Chapter 13 #3
For the rest of dinner, Asha bombarded Oliver and JJ with questions with the seriousness of a debate moderator.
Unlike Alec, they reveled in the attention, each trying to outdo the other with their answers.
On our end of the table, Boomer had roped Xander into a one-sided discussion about cars, while I listened quietly as Stella and Alec discussed someone named Cara.
“How’s she doing?” he asked. He’d pushed away his empty plate and was leaning back in his seat, arms folded over his chest.
“Really well,” Stella answered. “Just had her screening, and she’s still in remission.”
“I’m so glad to hear that. Does she have any plans now that she’s better? Go to college, travel, that sort of thing?”
Stella nodded. “She has a list that’s at least twenty miles long.”
Their exchange struck a chord with me. I found myself remembering the night I first met Alec, when he admitted he was only at the masquerade because he knew someone close to the cause. Whoever Cara was, she had obviously been sick, and I wondered if she was that person.
As if sensing my confusion, Stella said, “Cara, my brother, Drew, and I are triplets. Cara had non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.”
“Oh, wow,” I exclaimed. “I’m so sorry. That must have been difficult for you.”
“It was, but the boys helped me get through it,” she said, gesturing at Oliver and the band. “Thankfully she’s doing much better now.”
“That’s good,” I said. I didn’t know what else I could possibly say.
Thankfully, JJ interrupted, pushing his chair back and standing. “I’m going to put on something dry,” he announced. “Maybe we could watch a movie afterward?”
“Good idea,” Oliver agreed, throwing his napkin on his plate. “These jeans are seriously starting to chafe.”
“Hey, Oliver,” Alec said. He glanced over at Asha, Boomer, and me before turning back to his friend. He didn’t say anything else, but Oliver caught his drift.
He smiled at us. “I bet you guys want to change too. Let me show you to the guest rooms.”
***
After grabbing our bags from the foyer, Oliver led us up the massive front staircase to the second floor. Apparently Alec already knew where he was going, because when we reached the landing, he took a right without waiting for directions, and I wondered how many times he’d been here before.
“See you in a bit,” he called to me as Oliver steered the three of us down the opposite hall.
He showed Asha and Boomer to their room first.
Asha peeked at me, as if looking for my approval. It felt weird for them to be sharing, but I flashed my best friend an encouraging thumbs-up. Before they shut the door, we all agreed to meet back in the kitchen in twenty minutes.
Then, it was just me and Oliver.
“About earlier,” he said, leading me farther down the hall. “Sorry again for the ambush. If I’d known Alec was bringing you guys, we’d have been more civilized.”
It was the first time he’d spoken directly to me, and I took a deep breath as I tried to form a response.
There was something about being alone with Oliver that put me on edge, and as I studied him out of the corner of my eye, I realized why.
If Alec Williams was day, Oliver Perry was night.
His hair—a mop of messy brown waves—was constantly falling into his face, a stark contrast to his bandmate’s tidy blond strands.
His eyes were sapphire instead of the storm clouds I was so taken with, and unlike Alec, he was outgoing in the way that made boys like him prom king or student body president.
“Well, you didn’t have to blast me with the water gun,” I teased, remembering his moment of hesitation when he first saw me standing in the entrance hall.
Oliver shrugged, a lazy grin curling on his lips. “I’m an all-or-nothing kind of guy,” he said before stopping at a doorway. “Here we are. Hope this works for you.”
He held open the door so I could step inside.
The space was at least twice the size of my room back home, with a large four-poster bed, a TV sitting area, and an attached bathroom.
Looking around, I felt like I was staying at a fancy hotel, not someone’s house.
What did Oliver’s uncle do with so much space?
“Thanks,” I said, setting my luggage on the end-of-bed bench. “This is perfect.”
I expected Oliver to leave, but he settled against the doorframe. He crossed his arms and looked me over, as if trying to solve a mystery.
“So…you and Alec, huh?” There was that slow grin of his again, the one that made girls weak in the knees. I found it unnerving, and my face went red. Did he know something I didn’t?
“We’re not together,” I told him. It was the second time I’d explained this, but for some reason Alec’s friends seemed to think otherwise.
“Maybe not, but there’s definitely something going on between you two. It’s…intriguing.” He rubbed his chin, as if I were a puzzling plot twist in a book he was reading.
“Intriguing?” Was that a compliment or…?
“Because you look so much like her,” he added.
I ignored the irritation that pulsed in my chest. “You mean Violet James.”
He nodded. “You’ve got a similar face and”—he paused to look me up and down—“well, pretty much everything. Except for her personality, that is. But that’s a huge improvement in my opinion.”
Um, thanks?
“Did they…have a thing?” I felt nosy asking Oliver personal questions about Alec, but he was the one who’d brought it up.
Oliver shrugged. “Alec isn’t one to talk about that kinda stuff. They did a scene together in Immortal Nights, and they’ve been friends for awhile, but I don’t know anything more than that.”
Did a scene together? What did that mean? Like a kissing scene? Something more?
Noticing that I was deep in my own thoughts, Oliver cleared his throat and said, “Anyway, I’ll let you settle in.” He straightened and pushed away from the jamb. “Think you can find your way back downstairs?”
I nodded.
“Cool. See you in a bit,” and then he was gone, closing the door behind him.
For the next few minutes, I stood rooted in the middle of my room, attempting to process everything that had happened during the past two hours.
I tried to regard the situation with a sense of nonchalance, but I’d just had a water fight and eaten dinner with the world’s most popular boy band.
And now we were all going to watch a movie together.
This didn’t happen to normal girls. I felt like I’d been written into some cheesy dreams-do-come-true Disney Channel movie—not that my aspiration in life was to share Italian food with the Heartbreakers.
A door slammed down the hall, and the noise jerked me out of my head.
Goose bumps rose across my skin as I quickly stripped off my damp dress and discarded it on the floor.
The cool air felt euphoric against my sunburned skin.
After rummaging through my duffel for a minute, I realized I didn’t have anything to wear.
The only clean clothes I had were my outfit for tomorrow and a spare camisole.
There were also my pajamas—a pair of yoga pants and an oversize Book Nerds Are Sexy T-shirt.
I was too embarrassed to wear the tee, so I pulled on the cami.
Once I’d finished dressing, I plugged in my phone and freshened up in the bathroom.
With nothing left to do, I decided to find my way to the kitchen, even though I still had ten minutes to spare.
Taking a right, I headed back the way I’d come. As I approached the corner, two voices drifted toward me from the hallway.
“…then you should tell her the truth, Alec.” It was Stella, her tone high and insistent.
“But it’s not like I’m lying to her,” came Alec’s deep voice. He sounded distressed, and my stomach clenched. I suddenly had the feeling they were talking about me.
“Yeah, well, you’re not being honest either. She’ll resent you for that.”
There was a long pause, and I thought they’d walked away, but then Alec sighed. “What do you expect me to do, Stella? This is my dad we’re talking about. He always has to control everything, and I don’t want to lose her.”
“I already told you what I think you should do,” she said. Then, in a softer voice, “I’m sorry, but you know how I feel about your dad. He nearly destroyed my relationship with Oliver.”
This conversation was definitely not meant for my ears, and even though I wanted to wait for Alec’s response, I felt guilty for listening, so I retreated back to my room before anyone caught me eavesdropping.
Collapsing on the bed, I decided to linger for a few minutes to give the two time to finish their talk.
As I stared at the ceiling, I replayed what I’d heard.
Neither had mentioned my name specifically, but I couldn’t shake the suspicion that I was somehow tangled up in a bigger issue.
If that was the case, and Stella thought Alec was being untruthful…
I couldn’t help but recall the call he’d made this morning.
Does this have something to do with Violet James?
Part of me wanted to be straightforward and ask what was wrong, but I had no desire to admit to listening in. And what if I was completely off base and their conversation had nothing to do with me? Then I’d come off as nosy and presumptuous.
Besides, Alec Williams was not a liar.
Right?
A knock interrupted my internal debate. When I opened the door, Alec was on the other side.
“Hey,” he said, stuffing his hands into his front pockets. He was still wearing his khaki shorts, which had dried, but he’d pulled on a fresh shirt and restyled his hair. “You ready? There’s something I want to show you.”
He smiled, and my heart swelled inside my chest.
With thoughts of Stella and the conversation forgotten, I stepped out into the hall. “Lead the way.”