XXIII
Tori
I tried to stay awake and wait for Syn, but if he did return at all, it was long after I’d fallen asleep. I’d crawled into the bed and even sat up with the lamp on, going back and forth as to whether I wanted him to sleep on the couch, or if I felt bad enough to let him sleep in bed with me.
When I woke in the morning, the lamp was still on, and the other side of the bed looked undisturbed. Syn walked in shortly after, dressed in different clothes than the night before, following in one of the maids, who was wheeling in breakfast.
The most conversation we had was him telling me to eat. By the time I finished eating, the first of a stream of people walked into the room.
A masseuse, who spent a long time focused on a knot in my shoulders.
A woman who gave me a foot massage before giving me a manicure and pedicure.
A hair stylist who came prepared to take the blue out of my hair but left only after deepening the color before he styled it with curls.
Another man appeared before the stylist had finished and waited patiently before sitting me down in front of the dressing table and doing my makeup.
And then came the woman with two assistants and four racks of evening gowns.
All the while, Syn sat in the corner, watching in silence. He didn’t even object when I told the hair stylist that I wanted to keep the color.
After the previous night, I was expecting him to watch me dress, but while I went into the dressing room to change, he took some clothes and went into the bathroom to shower.
The dress I’ve chosen is beautiful, though it’s fair to say, all the dresses brought to the room were. Dozens of different fabrics and styles, but all black to fit the Black-Tie theme. The one I’ve settled on has thick straps and a back that dips lower than the neckline. There are thousands of silver sequins swirling around the waist and reaching up from the bottom of the skirt that pools around my feet.
Standing in front of the mirror, I stare at my reflection. I look like the princesses I’ve been treated like today. I’ve tried to allow myself to enjoy the experience, but I’ve felt on edge the entire time.
Tonight, one way or another, this will all be over.
Behind me, Syn clears his throat, and as I turn to face him, his eyes widen. “You look…”
I let out a long sigh. I look good, and I know I do. Given the reaction I got from him last night, I think it’s fair to say that while Syn doesn’t like me, he clearly doesn’t think I’m unattractive. “Don’t hurt yourself,” I mutter.
“Huh?”
“What do you want, Syn?” I ask him, irritably.
Syn walks over, and I realize he has a box in his hands—a box that can’t be mistaken for anything other than the type that contains jewelry. He opens it in front of me. Inside is a diamond necklace with a matching set of earrings. “This event is full of people whose collective net worth is greater than that of some countries. After last night, I thought you might like something to hide the mark on your neck, but I thought that you might find it too difficult to wear that style of necklace. The chain on this is long, thin, and will break easily—though I hope you won’t find yourself in a position where you need to do that.”
The issue should be that he’s presenting me with yet another expensive bribe, but it’s not.
My hand moves to my throat in an automatic movement. The visual evidence, hidden beneath makeup, doesn’t hurt anymore. Even the soreness in my throat has finally gone. Yet, somehow, the idea of putting that necklace—or anything —makes it suddenly feel like the air I’m breathing is being restricted.
“I can’t wear that,” I manage to whisper.
Syn presses his lips together, and I wince as I expect him to snap at me, but he doesn’t. Instead, he simply closes the lid and puts the box down on the closest surface. He turns back to me, pulling another box out of the inside pocket of his suit jacket. “What about this?”
I take the thin box from him and open it. Lying on red silk is a tennis bracelet, a watch with a silver face, and a matching pair of earrings which are both half the length of the bracelet. Aside from the face of the watch, all I can see are diamonds, sparkling at me under the bright light in the dressing room.
When I don’t move or object, Syn carefully takes the watch from the box and fastens it around my wrist. “Wear them for tonight.”
Taken back by Syn’s gesture, I put both the bracelet and earrings on. “Thank you.”
It’s only when I reach for the cloak that goes with the dress that I realize that none of the options had fastenings around the neck—they were all more like coats.
Tucking that nugget of information away, I turn to really look at Syn. He’s wearing a classic black tuxedo, complete with tails and a bowtie. His light brown hair looks a little darker than normal from the gel he’s used to sweep his fringe off his face.
The overall effect is elegant, and much as it pains me to admit it, this is a look he pulls off to perfection.
“My parents have already left, so we won’t have to ride with them,” he tells me. “Our car is downstairs waiting for us.”
We head downstairs to the private elevator and then ride in silence to the ground floor. Just as he said, a shiny black Town car is waiting for us, and we get in.
It’s a little after eight, and the streets are busy. This close to Christmas, it’s either people doing last minute shopping, or out celebrating. If there’s one thing about Christmas in New York that I love, it’s the lights, and the elaborate lengths stores will go to in dressing their windows. Unfortunately, the distraction outside is short-lived as the driver turns off 5 th Avenue and takes a route directly through Central Park.
Finally, I turn to Syn. “I get it. You don’t want to spend time with me, and you can’t wait until you never have to speak to me again, but are you going to tell me anything about tonight’s plan?”
Syn’s eyes narrow. “You’re upset that I didn’t tell you anything when there have been people with us all day?”
“No, I just…” I sigh. This isn’t worth it. “I don’t even know where the Gala is being held.”
“The American Museum of Natural History.”
At least I don’t have to be stuck in a car with him for too long.
Sure enough, we’re in a short line of cars waiting to drop off their passengers, and then we’re joining a stream of people walking up the steps to the entrance.
I’ve been to the museum once before for a class trip. I’d spent most of the time with my friends, trying to avoid our teachers and do the least amount of work possible. But if there’s anything I remember about that trip, tonight, everything looks completely different.
The pale stone steps, usually covered in people sitting on them during the day, are hidden beneath a bright red carpet. The only people on them now are staff at the top and bottom, ready to help, and the few couples walking up to the entrance. Inside, someone appears at my side to take my cloak, and then we bypass the security area to the room where noise and people are spilling out of.
Waiting for us by the entrance to Milstein Hall are Royal and Gemini.
Gemini, leaning against the railings around a display of a large shark, sees us first. “Fuck me, little Vixen,” he says as we get close. “As in, literally. We can head to the planetarium, and I’ll have you seeing all kinds of stars.”
“Maybe later,” I mutter, trying to keep myself focused.
“Deal,” Gemini says as though he’s going to hold me to that.
“No deal.” Royal swats Gemini’s arm. “And to echo Gem with a little more finesse, Tori, you look absolutely breathtaking.”
“Thanks. You guys don’t look too bad yourselves.”
That’s a very large understatement.
Royal is also wearing a tuxedo, but instead of it being solid black like Syn’s, in the mood lighting, I can see darker pinstripes running up and down the material. He’s already the tallest of the three guys, but somehow, the subtle lines make him seem like he’s Captain America in formalwear.
As for Gemini, considering he is always the one to stretch the rules with the college’s dress code, and somehow gets away with wearing ripped jeans and a hoodie, I half-expected him to turn up to this event in something similar. Instead, he looks like he’s ready to walk down a runway. Most of his hair has been brushed back into a stubby ponytail on the back of his head. With his face not hidden by hair or a hood, the sharp angles of his cheeks and jaw are on full display.
The tuxedo he’s wearing is less traditional than Syn’s and Royal’s. The jacket is draped over the railing beside him, and the embroidered waistcoat is on full display, showing off his hourglass figure.
Once again, I can’t deny that I’m standing with three of the most gorgeous men I’ve ever seen.
“Is he here? Preston?” I ask, as though there’s someone else we’re here to see.
Gemini shakes his head. “His fiancée is, and she says he’ll be here for the auction.”
“When’s that?” I glance at the watch on my wrist. I’m not hungry. Food had been brought to Syn’s room throughout the day, so I’d assumed whatever this event was, there wasn’t going to be food served here.
“You’ve never been to one of these things, have you?” Gemini asks.
“They want people to have a good time,” Royal explains when I roll my eyes, because of course, I haven’t been to one of these types of events before. “Drinks, dancing, drinks, talking—more drinks. The more people drink, the more competitive they become.”
“What’s the prize?” I ask, curious.
Gemini laughs. “Something they could buy themselves for a much cheaper price. It’s not about getting the main items. It’s about being the person to donate the most amount of money in front of everyone.”
“Drinks and dancing?” That sounds like a lot of time to wait before he even arrives.
“What a brilliant suggestion.” Gemini offers his hand to me with a flourished bow. “Shall we?”
I shake my head. “We should wait here so we don’t miss him.”
“That’s the opposite of what we should do,” Syn tells me. “Being out here draws unnecessary attention to us. And there’s also a chance that du Pont will see you, guess something’s up, and then leave before we even get a chance to talk to him.”
“Then why have me here at all?” I ask.
Syn gives me a pointed look. “What, pray tell, would have made you stay away from here tonight?” he asks, dryly.
He’s right. After everything, the last thing anyone could convince me to do was not come tonight. Whatever Preston has to say, I want to hear it directly from his own mouth.
“Then what is the plan? And what’s going to stop him from not doing the same if he walks in and sees me on the dancefloor?”
“Don’t worry.” Gemini slides up to me and wraps his arm around my waist. “There are enough people inside that we’ll be able to hide you in plain sight.” He glances up at my hair. “I was expecting you to come without the blue hair, but I’m glad it stayed.”
‘Normal’ colored hair was my original plan until I decided keeping it would annoy Syn and his parents more, but hearing Gemini’s plan, not only does it seem like I made the wrong call, but I’m also surprised that Syn didn’t make a fuss about it earlier.
I give Syn a sideways glance, but even though his attention is locked on me, he doesn’t react.
“We’ve paid a member of staff to notify us when Preston arrives. After that, we’ll head upstairs. We’ve arranged for one of the rooms to be left unlocked so that we can be alone. Meanwhile, Syn will speak to Preston and ask him to continue their conversation in private, and then lead him to us. It’s quite simple, really.” The way Royal puffs out his chest makes me think he had a large part in coming up with that plan.
“Simple,” I mutter in agreement.
What could go wrong?