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We spilled out of the Hummer laughing. The evening had been magical. We were all stuffed. Cora was tipsy. My parents might have been tipsy too. The luau had been great and the show afterward had been amazing. There’d been dancing, singing, fire acts, drumming. I hoped I didn’t forget a bit of it.
“Okay, I think it’s bedtime for everyone,” Dad said, herding Cora toward her room.
“Thank you, Damien. Tonight was wonderful,” Mom said.
“Yes, thank you, Damien. We gladly give you Sarah,” Cora said.
“Cora,” I said.
Damien had sat beside me the whole night, and he’d taken hold of my hand during the show and hadn’t let it go since. He squeezed it now. Noah had given me dirty looks, but I wasn’t going to let go of his hand. I wanted to be there with him, not be Noah’s date.
“Bedtime,” Dad repeated, nudging Cora toward her room. They disappeared down the hall toward her room.
Mom came to me and gave me a hug. “Sweet dreams,” she said and kissed me on the cheek. She then turned and hugged Damien, Angela, and Noah. I revised my earlier assessment from maybe tipsy, to definitely. She was being way too loving and happy.
She waited and then made shooing motions for us to go to our rooms. I couldn’t go anywhere. Damien hadn’t let go of my hand.
“You can’t sleep in her room,” Noah said.
“I’m not going to,” Damien said.
“Then let go of her damn hand.”
“What’s it to you?”
“As her boyfriend, I don’t like it.”
“As her fake boyfriend, you shouldn’t care.”
Damien had a point. I chalked Noah’s bitchiness to his paranoia about the paparazzi seeing us, but he sure seemed jealous at the moment.
“Damien, let Sarah go to bed,” Mom said.
He again showed more deference to my parents than I’d seen him show to his own. He let go of my hand, but before he could move away, I stepped in close to give him a kiss on the cheek. “Nighty night,” I said and quickly turned to go to my room.
I heard Mom say Damien’s name in warning. He may have turned to follow me. I didn’t dare look back. I let myself into my huge room and sighed as I closed the door. Today had been very special and tomorrow would be too. I had to pinch myself. It all still seemed too wonderful to be real.
After I got ready for sleep, I pulled back the covers to my huge bed and found a note from Damien.
Sarah,
Come meet me on the beach tonight. Wear your swimsuit.
I frowned at the note. I was tired and in my pajamas. What could he want to do at this hour? Night swimming seemed a bit dangerous. I didn’t like the idea, but I changed into my swimsuit and slipped out of my room through the French doors. Thankfully the moon was full so I didn’t need a flashlight. I got to the beach and saw two loungers set up. I went down to them.
“Damien, I’m wiped. I don’t think—“
Moonlight reflected off blonde hair, not poufy dark hair. Noah stood up to face me.
“Noah, what is this? Why’d you imitate Damien’s handwriting?”
“We need to get some photos in.”
“Pictures of what?”
“Our happy relationship, remember?”
“Can’t we put that on hold while we’re here?”
“You two were way too cozy tonight.”
“We only held hands.”
“Yeah, and everyone could see. You have to be more discreet.”
I crossed my arms. “Fine. Let’s get this over with.”
“And who says romance is dead?” He came over to me and put his arm around my shoulders.
“Can these even come out? Why not wait to do this tomorrow?” I said.
“We’ll take some tomorrow too. Don’t worry.”
“I’m not worried.” The flash blinded me.
I wasn’t sure how to look. I tried to paste on a smile, but I knew it looked stilted.
We examined the picture together. I looked like I was being held hostage and being forced to smile.
“I never claimed to be photogenic,” I said sheepishly.
“Just relax,” he said and took another picture of us.
I tried to relax, which meant not smiling. I looked like I was the one who was holding Noah hostage and forcing him to smile.
“Pretend I’m Damien,” he said.
That made me throw off his arm. “No, that’s not right.”
“Sarah, come on. This isn’t a big deal. Just a couple of photos.”
“If it isn’t a big deal then why not use the pictures you’ve taken?”
“Because they’re horrific.”
“This isn’t going to work, Noah.” I started walking away. In the silver moonlight, things seemed clearer. I couldn’t pretend to be Noah’s girlfriend. It wasn’t in me. I hated the lying. I hated the fakery. I just wanted out.
“Sarah, wait!”
“Noah, I can’t do this.”
“What about Angela?”
I turned back to him. “Would you actually betray her like that? If so, did you ever really like her then?”
“Don’t pretend to know me. She was my first love.”
“That’s not an answer.”
His smile in the moonlight looked macabre. “You and I get along a lot better than I ever imagined we would.”
I rolled my eyes. “Are you going to rat Angela out or not?”
“Do you want me to lie?”
I had to shake my head. I was so tired of him. “Have you ever done anything else?”
“Everyone lies.”
“No, they don’t. Damien doesn’t.”
“And look at how that’s worked out for him. He’s practically a basket case.”
“No, he’s not. It was Mr. Jones drugging him. He’s fine now.”
“Oh come on, Sarah. Mr. Jones hadn’t drugged him the day he took a rock to Bobby’s head.”
Being reminded of his violent act had a chilling effect on me. Noah was right. Damien had issues on his own.
“What do you think he’s going to do when you break up with him?”
The question sent a bolt of terror through me. “We’re not breaking up.”
“Going to stay with him forever as his secret mistress?”
“Secret mistress? Are you being real right now?”
“What would you call yourself?”
“Secret girlfriend, I guess.”
“Mistress, girlfriend, what’s the difference?”
“Don’t be, stupid.”
“You have no future with him.”
I put my hands up. “What are we even arguing about? I don’t want to be your fake girlfriend. Find someone else.”
“When Angela’s gone, do you think he will keep taking Japanese?”
“Everyone has it wrong. You’re the psychopath, not Damien. What did you do to him to make him almost kill another boy?”
Noah’s face was in complete shadow. I couldn’t see his expression at all. “That’s not funny.”
“None of this is funny or fun either.” I swept my arms out to indicate the sea and the beach. “We’re in Hawaii, one of the most beautiful and amazing places on earth. I want to enjoy my trip. My family’s here. My friends are here. Can’t we forget about everything and relax?”
“Some of us don’t have that luxury.”
“Your mother can’t make you date someone. And she’s not even here. Relax. Try to enjoy yourself.”
“I’m trying, but this friend of mine keeps wanting to argue with me and bring up drama.”
I was surprised he’d refer to me as a friend. “Good night, Noah.”
“Sarah, wait.”
“Nope.”
“If you keep walking, Judge Blackthorne is going to get a certain mp3 file tomorrow.”
I wheeled around to face him.
“Do you know how despicable you’re being?”
“I know. Trust me, I know.”
“Then STOP! Be a better person. Tell your father what your mother’s trying to do. I’m sure he could stop—“
“I’ve told him.”
Noah’s quiet interjection stopped me mid-tirade. “Oh.”
“He said, and I quote, “Just do it and make her happy. I’m sure the girl isn’t that awful.”
That seemed like an odd comment from his father. “Okay, but still...”
“If I’m not dating someone, I’ll have to date this girl.”
“No, that’s ridiculous. I’m sure—“
Noah shook his head. “Patricia will have her way unless you help me.”
Were we still talking about a mom trying to set her son up with a nice girl? It was starting to sound like some sort of life or death situation. Was Noah being overly dramatic or had he not told me everything?
“Let’s table this for now. I’m wiped and want to sleep,” I said.
“Fine. But I’m going to keep treating you like my girlfriend.”
I didn’t argue. It wasn’t getting me anywhere. I turned and went back to my room, leaving him on the beach. When I reached the entrance to my room, I was intent on slipping in and locking the door behind me. I didn’t think Noah would follow me into my room, but I wasn’t going to chance it. I grabbed the doorknob to go back inside, but movement in the room caught my eye. It wasn’t a reflection in the glass like I initially thought. Someone was in my room. I reeled back when the silhouette of a man opened the glass door.
“Sarah, what are you doing outside at this hour?” Dad asked, holding the door open for me.
I slumped in relief. “Jesus, you scared me.”
“What do you think I felt when I stuck my head in to check on you and didn’t find you here?”
“Did you raise an alarm?”
“No, I saw you walking back. Were you on the beach alone?”
“No, Noah was with me.”
“Noah? What’s going on with him?”
“He wanted to create some fake evidence of our dating.”
“And?”
“We took some photos. They looked horrible.” I couldn’t tell him about the argument because I’d have to tell him about Noah’s threat to Angela.
“You seem a bit more down than just bummed about some bad pictures.”
“I’m just tired.”
“Get some sleep then and no more sneaking out.”
“I promise I won’t.”
Dad let himself out, and I changed into my pajamas again. What was I going to do about Noah? I’d told him that I didn’t want to be his fake girlfriend anymore, but I knew that didn’t matter to him. We weren’t breaking up until Noah decided we were.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
THE NEXT DAY ANGELA was in the dining room with my family for breakfast.
She gave me a cheerful smile when I came in. “Do you want to go back to the Polynesian Cultural Center today?” she asked.
We’d noticed the previous night that it was a large place that we could tour. “Yeah, sounds perfect,” I said.
“Goody,” she said.
Neither boy joined us for breakfast.
“Do you think they want to go to the Polynesian Center?” I asked.
“No, they’re both staying here,” Angela said.
That surprised me, but I didn’t bring up the boys again until we were in the car. “Is Damien upset with me?”
“No, of course not.”
“Then why’d he stay home?”
“Because if he came, Noah would come too.”
“So? Noah could come anyway.”
“No, if he came, Damien would come too.”
“So if one goes, the other has to go too?”
“Yep, but I told them that today would be really boring. Neither one would enjoy this. It would be hot, they’d be standing a lot, and just listening to people talk. If neither went, then they could stay home in the nice air conditioning with their phones and computers and spend a relaxing day on their own.”
“I’m beginning to wonder if I should have come,” I said.
“It’ll be fun. We’ll learn about the different tribes, see cool stuff, and plus it’s just the two of us.”
I gave her a narrow look. “You manipulated them.”
“Boys are stupid. Why do you think I prefer girls?”
I was impressed at how she had played the boys and a little scared at how easily she’d done it. But she was right. The Polynesian Cultural Center was fun. We watched the parade of boats, got temporary tattoos, and learned how to make a canoe. It was all interesting and enjoyable.
When we got back, we were tired but in good moods. Damien was waiting for us in the entryway. He stared at us with our linked arms, and I think he began to suspect that he’d been played, but he didn’t accuse Angela on the spot. Instead, he said, “I thought we’d have dinner outside tonight. The table’s set.”
Bemused I walked with everyone out to the patio. Tiki torches surrounded the patio. A round patio table with a tile top had place settings for everyone. Damien took my hand and pulled me to the table. He pulled out a chair for me. He eagerly sat down beside me. He left Angela standing.
“Here, allow me,” Noah said. He pulled out the chair on the other side of Damien.
“No, she wants to sit by Sarah,” he protested.
“Then you switch seats with her,” Noah said. I knew he wanted to sit on my other side and he would not give it up for any reason. He was going to maintain the ruse of our relationship any way he could.
Damien did not offer to switch seats with Angela.
My family was ranged out on the other side of the side of the table. With all of us seated, the house staff began serving our meals and drinks. It was shrimp fettuccini with broccoli. It felt like we were in a restaurant not having a meal at home, but it was nice, especially as the sun began to set and we could watch it fully while eating. I saw Dad take Mom’s hand while looking at the sunset. Mom kissed him on the cheek and whispered something in his ear. It made me feel warm seeing them so happy.
An arm settled along the back of my chair. I looked at Damien, but he was bent forward poking at his food. He’s eaten half a shrimp and a bite of fettuccini, but wouldn’t eat more. At least he tried it. I turned to my other side because it was Noah’s arm around me.
He merely gave me a lazy smile and stroked my shoulder. His touch made my skin crawl. I stared bleakly at the back of Damien’s head. I couldn’t shrug off Noah’s arm because I was supposed to maintain the ruse. But Damien would notice soon enough. I actually wanted him to notice because he’d get Noah to take his arm off me.
But he didn’t look over. He kept staring at his plate, moving his food around. Noah kept stroking my shoulder. I stared at Damien, willing him to notice, but he didn’t react. I was about to kick his foot when I noticed the tension in his shoulders and that he had his jaw clenched. He knew what Noah was doing, but he was playing along. Pretending not to care. He was trying to do like I’d asked him. The realization made my stomach turn.
I stood up. “I don’t feel good. I’m going to bed.”
I turned and left the table without saying goodnight to anyone though my parents and Angela wished me good night. Damien didn’t say anything, and I willfully ignored Noah.
I went to my room and curled up in the huge bed. I had to break up with Noah. I couldn’t keep up the charade, but I couldn’t risk exposing Angela. Thoughts went round and round in my head, but no solution presented itself. Eventually, I fell asleep.
The next morning no one questioned me too much about my sudden illness the night before. The weather reflected my mood as it was rainy and overcast. We ended up all in the family room watching movies off on-demand. We had snacks and sodas. It was an all-around lazy day. Damien tried to pull me away for some one-on-one time, but Dad was not having it. Noah decided it looked like a fun game and tried to sneak off with me too. Dad stopped him even more forcefully. Dad didn’t need to worry though. I wasn’t going anywhere alone with him willingly.
The next day was the complete opposite of the day before. All the clouds were gone and the sun shined down warmly. After being cooped up in the house all day, we all went down to the beach with an extra bounce in our step, happy to be outside. We hadn’t had much time so far to enjoy the beach so that was the primary agenda for the day. Sunbathing, swimming, shell collecting. Anything and everything beach related.
I’d wrapped my beach towel around me to come down to the beach. It was time to take it off. Damien and Noah were both in swim trunks. I hated how girls had to wear bathing suits which didn’t hide anything and boys got to wear trunks and not more revealing clothing. I was wearing a navy-blue, one-piece swimsuit, but I still felt exposed as I took my towel off.
“This is a beautiful day,” Angela said, laying her towel out a few yards from me, clearly leaving space between us for Damien. I was surprised to see her in a bikini. I wouldn’t have expected. She’d always seemed pretty modest, but she didn’t seem to have any self-consciousness about her body. It didn’t hurt that she was slim, and her bikini was really cute on her. It was black with white polka dots and had tie-sides at the hips and a tie-front between her breasts. Next to her, I looked prudish.
“Sarah, come here so I can put lotion on your back,” Mom said.
“I can do it,” Noah said.
“No, you can’t,” Damien quickly said.
I rolled my eyes and went to stand in front of Mom. She put lotion on my back and shoulders.
“Damien, do you want me to do you next?” Mom asked.
The question made him blink. “You’ll need it,” I told him. He was pale and was sure to burn.
“But can’t you?” he said in a small voice.
“I’ll do it,” Angela said.
She grabbed a bottle of lotion and turned Damien’s back toward her. Damien let her, but he was clearly miffed that Angela was applying the lotion.
“I need lotion on my back,” Noah said.
“I’ll do it!” Cora said, having finished putting lotion on Dad.
“No, that’s okay. I got it,” I said, not even really thinking.
“What, no, that’s—” Damien shut his mouth and looked away.
I’d only spoken up to keep Cora from creeping on Noah, but now he held out a bottle of sunscreen to me. I put some into my palm and spread it across his back. I kept my touches utilitarian. There were no lingering hand strokes or playful tickles, which might have happened if I were putting lotion on Damien’s back. Noah had a light tan already. I wondered if it was natural or spray on. The image of Noah getting a spray on tan seemed completely wrong, but tanning beds were so bad for the skin.
“I think you missed a spot,” he said and indicated the small of his back.
I couldn’t tell if he was teasing me or being serious. I put some lotion on my fingers and rubbed the small of his back. He leaned into my touch with a sigh. “Noah, ease up,” I said softly, not liking how he was playing up his enjoyment of me touching him.
“We’re on a public beach. Anyone with a cell phone could be taking photos of us. We have to maintain the façade.”
“Just be careful around Damien. I don’t want you two to get into a fight.”
He didn’t reply. I dug my fingers into his shoulder to make him flinch. “Promise me you won’t provoke Damien,” I said.
“I’m not trying to provoke him. I’m trying to be with my girlfriend. Come on, let’s get in the water.”
“Fake girlfriend,” I corrected.
“Yes, say that in public for everyone to hear.”
I scanned up and down the beach. There were a couple of other small groups on the sand, but they were so far away that I couldn’t make out their faces. I couldn’t tell if Noah’s paranoia about being caught was legit or just a ruse to nettle me. I let him take me by the hand and lead me into the waves. I braced myself for the cold, but the water was warm. I couldn’t believe how good it felt.
“The waves are so gentle,” I said as we stopped when the water got to our shoulders.
“There’s a coral reef breaking the waves before they reach us,” he said pointing out to sea. I could see white spray as water crashed into something.
“Oh, nice.” I lifted my feet to float on my back. The sky was clear and an intense blue. The only thing up there was a plane going by high overhead leaving contrails.
He linked his hand with mine. “We need to stay together.”
I lifted my head to look toward the shore. “I thought Angela and Damien would come out to join us.”
“It’s better if they don’t.”
I sighed and lifted my feet to float on my back. “The whole reason I agreed to this trip was to spend time with Damien.”
“You are, just not exclusively with him.”
“I thought I’d spend time with my family, too.”
“And Angela, right? You were hoping to spend some time with her?” Noah said dryly.
“She is my best friend.”
“Sorry to ruin everything for you.”
“Couldn’t you meet the girl and then politely tell your mom that you don’t click and be done? I mean if you don’t like her, your mom will back off, right?”
“But she is perfect. She’s the only heir of the House of Gigi. They make top quality clothing and are worth over two hundred million.”
“Just because her family’s rich doesn’t mean she’s perfect for you.”
“Oh, but she is because Gigi is perfect. If they partner with Mother’s company, she’ll be set.”
“Wait, your mother is trying to use you as an incentive in a business deal?”
“Let’s be frank, she’s pimping me out. If I woo Tara, then Mother could use our relationship as leverage.”
“I know my family’s poor, but I don’t think big business works like that.”
“It does when it’s family empires. Tara’s family owns the majority. What they say goes for the House of Gigi, and if they say they’ll partner with Patricia’s Dresses, they’ll partner and a line of dresses by my mother will appear in stores across the country.”
“So, your mom isn’t trying to set you up with a nice girl. She wants you to date a girl to help her business out. That really changes things.”
I realized that in a twisted sort of way, Noah was doing the right thing. He could’ve done what his mother wanted and gone after this girl and wooed her. He could’ve had her wrapped around his little finger easily, and when the deal was over, just as easily dropped her. I couldn’t imagine the devastation the girl would’ve felt at being used like that. So blackmailing me to date him saved that other girl. I still wasn’t happy about being forced to pretend to be his girlfriend, but at least I wasn’t being lied to. At least everything was up front between us. When we broke up, there’d be a celebration.
“Wished you had talked to me about your situation instead of blackmailing me.”
“You would never have agreed, no matter how good my sob story.”
“You don’t know that and you’ll never know now.”
He didn’t reply. We kept floating for a few more minutes in silence, but the sun was beginning to get to me. I swam back and waded onto the shore. Angela was on her stomach sunbathing. Damien was lying on his back with a towel over his face. Mom and Dad were reading under the shade of an umbrella. Cora was in the shallows watching small schools of fish. I went to my towel and lay down, preferring to let the sun dry me.
From under his face towel, Damien said, “Do you think we could trick Noah into letting us bury him in the sand and leaving him for the crabs?”
I smiled at the image. “Better not try because it would end up being one of us that somehow gets buried instead.”
“Are you having a good time?”
I gazed out at the ocean and let it all really sink in. I was in Hawaii. I was on a beach in Hawaii on New Year’s Eve. It still seemed unreal. I needed Cora to pinch me again.
“Yeah, this is amazing.”
“Good. I made the reservations to swim with the dolphins tomorrow. Is that okay?”
I had forgotten he’d planned that. It still seemed surreal to contemplate. I was going to swim with dolphins on New Year’s Day. Come to think of it, today was New Year’s Eve. I was on a beach in Hawaii on New Year’s Eve. I knew it was going to happen, but I still couldn’t believe it. “Sounds good.”
“Do you not want to go?” he asked.
My answer had been kind of weak, but it was because it still seemed like a dream. “No, I do if there’s room.”
“Of course, there’s room. Not sure if we have room for Noah though.”
“Maybe he won’t want to come along.”
“When has that happened?”
“When I was young, I know I liked spending time with kids my age over the adults,” Dad said, revealing he’d been listening to us.
“What does that mean?” he asked with a frown.
“It means he thinks Noah considers us his friends,” Angela said.
“Don’t say that. You’ll make me feel sorry for him. I’d hate it if my only friends were us,” he replied.
“Uh, Damien?” I said, hoping he’d realize what he’d said.
“What?”
“I feel sorry for him now.”
“Get over it! Remember he’s Noah.”
“Did I hear my name?” the devil said joining us. He sat down on his towel and I had to look away uncomfortably. I wouldn’t admit it, but he looked good. Lightly tanned, blonde, muscular. I could see why most of the girls of Noble wanted to date him, but they didn’t know him.
“Yeah, we were talking about you,” I said.
“Good things?”
“Of course not.”
“What is you people’s fascination with the truth?” he said laying back and putting his arm over his eyes.
We swam, sunbathed, and walked the beach until lunch time. As we returned to the mansion, we could tell something was up. There were several cars now parked in front. When Damien saw them, his face hardened, and his stride lengthened. I had trouble keeping up with him. We went into the main room and stopped. Mrs. West stood in the center of the room. She had on a floppy hat and a long floral dress that looked casual and chic and probably cost hundreds of dollars. When she saw us, her face split into a huge smile. I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that my heart dropped at seeing Mrs. West. While generally, I thought she was a good person, I knew my parents wouldn’t be comfortable around her. I thought my mom especially was uncomfortable around her.
“There’s my darling boy! You’ve been getting sun! You look so healthy!”
“What are you doing here?” he demanded.
“What is so strange about your parents spending New Year’s Eve with you?”
We all turned to stare in surprise at Mr. West in the entrance to the family room. This was worse. I could’ve handled Mrs. West’s presence, but Mr. West was a whole other level of nerve-racking.
“But you said you weren’t coming!” he protested.
“Surprise!” Mrs. West laughed.
He turned to look at my parents and me with concern. “No, we’d all hoped—“
Mom quickly cut off Damien before he could say something awful to his parents.
“Mr. and Mrs. West, thank you so much for letting us use your home. It is very generous and we can never repay you.”
“Nonsense. We know our son. And we know you’ve helped him adjust to life at Noble. He’s been flourishing because of all of you. Thank you.” Mr. West’s comments made me a little uncomfortable and by the closed off look on Damien’s face, I could tell he wasn’t happy with his father’s comments either. Commenting on Damien’s issues so openly like that wasn’t right.
“It’s not just us. Look who else is joining us,” Mrs. West said.
Patricia appeared behind Mr. West. “It was so lovely of Sharla and John to invite me.”
“Now everyone gets to spend New Year’s with their kids,” Mrs. West announced.
“What about Vincent and Jenna?” Noah asked.
Patricia’s face stiffened. “They’re fine. Your sister is with your father.”
“And Vincent?”
“He’s fine,” she ground out.
“We’re going to have a party! I’ve already booked a band. Caterers will be arriving in a few hours to begin setting up. Sarah, I hope you don’t mind, but I had the staff move your things to an upstairs bedroom. The master bedroom is specially set up for Mr. West.”
I mutely nodded. Of course, everything was now under their control. Whatever they wanted, they’d get.
“This is why I didn’t want either of you here! You’re ruining it!” Damien yelled and stormed out.
“But it’s New Year’s Eve,” Mrs. West said in confusion. She turned to my family. “Did you already have plans?”
“No, ma’am. I think the plan was to stay in for the night,” Dad said.
“Nonsense! I swear my son. He can’t do anything properly. Imagine not having a celebration for New Year’s. It’s ridiculous.”
“You’re right. I’m too old to not hoot and holler at seeing a New Year,” Cora said.
“Exactly! Oh, I’m so glad you’re here...”
I couldn’t really be upset that Mrs. West didn’t remember Cora’s name, but as she looked at her, I began to wonder if she remembered meeting her at all.
Cora smiled. “I can’t remember your name either.”
I couldn’t tell if she was being kind or cruel when she said that.
“If you need us to do anything, just tell us what to do,” Dad said. Mom shot him a nasty look. That was exactly what she was afraid was going to happen with the Wests. She was worried that they’d suddenly be delegated to staff and their vacation would be over.
“Oh goodness, no, I have it all in hand. I’ve done hundreds of these. Many here at this house. Please continue to enjoy yourselves.”
“Sounds good. We’ll get out of your hair for a few hours so you can plan in peace. We were planning to go check out some shops anyway.”
Mrs. West’s eyes lit up. “Oh, I wish I could go with you! There are some absolute darling shops here. C’est la vie. Maybe another time.”
Noah had come up to my side and slipped his hand into mine. I held onto it, but I wasn’t sure if having him by my side made me feel safer or more vulnerable in Patricia’s presence.
Patricia coolly turned to us with a smile. “I don’t wish to be in the way either. May I join your shopping excursion?”
“We won’t be going to shops that you like,” I said.
“I don’t mind slumming it,” she replied.
“Aren’t you something,” Cora said.
“Where are my manners? I’m Patricia Nash, Noah’s mother. You must be Sarah’s parents and her—“ She trailed off as she looked at Cora.
“I’m her cool grandmother. Call me Cora.”
“Of course you are. I’m so glad I get to meet you. When I heard our children were dating, I’d hoped to get acquainted.”
I didn’t like the way Patricia looked at my parents. She looked condescending and judgmental.
“Mom, did Dad call you about the chalet?”
“What about it?”
“He was surprised to hear you thought it was yours.”
A vein in Patricia’s forehead began to twitch. “I don’t know why he would be surprised. It was very clear in—“
“Patricia, let me show you to your room,” Mrs. West said.
Mrs. West beckoned her to the stairs. I was surprised when Noah squeezed my hand and gave me a quick peck on the cheek. “I’ll stay behind and help her settle in. Get me some macadamia nuts.”
The three disappeared up the stairs.
“We should go now if we want to get any shopping done,” Dad said.
“Yeah, sounds good.”
“Please use the Lincoln out front,” Mr. West said, holding out a key ring.
I’d almost forgotten he was there.
“Thank you, that’s very kind,” Mom said. Dad took the keys.
“Damien, could you stay back, please?” Mr. West said.
He stopped and looked back at his father. “Why?”
“I want to talk to you.”
They stared at each other. There was some sort of silent battle of wills going on.
Angela cautiously slipped up beside him. “Do you want me to pick you up anything?”
He didn’t respond. I was worried about why Mr. West might want to hold him back, but my family headed out, and I couldn’t linger any longer.
My family plus Angela headed to Waikiki.
We went to various gift shops, being total tourists.
While we were looking at t-shirts, I asked Angela, “Do you know what Mr. West wanted to talk to Damien about?”
“No clue. Christmas was fine. He was kind of quiet during the dinner, but I think it was because he was a little worried about you.”
Remembering my minor freak out on Christmas day embarrassed me.
“Did they know about the trip?” I asked, wondering if that’s why they’d showed up. If he hadn’t okayed the trip with them, I wouldn’t blame them for coming here to see him.
Angela lifted her shoulders.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
WHEN WE GOT BACK, THE mansion had been transformed. Black and silver decorations were everywhere. We went into the foyer laden with plastic bags and gawked at all of the catering staff buzzing around. Streamers, balloons, ribbons were going everywhere.
Damien appeared to have been waiting for us. He stood when we entered.
“Have to give it to your mother, Damien, she doesn’t half-ass these things,” Cora said.
Mom frowned at Cora’s use of profanity, but even she looked at the lights and banners with disbelief.
“How many people do you think will be coming?” she asked.
“Mother always operates in the hundreds,” he said.
“We didn’t pack any evening wear.”
“Do you think she’ll do like last time and buy us dresses and have stylists do us up?” Cora asked.
I could tell Mom and Dad were not comfortable with the idea of being given makeovers.
“The party isn’t black tie,” he said.
“Still, our best shoes are flip-flops,” Mom said.
“It’ll be fine. I know I’m going to have fun,” Cora said.
“I guess we should freshen up at least,” Mom said.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I’D TAKEN A SHOWER and was blow drying my hair when Noah appeared in the doorway to my bathroom, scaring the crap out of me.
“Jesus Christ! Noah, what the hell!” I snapped off the hair dryer and waited for my heart to calm down.
“I did knock.”
“What if I hadn’t been dressed?”
He leered at me. “What if indeed.”
“Gross. Why are you here?”
“Just checking on you. You are going to attend the party, right?”
“For a little while. Why?”
“You’re gonna get a New Year’s present.”
“What does that mean?”
“You’ll see.” He backed out of the doorway and started to leave.
“I don’t like surprises, Noah. What do you have planned?”
He wasn’t going to answer me. He opened my bedroom door and crossed paths with Damien.
“What are you doing in Sarah’s room?” he asked.
“A better question would be why are you at her door?”
“I’m checking on her.”
“So was I. She’s fine. You can go now.”
“Or he could hold you until you tell us what it is you’re planning tonight,” I said.
Damien’s face lit up. “I could!”
Noah held his hands up. “I’m on your two’s side. I promise.”
“Since when?” Damien asked.
“Since the beginning. And after tonight, everything will be good again.”
“Noah, what are you—“ but he slipped past Damien before I could finish my question. I tried to chase after him, but Damien hooked an arm around my waist.
“He’s plotting something,” I said, trying to break free.
“And nothing we do will change that.”
That sounded far too sanguine for Damien. “What’s with you?”
He pulled me into my room and closed the door. He pulled me to my bed and sat down pulling me down beside him.
“Nothing. I’m just happy.”
I tilted my head to consider him. He had a goofy smile on his face. “Okay, spit it out. What’s made you so chipper?”
He looked down at our joined hands and played with my fingers. “I may have been gifted with a car to keep at Noble.”
My eyes widened. That was a huge perk. Only a few students were allowed to have vehicles at Noble.
“Wait, you have your license?”
“Not yet. But I will.”
“How old are you?”
I knew Damien had been held back a year. I’d assumed he was fifteen, but if he was being given a car now that would mean...
“I’ll be fifteen in February.”
He was still fourteen? That surprised me and made me feel a little better. Thinking he was already sixteen had given me a weird sense of vertigo as if he was someone I shouldn’t know yet like he should’ve been two feet taller than me and know things I didn’t. “Why are your parents giving you a car now?”
“Because they love me?” he retorted sardonically.
“No, seriously, why? What good is a car when you can’t drive it?”
“I could drive it.”
“Not with me in it.”
“Don’t you want to get away from Noble sometimes?”
“Yeah, and I’d like to be able to get back.”
“Fine, you can drive us. Better?”
“No, since I can’t drive either.”
“We’ll figure it out.”
“Was that what your dad wanted to talk to you about?”
“Partly. Sort of. It was a reward.”
“For acing your classes?”
“That and for the business stuff.”
“Oh.” I remembered the glimpse I’d gotten of his email. It had seemed to have some important things in it.
“Are you ready to go down?” he asked.
“Not yet.”
My hair was still damp, and I hadn’t put on any makeup. I went back to the bathroom to continue getting ready. Damien wandered back with me and leaned against the counter. Having him back there with me made me feel a little nervous. Even though there was a foot of space between us, being in the bathroom together was intimate.
I started putting foundation on with a sponge and he frowned at me. “You don’t need to put all that on.”
“Thanks, but I feel better if I have it on.”
“Why? You’re already pretty.”
I cut him a quick glance to see if he was angling for something, but he appeared to be sincere. I’d been hanging out with Noah too much. Not everyone had an ulterior motive when they said something.
“What do you think Noah has planned?” I asked.
“Maybe he wants to break up with you.”
“Yeah, right. Oh God, what if he proposes?”
“Then he will mysteriously disappear and never be seen again.”
“Hey,” I said, not liking the hint of violence in his voice.
“Fine, no disappearing, but I’m not letting him marry you.”
“He’s not going to propose. I was only joking. My parents wouldn’t allow it and his mom certainly wouldn’t either.”
“He could try to elope.”
“We’re not old enough and I wouldn’t go through with something like that.”
“Good.”
I leaned in close to the mirror to put on my mascara.
“Do you like him?”
“I don’t hate him, but I don’t trust him.”
“Then why’d you agree to be his fake girlfriend?”
“I told you—it was the only way to go on this trip without raising suspicion.”
“Who’s suspicion? Nobody would care if you came here without a date.”
“Not just here, but at school too. We sit together in every class. People would start to wonder why we do that if we don’t get along. Rumors would start and Angela might be exposed.”
“Why would my “cheating” on her expose her?” He had been thinking about this, and as his grades would attest, he was no dummy.
“You two would have to break up and then I couldn’t be friends with her anymore. She’d be all on her own. Her parents might figure out that she’s gay and send her to a reconditioning camp.”
“We’ll never be able to openly date?”
“Not never, but maybe not at Noble.”
I waited tensely for a follow-up question from him. I was skirting too close to the full truth about Noah blackmailing me by threatening to expose Angela, but he didn’t say anything else. I continued to put on makeup. When I was done, he straightened from the counter. “I’ll see you at the party,” he said and left the room.
Watching him go, I didn’t feel very festive. None of us could be ourselves anymore. We were all hiding things, and I was hiding something from everyone I cared about. I looked at myself one last time in the mirror. He was wrong. I did need the makeup. I felt ugly.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I MET UP WITH MOM AND Dad at the entrance to the garden. We were all wearing the same clothes as what we’d worn to the luau. Silently we all braced ourselves and went outside.
Mrs. West once again had proven what an excellent organizer she was. There was a DJ on a platform playing music. There were tables of scrumptious food. Servers carrying trays of drinks filtered through the party-goers. It was perfect and she’d arranged it in only a day. I couldn’t imagine what she would’ve done if she’d had more time. It was still early at only nine o’clock, but it looked like over fifty guests were there. Mrs. West was in the middle of a group of women laughing and talking.
Mr. West was near the entrance to greet guests. We politely nodded to him. I don’t think any of us expected him to come over, but he did. He shook Dad’s hand and nodded to Mom and me.
“Barbara and David, I do hope we haven’t intruded too much on your vacation.”
“Considering it’s your house, we should be apologizing for imposing on you,” Dad said.
Mr. West waved Dad’s words away. “Nonsense. Comparing this New Year’s to the last one, well, the contrast is damn near miraculous. Your family gives Damien something we can’t.”
Dad started to vehemently deny Mr. West’s words, “No, sir. That’s ridiculous—”
Mr. West held up his hand for Dad to stop. “I am not a very good father. I know and struggle with this. I should be asking you for advice actually. You’ve raised an excellent daughter. What’s your secret?”
Dad didn’t know how to respond. Having the man from the cover of Forbes tell him that he was better at something than him, had left him tongue-tied.
Mr. West smiled. “Maybe I’ll call you sometime. Do you golf?”
“No, never have.”
“Excellent. I’m terrible so maybe I’ll actually win for once.”
“Sure. Why not?”
Mr. West smiled and left to greet more guests.
“David, you hate golf.”
“What else could I say? John West just asked me on a Dad date.”
“No more dawdling. I’ll get some hors d’oeuvres. You get a bottle of champagne, and we’ll go hide in our room,” Mom said.
“What about me?” I asked.
“You’re too young to have champagne,” she said.
“So I’m not invited?”
“Nope. It’s every Smith for themselves,” Dad said.
“What do I tell our hosts if they ask?”
“Say we went to bed early, which will be true.”
“We seem to be using the word “true” rather broadly at the moment.”
“Stop asking questions and listen to your parents. Mr. West said we’re excellent. If the wealthiest man says so, it must be true.”
“It must be,” I said dryly.
Mom and Dad stuck to their plan. Mom stacked an impressive amount of food on two plates, and I saw Dad with a bottle shape bulge under his shirt. They disappeared back inside.