Carley helps me put on the dress, and as we’re doing so, I tentatively ask her where she’s staying. She tells me that Mr. James, Loni’s father, has set her up with a nice hotel and even paid for her ticket out here and back. If I had any doubts they were in a relationship before, those are completely wiped away when she tells me that.
When I’m dressed, I stand in front of my mirror and study my reflection.
“You’re gorgeous,” Carley says, her voice a little choked.
I glance toward her and smile softly. “Thank you.”
There’s a moment of tense silence between us, and I’m not sure what I should do. Can I hug her? Should I touch her at all? Would it be better to keep my distance?
Thankfully, Carley makes the decision for me when she suddenly wraps her arms around me and gives me a tight hug.
“I’m so mad at you,” she whispers in my ear. “But I’m so damn proud of you, and I love you so much. Remember that, okay?”
I nod, sucking in a breath of air to keep my tears at bay.
“I love you too, Carley.”
When we break apart, she holds my shoulders and gazes into my eyes with a bright smile.
“Enjoy tonight,” she says. “Whatever else there is for us to deal with, we will, but don’t think about any of that stuff tonight, okay? Just have fun.”
“I will. I promise.” My heart flutters, and even though she hasn’t forgiven me, I feel like we’ve taken a step in the right direction.
Carley stays a short time after that, choosing to leave before Saint arrives because she doesn’t want to cause any tension.
“Call me tomorrow,” she says as she’s stepping out my door. “We’ll figure out what to do then.”
I release a breath of relief. “I promise.”
She nods, then winks. “Have fun tonight, but … you know. Not too much fun.”
I groan. “Please stop while you’re ahead.”
I’m so relieved we’ve reached an impasse of sorts. I hate being at odds with her, and I’m so happy she came to be with me. Now all that there’s left to do is wait for Saint to show up to take me to his house.
At seven sharp, there’s a knock on my door. My heart races as I cross the room, but I take a moment to smooth the skirt of my dress and make sure everything is perfectly in place before I open it.
My breath leaves me in a rush as I take him in. He looks amazing in his tux. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him dressed up before, and he looks powerful, like everything his rabid fangirls have built him up to be.
To my satisfaction, he seems to be just as impressed with my appearance. “You should pick your jaw up off the floor before we’re late,” I tease.
His mouth, which had been hanging open, snaps shut.
“You look beautiful, little masochist,” he murmurs. “I mean that.”
“Perfectly normal,” I reply, doing a little spin like I’m Katniss-fucking-Everdeen before I stop and grin up at him. I expect the flip to switch in him at any moment and for him to turn into his usual asshole self, barking orders and overpowering me with his sheer masculine appeal, but to my surprise he doesn’t say anything rude. In fact, he gives me a corsage and offers me his arm, like an actual gentleman.
“Ready?” he asks as he escorts me down the hallway.
“I think so,” I answer. “I just hope no one has pig’s blood on them.”
“Don’t worry,” he says in a dry tone. “Rich kids don’t bother with pig’s blood. It’s thoroughbred stallion or nothing.”
A laugh bursts from my lips before I can stop it, and I smile up at him. I want to hold onto this feeling and never let it go, even though I know that’s impossible. I feel like Cinderella going to her ball, with the time ticking against me.
Tonight will be my fantasy.
But I know tomorrow, reality will find me again.
37
Because he said it was the “normal” thing to do, Saint got us a huge limo to go to the prom in, so we roll up to his house in style. I’m a little nervous when we first walk in, but I’ve got Loni on one side of me and Saint on the other, so I know nobody will mess with me.
By the time we arrive at the house, the party is in full swing. I don’t know if it can really be considered a prom, or just a house party where everyone dressed up super fancy, but there are balloons and other decorations, so that’s got to count for something.
“Holy shit, this place is already packed,” Loni says as we walk through the front door. It looks like the entire school is here, jammed into Saint’s living room, but nobody seems to mind. The music’s blasting and everyone’s dancing.
“Looks like fun.”
She smiles back. We hook arms to walk into the crowd, but Saint grabs my hand just as Loni’s date—a boy from Thornhaven’s lacrosse team—grabs hers.
“No, no, no,” Saint says with a shake of his head, drawing me back to him. “She gets you all the time. You’re mine tonight, Ellis.”
Damn, I don’t mind his possessiveness in this moment. I shoot a glance over my shoulder to Loni, but her date is already leading her away, leaving me and Saint alone.
“All right,” I say. “You’ve got me all to yourself. Now, what are you going to do with me?”
He smirks. “I’ve got a few things in mind, but I think first, I’ll dance with you.”
“You dance, Angelle? For some reason, that … petrifies me.”
“Bitch.”
“Asshole.”
Taking my hand, he leads me further into the living room, which has been cleared of furniture and made into the dance floor. It’s crowded, but just like always, people make room for Saint. As we move to the middle of the floor, I spot Laurel and her friends dancing together. They glare as we pass them by, and I can hear them talking about me even over the music.
“How many times do you think she had to blow him to get that dress?”
“Doesn’t matter, it’s trashy anyway. I can see her ass dimples.”
“I can’t believe Saint would come to prom with someone like her.”
“He’s lowered his standards pretty far.” This time, the insult comes from the head bitch in charge. “He used to want girls with class, now he’s just looking for a warm hole. Oh well, at least the stupid bitch’ll be able to afford her abortion this time around.”
As cruel as her words are, they don’t sting. Not tonight. Tonight, I won’t let anything touch me.
Saint pulls me close and we sway to the music. He keeps it PG-13, and doesn’t even grab my ass, though I can practically feel his hands itching to. The thought almost makes me giggle. For the first time since James’ death, I feel … normal.
I smile up at Saint.
“What is it?” he asks with a cocky half-grin. “Why’re you looking at me like that?”
“Because I’m grateful,” I admit. “Because you did what you promised and made me feel like a regular senior tonight. You’ve no idea how much that means to me.”
His hand slides up to cup my cheek and he lowers his mouth toward mine. I tilt my chin as I rise to meet him and begin to slide my eyes closed when I see the front door open and someone walk inside.