After Gram’s mini-lecture to Devon yesterday, Bryn was having second thoughts about having everyone meet up with their blind dates at her grandparents’ house. Really, what had she been thinking? As Bryn carried her friends’ overnight bags down to the basement—for the sleepover they’d be having afterward—she wished she’d thought to host the pre-party down here instead. Because, really, what if Gram and Grandpa decided to give everyone a little pep talk or reminded the guys about minding their manners or how ladies should be ladies or any of that stuff?
As she trudged back up the stairs, she knew it was too late to change things now. Gram was expecting them. Also, Bryn’s dress was over there and she’d promised Gram that she’d come early to get ready there.
“All set?” Dad asked as Bryn came into the living room. “I think your mom’s ready to kick us out now.”
Bryn held up her big Dolce bag. “Hopefully, I’ve got everything I need.”
Mom emerged from the kitchen. “I wish I didn’t have to get the house ready for bunko or I’d go with you.”
“That’s okay.” Bryn blew Mom a kiss. “Have fun with the ladies. We should be back here around midnight and I have my key.” She glanced at Dad. “I’ll try to keep everyone quiet until we get down to the basement.”
“And I’ll put the bunko leftovers in the fridge down there,” Mom promised. “Have fun, sweetie!”
As Dad drove to her grandparents’, Bryn felt fairly certain that she would have fun tonight. How could she not have fun wearing such a fabulous dress? She couldn’t wait to see how everything looked all together now that the dress was completely finished.
“Make sure they get lots of photos,” Dad said as he pulled up to his parents’ two-story brick house.
“No problem.” Bryn kissed him on the cheek and then hurried up to the front door. Gram had hung jack-o’-lantern lights around her front porch and about a dozen pumpkins were lined up along the steps leading to the door. Very welcoming and festive.
“Come in,” Grandpa said, opening the door wide.
“Wow, it looks great in here,” Bryn said as she noticed even more colorful Halloween decorations throughout the house. No one did holidays better than Gram. “And it smells good too.” Maybe it wasn’t a mistake to have the pre-party here after all.
“Gram’s in the kitchen.” He smacked his lips. “She’s made some killer crab cakes and lots of other goodies for you and your friends. But for some reason she’s banned me from any more sampling.” He made a mock frown.
Bryn patted his cheek. “Hopefully you’ll get some leftovers.” She went into the kitchen just as Gram was setting cheese puffs onto a platter. “Mmm.” Bryn reached for a hot cheese puff. “I better make sure these are okay.”
Gram chuckled. “You and your grandpa.”
“Yummy.” Bryn kissed Gram’s cheek. “And the house looks fabulous too. Thanks so much for doing this.”
“Oh, I’m having fun,” Gram assured her. “Makes me feel young. And I can’t wait to see all your friends in their costumes.”
“Speaking of costumes.” Bryn glanced around the kitchen. “Where’s my dress?”
“Up in the guest bedroom. I thought you could finish getting ready up there. And your girlfriends can use that room if they need to make any last-minute wardrobe adjustments too.”
“Cool.” Bryn snagged another cheese puff, then grabbed up her bag and hurried upstairs. Everything seemed to be working out just fine. And when she found her golden dress hanging in the closet, she couldn’t have been happier. With every bead in place, it glittered and shimmered like something out of Hollywood. To think that Devon had actually suggested trading this dress for the old Juliet one. Ha! Bryn didn’t mind that Devon assumed she was still miffed about the Juliet dress, but Bryn never would’ve given up this dress—no way!
She took the heavy garment off the hanger and carefully slipped it over her head. Naturally, it fit perfectly. She peered at her image in the mirror and smiled. It looked perfect too. She swayed from side to side, watching how the skirt moved so gracefully and elegantly, how the beading caught the light and glimmered. She could not wait to show this off on the dance floor tonight. And since she’d warned everyone in the DG that she expected a blind date who could really dance, she fully expected that her friends would cooperate. Why wouldn’t they?
She slipped into the expensive gold shoes, carefully fastening the straps and then checking them out in the mirror. More perfection. She’d already done her hair at home. Smoothing it back so it looked sleek and glossy, she had pinned it into place so that it resembled a flapper hairstyle. She’d actually considered cutting it, except she couldn’t bear to part with her long hair. However, she’d cut a bit off the sides to make two perfect curls that went right alongside her cheeks. Now she picked up the glittering hair band that Gram had helped her make and slid it onto her head, using bobby pins to secure it. It too was perfect.
Bryn had studied the makeup from The Great Gatsby movie and did her best to imitate it. She was putting on a pair of fake diamond teardrop earrings when she heard a knock on the door. Abby quietly entered the room. “Your grandmother told me to come up.” Abby’s dark eyes grew big. “Wow, Bryn, you look gorgeous.”
“Thanks.” Bryn studied her image in the full-length mirror, trying to determine if any detail was missing.
“Seriously, you look even better than Carey Mulligan did in the movie,” Abby assured her.
“Well, thank you very much.” Bryn grinned.
“And since we just watched it, I know what I’m talking about.” Abby made a face. “Although I still don’t get why you’d want to imitate Daisy Buchanan. The woman was a mess, Bryn.”
“A tragic mess,” Bryn said in defense. Okay, the truth was Bryn had been caught off guard by the movie. She’d been so wrapped up in the glamour and costumes that she’d completely forgotten how violent and sad the story was. “And poor Daisy was caught in the middle of it. She was a tragic character.”
“Caught in the middle? Tragic character?” Abby frowned. “Daisy was the cause of all the tragedy.”
“How can you say that?”
“Think about it, Bryn. First Daisy breaks Gatsby’s heart by marrying the rich dude—all because Gatsby is poor. Then she cheats on her rich husband to be with Gatsby because Gatsby suddenly has money. And then she’s actually the hit-and-run driver who kills her husband’s mistress. And finally, after Gatsby does all he can to win Daisy back, she goes back to her husband, who blames Gatsby for killing his mistress, and Gatsby gets shot—all because of selfish Daisy, who just heads off on her merry little way as if she did nothing wrong.”
“Wow, someone is in a bad mood tonight.” Bryn stared at Abby, trying to figure out why she was acting so grumpy.
“I’m just saying it like it was.” Abby adjusted the strap on her quiver.
“Hopefully you don’t plan to use your weapons on anyone tonight.” Bryn paused to study Abby’s costume. It was actually pretty authentic looking. “Cool jacket,” she told her.
“Thanks. It was my mom’s,” Abby said in a slightly grumpy tone.
Bryn touched the side braid and smiled. “Nice touch. You really do look like Katniss. And you look like you’re about to kick some serious—”
“Hello,” Emma called out as she opened the bedroom door. “Your grandma said you guys would be up here.”
“Look at you,” Bryn gushed as Emma came into the room dressed in a blue-and-white striped gown and wearing a broad-brimmed bonnet trimmed with pale blue ribbons. “You look so sweet. Just like something out of a Jane Austen film.”
“That’s the idea.” Emma removed a dainty pair of white gloves. Then her eyes got wide as she stared at Bryn. “You look absolutely beautiful,” she told her.
“Abby said I look even better than Carey Mulligan,” Bryn bragged.
“Carey who?”
“From The Great Gatsby movie,” Abby explained. “She played the notorious Daisy.”
“Notorious?” Emma frowned.
“Never mind,” Bryn said quickly. “Abby’s in a bit of a snit for some mysterious reason. She wants to take it out on Daisy.”
“Your costume is great,” Emma told Abby. “It’s really similar to the one in the movie. I love this jacket.”
Bryn decided to attempt some congeniality. “And she even did the braid. But are you sorry you’re wearing pants? Is that why you’re a little out of sorts?”
“Not at all,” Abby assured her. “And I’m not out of sorts.” She sat down in the chair by the window, putting her feet up on the ottoman and her arms behind her head. “Unlike some people, I can actually relax in my outfit.”
Bryn slipped a glittering bracelet onto her wrist. “You have a point there, Abs,” she cheerfully admitted. “With all these beads, this dress isn’t really designed for sitting.”
“Well, you might regret that before the night is over,” Abby said.
“What time is it?” Emma asked. “Shouldn’t the others be here by now?”
“It’s not even 7:00.” Abby pointed to the alarm clock by the bed. “Lots of time. The guys won’t be here until 7:30. Remember?”
“That’s true.” Bryn gave her hair one last spritz of hairspray. “But we still have to come up with a plan for how we’re going to meet the guys.”
This had been the big discussion at lunch today. It seemed everyone had a different idea of how this should be accomplished. Bryn thought all the girls should go downstairs together and meet their dates as a group. Because of their costumes, it would be obvious who went with who. Devon had partially agreed, but she wanted it to be even more casual than that. No coming down the staircase together—they would simply be mingling in the house when the guys arrived.
However, Cassidy had different ideas. She wanted them to meet their dates one by one, giving everyone a chance to actually visit with each other and to “acclimate,” Cassidy had said—like they were all part of some unpredictable weather system. Abby had actually backed Cassidy’s idea, except that she’d taken it a step further, suggesting that the couples should all go to different parts of the house for an allotted amount of time, before they all came back together for the limousine ride to the school. Emma had actually seemed to be leaning toward Bryn’s direction, but because the lunch break ended, they never had a chance to put it to the vote. So they agreed to make the decision tonight—before the guys arrived at 7:30.
“Hey,” Devon said as she entered the room with her head held high. Bryn blinked in surprise to see that Devon looked fabulous in the Juliet gown. Not only did the dress accentuate all of Devon’s curves—and the girl certainly had them—but the rich jewel-tone colors really seemed to set off Devon’s auburn hair, which was piled on top of her head in attractive, loose curls. She made a very romantic Juliet. Not that Bryn planned to tell her that.
“You look beautiful,” Emma told Devon. “Very elegant.”
“Your aunt did a great job on your hair,” Bryn told her. “Very pretty.”
“I hope my Romeo appreciates all this,” Devon said as she stepped in front of Bryn to admire herself in the full-length mirror. She patted her curls. “At least I won’t have to worry about keeping my hair straight and smooth tonight. Especially since it’s starting to rain out there.”
“You both look really glamorous,” Emma told them. “I’m starting to feel pretty boring compared to you two.”
“I think you look very pretty, Em,” Abby called from where she was still sitting by the window. “And I’ll bet you’re more comfortable than either of them.”
“That’s probably true,” Emma agreed as she sat primly on the edge of the bed, folding her hands in her lap.
Bryn laughed. “You don’t just look like you’re from a time gone by, you act like it too.”
“Hey, I’m trying to get into character,” Emma told her.
“Good idea,” Bryn said. “We should all get into character before the guys get here.”
There was a tap on the door and Bryn called out, “That better be you, Cassidy Banks!”
The door opened and “Dorothy” stepped into the room, sporting a wicker basket on her arm with a stuffed black Scotty nestled inside. “It’s just me and my little dog too,” Cassidy said.
They all gushed over her outfit and ruby-red shoes while Cassidy examined their costumes. Finally Bryn clapped her hands. “Okay, people,” she said loudly. “We need to make a decision here. How are we going to meet up with our blind dates?”
“I think we should all go downstairs and hang out until the guys get here and then just let whatever happens happen,” Devon said. “No big deal.”
“I want to make a motion,” Cassidy said.
“Is this an official meeting?” Devon demanded.
“It is now,” Cassidy declared. “And I move that we all meet our guys individually and we go with them to a separate part of the house, like Abby suggested at lunch. We can prearrange for who goes where. And then we all spend fifteen or twenty minutes alone with our blind date.”
“I second that motion.” Abby got up from the chair.
“All in favor?” Cassidy asked.
Abby and Cassidy and Emma all raised their hands.
“Opposed?” Cassidy asked.
Now Devon and Bryn raised their hands.
“The yeas have it,” Cassidy announced.
“Yeah, we noticed.” Bryn shrugged. “I don’t really care how we do it. Mostly I just want to get this dress out on the dance floor ASAP. So I suggest we keep our little blind date meeting time to fifteen minutes. And grab your appetizers before then.” She pointed to the clock by the bed. “That means we’ll have until 7:45 to visit. Then we all come back to the living room for photos. And we should be in the limo before 8:00 and at the school a little after that. Okay?”
Abby made a mock salute. “Aye-aye, sir.”
“Very funny.” Bryn checked out her reflection in the mirror again. “I do not look the least bit like a sir, thank you very much.” She turned back around and began assigning the girls to various parts of the house. Fortunately, her grandparents’ home was large so there was plenty of space. “Don’t forget about the appetizers,” she reminded them. “I don’t want Gram to feel bad.” She looked at the clock again. “The guys should be here in about five minutes.” She held a finger in the air. “I have a new idea. Let’s all go down right now and get ourselves some food and then get settled in our various stations to wait. My grandpa will greet the guys and encourage them to get some food before he directs them to their separate spaces where we’ll be waiting.” She liked how this was shaping up. “I’ll write down for him where to take the guys just in case he forgets.” She smiled at her friends. “Does that work?”
They all agreed it was a good plan, but their expressions were completely different. With her arms folded across her front, Emma looked slightly impatient. Meanwhile, Cassidy was pacing back and forth as if she was seriously worried. Abby looked just plain unhappy. And Devon, with a creased brow, seemed somewhat irritated.
“Okay,” Bryn told them. “Let’s go down and get this party started. And, oh yeah, don’t forget to put on your eye masks. They’re all down by the front door.”
As Bryn led the entourage down the stairs, she wondered who would be playing her Great Gatsby tonight. She had several guys in mind, and any one of them would look great as Jay.
“There you all are,” Gram said as they came into the dining room. Then both Bryn’s grandparents admired the costumes and even took some candid photos as the girls filled plates with appetizers.
Meanwhile Bryn explained the plan to Grandpa. “Let’s see . . . Dorothy will be in the sunroom. Take the scarecrow to her.”
“Dorothy and the scarecrow in the sunroom.”
“Emma in the library with Mr. Knightley.”
“This is kind of like playing Clue,” he teased as he wrote. “Will Emma have a lead pipe or a wrench by any chance?”
“No.” Bryn laughed. “But Katniss aka Abby has a bow and arrows. She’ll be in the basement with Peeta.”
“Got it,” he said.
“Juliet in Gram’s parlor with Romeo. And I’ll be in the pool room.”
“Maybe you should say the billiards room.” He winked. “Doesn’t that sound more appropriate for The Great Gatsby?”
“You’re right.” She adjusted her beaded headdress.
He grinned as he tucked the note into his pocket and picked up his camcorder. “I’ll get as much footage as I can,” he promised. “Maybe you’ll want to post it on one of those facetube websites.”
She laughed. “You mean YouTube. Or maybe Facebook.” Then with her eye mask in place, Bryn carried her plate of food and a cup of punch to the pool/billiards room and prepared to wait. She really wasn’t nervous. She knew she looked awesome. She knew that whoever her date was would think she looked awesome too. Mostly she just wanted to get on with it. She rolled the cue ball across the table, bouncing it off the bumper again and again.
“Hello?” She turned to see a guy wearing a black suit entering the room. “I’m Jay Gatsby,” he said in a slightly nervous voice. Beneath his classic black jacket he had on a crisp white shirt and a neat black bow tie. Very Gatsby-like. However, he wasn’t very tall. She estimated that he was barely as tall as she was in these not-so-high heels. But he did have a nice firm chin.
She smiled and held out her hand. “I’m Daisy Buchanan,” she said in a sweet voice, trying to add just a touch of a southern accent since Daisy was from Kentucky. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Jay.” She studied him closely as he took her hand in his. He had a strong grasp and he seemed slightly familiar, but with the eye mask on, she couldn’t be sure who he was. However, the brown hair, which was combed smoothly back, seemed vaguely familiar.
“Pleased to meet you, Daisy.” He smiled as if he meant it. “You look very beautiful tonight.”
“Thank you.” She pointed at the plate in his hand. “I see you got yourself a little something to eat.”
He nodded, his mouth twisting to one side as if he was about to speak and then decided differently. But something about that movement tickled some corner of her memory. This guy was definitely familiar. But who was he? She pointed to a wingback leather chair. “Care to sit?” she asked. “So you can eat.”
“Thank you.” He went over to the chair and then, as if unwilling to sit while she was still standing, he waited.
“Go ahead,” she said. “I’d rather stand if you don’t mind.”
“Okay.” He slowly sat, balancing the plate on his knees. “Thanks.”
She watched him carefully as she strolled back and forth, running her hand along the polished wood of the pool table. He was definitely familiar to her. Even his voice sounded familiar. But she could not quite identify it. “I think we’ve met before,” she said softly, trying to remain in character.
He nodded as he took a bite of crab cake. “Yes . . . I’m certain of it.”
“So you recognize me?”
He nodded again, still chewing. “Yes . . . yes, I do.” His mouth twisted to one side again—that same familiar gesture.
And that’s when it hit her. “Darrell Zuckerman?” she exclaimed. In that same moment, she pulled off her eye mask and stared at her date in complete horror. “No way! Darrell Zuckerman? You’re my blind date?”
He made an apologetic smile, then shrugged, slowly removing his eye mask. “You guessed it.”
A wide gamut of emotions swept through her all at once. She felt seriously angry, outraged even. Who had done this to her? And in the next moment she felt slightly ashamed of herself. After all, Darrell was actually a pretty sweet guy—and a great lab partner in chemistry. But a date? That was absolutely nuts!
She was pacing again, trying to figure a way out of this mess.
“I’m sorry to disappoint you.”
She turned around and glared at him. “Who did—” She paused, taking in a deep breath, trying to calm herself—even silently counting to ten. “Uh . . . I’m just curious . . . who set up the blind date?” she asked in a falsely sweet voice. “Which one of my friends?”
“Cassidy Banks.”
“Ah . . .” She pressed her lips together, inwardly seething. “Dear, sweet Cassidy.”
“I can see you’re upset.” He set his plate of food on a side table and slowly stood.
“I’m . . . just pretty shocked. That’s all.”
“I didn’t know you were going to be my date, Bryn. If I’d known you were who Cassidy was setting me up with, I would’ve said no right from the start.”
She blinked in surprise. “You would’ve said no?”
“Absolutely.” He nodded firmly.
“Seriously? You wouldn’t have gone out with me if you’d known?” Now she felt indignant. Darrell Zuckerman was too good for her? It felt like the world was turning itself upside down. If this was supposed to be a joke, it was not funny.
“Hey, I might be a nerd, Bryn, but I’m not ignorant.”
“Yes, Darrell, I’m well aware of that.” She folded her arms across her front, controlling herself from really tearing into him as she spoke her mind.
“You’re a nice girl and a good lab partner, but I know you never would’ve agreed to go out with me. Not of your own free will.” He shoved his hands into his pants pockets, looking down at his feet as if he was embarrassed or maybe even angry. And really, he had every right to be angry. They both did. This was a mess. A tragic mess. Suddenly she remembered what Abby had said to her earlier—pointing out how selfish Daisy Buchanan had been, how she had ruined Jay Gatsby’s life by being so shallow. Wasn’t that exactly how Bryn was acting right now?
“I’m sorry, Darrell,” she said quietly. “I honestly don’t know what to say. I just felt kind of blindsided, you know?”
“Hey, I know exactly how you feel. This is seriously messed up. Cassidy never should’ve done this.” He scowled darkly. “She’s the one to blame.”
Bryn could tell he was trying to act tough, but she could see that beneath his anger, he was hurt. Maybe even deeply hurt. And she knew it was her fault. “I’m sorry,” she said again. “Really, I am.”
“Forget about it.” He nodded with a grim expression. “Anyway, I’ve had enough of this game. I think I should go.” He started for the door.
“Wait, Darrell.” She put her hand on his arm. “Please don’t go.”
He looked at her with a confused expression. “Why?”
“Because we have a date,” she said with determination.
“Really?” He looked skeptical.
“Yes.” She looked directly into his gray-blue eyes. “We do.”
“Look, Bryn, I don’t want a pity date from you. Understand?”
Now she remembered what Gram had said about Grandpa. And suddenly she saw Darrell through a different set of eyes. “This is not a pity date, Darrell.” She gave him a genuine smile. “I swear to you, it’s not. I want to go to the dance with you. I want you to be my Jay Gatsby.”
He looked totally perplexed and still somewhat angry. “Are you sure about this?”
“I’m absolutely, positively sure.”
“You’re not punking me again?”
She shook her head no, then giggled. “I just have one teeny tiny little question, Darrell.”
“What now?” He glowered at her.
“I know you’re a genius, Darrell, but do you know how to dance?”
His stormy countenance broke into a crooked grin. “Do I know how to dance?”
“Yeah.” She felt a surge of hope. “Do you?”
“My mom made me take dance lessons when I was in grade school,” he confessed. “I hated it at first, but then it kind of grew on me.” He chuckled. “And when I heard I was playing Jay Gatsby, well, I even brushed up on the Charleston and a few other jazz-era dances.”
“Seriously?” She could not believe her luck.
“Oh, yeah.” He gave her a sassy wink. “I know how to cut a rug.”
She glanced at the clock on the back wall, then linked her arm into his. “So, Jay, what are we waiting for?” They put their eye masks back on and went out to find how the others were faring.