from Noelle and Kiran. She handed me a little black dress with brown beading along the hem.

I glanced at the price tag on the garment and grimaced. "Honestly. I'm really not comfortable with this."

"Well, I'm not comfortable being seen with you in Old Navy all week, so just do it for me," Kiran replied.

"Ouch," I said, not really offended.

"I say these things with love," she told me. Then she took a look at my face and rolled her eyes. "Would it help if I told you I was charging it all to my agency?"

"How are you doing that?" I asked.

"I got an expense account when I landed the cosmetics gig," she said with a oneshouldered shrug. "I could be photographed at any moment, so I always have to look runway-worthy. How are they going to know these clothes are for you and not for me?" I hesitated for a second, fingering the smooth fabric of the black dress. "You're sure?" 

"I'm sure," she said. Then she forcibly turned me around and shoved me back into the dressing room with an armful of clothes. "Try the red. You look good in red." She snatched the colorful curtain closed in front of my face.

I took a deep breath and looked at my own eyes in the mirror. Sometimes when Noelle and the others insisted on buying me things, I felt like such a charity case. And I wasn't. I didn't need these things to survive. But I did need them to hang out with these girls. At least, that was how I felt sometimes. Like when Kiran said as much to my face, part of me wanted to walk out and just hand over all this stuff and say no. But then again, if Kiran wanted to use her expense account on me, who was I to stop her?

"Reed! Are you having a wardrobe malfunction?" Kiran called. "We want to see the next dress."

"I'll be right out," I replied. I changed into the red dress and stepped out of the dressing room.

Kiran's eyes widened, and she whistled. "Damn. Okay, not that one. You look hotter than me in that."

"Really?" I asked.

"Which is why she's definitely getting it!" Noelle put in, shoving me back inside to change again.

Fifteen minutes later, we had decided on three dresses and one top-and-skirt combo. Kiran took it all up to the register without even checking the price tags. I wondered if she had ever thought about the cost of anything in her life. Or if any of these girls had. Most likely not.

I joined Noelle and Taylor on the other side of the small boutique, where they were trying on wide-brimmed straw hats and checking themselves out in the countertop mirrors. I came up behind them and slung a gaudy pink-and-yellow scarf around my neck for fun.

"You should wear the green-and-blue to the party tonight," Taylor said, donning a pair of rhinestone-rimmed sunglasses.

"Didn't we just have a party last night?" I asked.

Noelle and Taylor exchanged a look in the mirror and laughed. "Yes, but this is the first party at the Simon Hotel," Noelle said, shedding a white hat and reaching for a black one.

"Tonight, we party the way we were meant to party."

"Like rock stars?" I joked.

"Well, of course," Taylor replied, pursing her lips and tipping back her head. Then her eyes lit up. "Oh, and you'll finally get to meet Poppy!"

"Taylor loves Poppy," Noelle said, laying aside the hat and running her fingers through her hair.

"What's not to love? Poppy is the coolest," Taylor said enthusiastically. "We all love her." I glanced at Noelle, who shrugged. "She's right. We do."

"Okay. That's done," Kiran said, joining us and handing me a big paper shopping bag.

"Now all we need to do is find you a dress for Casino Night."

"Yeah, but there's nothing formal enough here," Noelle said, glancing around.

"More shopping?" I asked.

Kiran put her arm around my shoulders. "You say that as if it's a bad thing. If there's one thing I can teach you in this life, Reed, it's this: You can never have too much shopping."

"Hear, hear!" Taylor cheered.

"Ah, the wisdom of Kiran Hayes," Noelle joked. "You really should write a self-help book." We laughed and were about to walk out onto the sunlit sidewalk when I saw Sawyer and Graham across the street.

"Hey, there are your friends," I said.

I noticed then that they were arguing. Sawyer's body language was very aggressive, while it was clear that Graham was trying to chill him out.

"What's that about?" I asked, curious.

I could have sworn that Noelle's brow creased for a moment in concern, but just as quickly the expression was gone. "Those two," she said fondly. "Always arguing about something." Then she grabbed my arm and tugged, forcing me to look away from the window. "Come on. You need shoes."

I rolled my eyes, but I smiled. She was right. I did need shoes. Heels. Nice three-inch heels that would bring me eye to eye with Upton.

Not that I was going there. Really. I wasn't.

CHAPTER 8 FUN

The party that night was in the penthouse suite of the Simon Hotel, a towering structure built atop a cliff overlooking the ocean. The high-ceilinged room was decorated in an eclectic style, mixing modern furniture with a Grecian sensibility. Square couches, pillows, and ottomans dotted the room, arranged on a gleaming marble floor around ornate columns. Huge palm fronds were displayed in tall urns, and the sconces on the walls looked like colorful pieces of paper curled into cones. Weird, yes, but somehow it all worked. Possibly because no one was paying much attention to the decor. It was all about the people. Everyone I had met since I'd arrived was there, along with about thirty other people all under twenty-one--all drinking heavily. One look at the outfits and I was grateful that Kiran and the others had forced me to shop. Colorful dresses, strappy sandals, and designer bags were the order of the day. If I had walked into this party in jeans and Chuck D's, I might have melted under the scrutiny.

I was wearing the green-and-blue dress with a pair of subtle gold sandals and a gold cuff bracelet Noelle had leant me. Kiran had put my hair up in a messy bun with plenty of wispy pieces tickling my face. I felt beautiful--and like I belonged. I spent the first hour dancing with Kiran, Taylor, and Tiffany in the center of the room. Just letting loose and having fun. Pretending the world didn't exist. Finally the new shoes started to pinch my toes, and I had to take a break. I grabbed a glass of water from the bar and maneuvered my way to the couch, where Noelle was hanging out with West.

"So, where's this Poppy girl?" I asked, dropping down next to Noelle. Her knees were turned toward West's, and she let out a tinkling laugh as she turned toward me. I blinked. Her hand was on his chest, and he was looking adoringly at her.

Wait a second. Noelle was flirting with West? I mean, okay, he was one of the most coveted guys in the senior class with his deep brown eyes, lacrosse star body, and addiction to Ralph Lauren. But he wasn't Dash.

"Oh, she likes to make an entrance," Noelle told me. "I'm sure she'll be here soon." I waved off a waiter offering a flute of champagne, and Noelle went back to cuddling into West's side and whispering in his ear. I couldn't wrap my brain around Noelle being with anyone other than Dash. It was just too odd. Like watching your mother flirt with the dude at the drive-through window or something. As she ran the backs of her fingers along his jaw line I had to look away...

... and ended up looking right at Upton. Of course. All night I had been trying not to search him out, and all night I had been doing just that. Right then he was leaning back against the bar, swilling a clear drink as Kiran chatted in his ear. Apparently she had decided to take a break from dancing as well, and she had gotten right back in the game. Upton nodded and pursed his lips as he swallowed, obviously tasting the sourness of the alcohol. Then he placed the glass on the bar and turned to Paige, who had just laid her hand on his opposite arm. Amberly sidled up to him as well, trying to edge out Kiran. Damn, these girls were shameless. I wondered if he knew it was a competition. My guess was no. He probably thought he was simply irresistible to all women.

Which, let's face it, he was.

In spite of myself, I slowly inspected every inch of Upton Giles. His square cheekbones. The curve of his shoulders beneath his light-blue shirt. The slightly exposed skin of his chest. He had missed a button at the bottom of his shirt, and every once in a while he would shift or make a gesture and a bit of his toned stomach would be exposed. Every time this happened, my throat caught.

I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to kiss him. And then I realized that these girls who were flirting with him--Kiran and Paige and Tiffany--all knew what it was like to kiss him. And for the first time, that realization didn't gross me out. Instead, it pissed me off. Why should they get to win the Upton Game when they had already won in previous years? It simply wasn't fair. Someone else should get to win. Someone new. Someone who was definitely not Amberly.

As I glanced around the dance floor, I noticed that there were couples everywhere. Graham Hathaway was dancing with a blond beauty who was at least six inches taller than him. Gage was putting the moves on some unsuspecting girl with thousands of braids hanging down her back. It seemed like every girl on the dance floor had a guy who was obviously into her.

And back home, Josh had Ivy. And I was here. Alone. On vacation. Being Carefree Reed. Screw It Reed. Fun, Fun Reed. So I was going to have a little fun. And talking to Upton would be fun. And so would wiping that perpetually smug look off Paige Ryan's face. I stood up and crossed the room, weaving my way around the various couples. Upton caught my eye as I approached. He stood up straighter, casually shrugging off Paige's hand.

"Hey," I said, looking into his eyes.

He appeared intrigued. "Hello."

"Want to get me a drink?"

"At your service," Upton said with a half smile. He turned and signaled for the bartender. Kiran raised her eyebrows, impressed, and tipped her glass toward me like she was welcoming me into the game. Paige backed up a touch and crossed her arms over her chest. She eyed me with obvious irritation.

"Well, well. Look who's a player," she said.

I simply smiled. My heart was pounding so hard I couldn't do anything else. Upton turned and handed me a glass of champagne. He had a new drink for himself as well.

"Perhaps we should go someplace a bit more private?" he suggested.

"Absolutely," I replied.

He took my free hand and a jolt went through me. His hand was warm and slightly rough, his grip confident and firm. Every girl in the room eyed me with envy as we wound through the crowd. My heart fluttered around on feathery little wings. I had no idea what I was doing or where this was going to go. All I knew was that this was fun.

CHAPTER 9 TRANSPARENT

Upton was staring at me.

He was staring at my profile and I was staring at the ocean, sipping champagne and trying not to crack up laughing. We were sitting, almost lying, on a double lounge chair with a thick striped cushion, on a verandah overlooking the water. The sky was this sort of purplish black, blanketed again with stars. Set against the dark turquoise blue of the water, it was like something out of a surrealist painting. I couldn't believe views like this actually existed in nature.

And I couldn't believe Upton was looking at me as if I were even more beautiful than the view. No one had ever stared at me in quite that way before. Like he was trying to memorize every inch of my face. Was this part of his playboy shtick?

The thought made me feel suddenly defensive. Like I didn't want him to think I was going into this all naive and wide-eyed like some inexperienced moron. I turned slightly on my side to face him better.

I looked into his face and managed not to blush. "So tell me . . . how many girls at this party have you hooked up with? "

Upton gave a short, incredulous laugh. "Is this your transparency thing kicking in again? " he asked.

"Maybe," I said with a grin, thrilled that he had paid attention during our last conversation. He pushed himself up on his side and looked through the half-open glass doors that led to the penthouse. Inside, the music had been cranked up and the voices were growing louder as the drinks continued to flow.

"None," he said confidently, dropping back down. I looked at him skeptically until he smiled and added, "Tonight."

I laughed and looked away, fiddling with the skirt of my dress. "And how many girls at this party have you kissed? " I asked, my heart racing.

He reached over and simply grazed the inside of my arm with his fingertips. I thought I was going to drown in longing right there.

"None," he whispered. "Tonight."

I looked up at him, looked right into his eyes, and held my breath. I almost couldn't believe what I was about to do.

"Well then," I said. "Let me be the first." And then I leaned in and kissed him.

How I didn't explode is beyond the laws of physics. This was pure attraction. I knew almost nothing about this guy aside from his name and the fact that every other girl at this party wanted him, and I didn't care. As he reached around my waist and pulled me to him, I didn't care about anything other than the fact that my toes and fingers and thighs and arms and ears were tingling. I wanted to press every single inch of my body against his. Only once in my life had I felt attraction like this, and that was with Dash. And I had been drugged at the time.

But tonight, I was clear. Upton made me feel gorgeous, uninhibited, totally daring. Totally not me.

And I was loving it.

Then I felt his hand traveling from my bare stomach northward, and I jolted backward. Instantly, the crashing waves and the laughter and the music came rushing in on me. It was like waking up from a deep sleep only to enter sensory overload. Kissing was one thing. I wasn't sure I was ready to go further than that.

"What happened?" Upton asked, pulling away.