I’m in Hawaii.
Seriously, I’m in freakin’ Hawaii. I never thought I would get to visit Oahu, but here I am.
I have to say, being friends with the Scions did have its perks. Plus, at least I finally know what Adriana’s birthday present is.
“I can’t believe you guys flew us all the way out here for our birthday,” Adriana was saying, as Carlo checked us all in at the counter of the ultra-exclusive Halekulani resort.
“Yeah, well, we knew how much you guys loved Hawaii. We had so much fun last time we were here,” Parker explained with a grin, leaning down to kiss her on the cheek.
“Why does my sister get all the special treatment?” Zack huffed good-naturedly, his hair looking even blonder than usual under the lights.
“Why, you want a kiss?” I teased, feeling much better than I had all week. I mean, who could blame it? I was in paradise.
The past week had been pretty relaxing, with the exception of a few more run-ins with Rico at Carlo’s house and Roman at school. I tried by best to avoid both of them, sticking with Carlo, Venice, and Zack. Adriana and Parker had been in their own little world lately. I’d also started talking to James again, and I was glad he’d gone back to normal. He didn’t sound upset with me anymore, nor did he even hint he wanted anything more than friendship. It was a huge relief.
Of course, I was determined to leave all my worries behind, at least for this weekend. After all, I was in Hawaii. I didn’t even care that a certain violet-eyed boy was standing less than two feet from me, tapping furiously on his brand-new phone. He was probably texting Solange. Honestly, his old phone had seemed perfectly fine, but I guess rich boys liked to switch up their gadgets as much as they did their girls.
No. I’m not going to think about it.
Taking a deep breath, I smiled at Carlo as he walked over with our room keys, but my smile faded a bit when I saw the look on his face.
“What’s wrong?” I asked. He looked slightly upset.
“Uh, there was a bit of a mix-up with the rooms,” Carlo said apologetically.
Roman’s head snapped up. “What kind of mix-up?”
“Well, we have two suites and one smaller room—“
“Isn’t that what we’re supposed to have?” Zack pointed out.
“Let me finish,” Carlo said patiently. “We have the Royal Suite, which has two bedrooms. That’s the one you, I, Parker, and Adri are supposed to be staying in. Then we have a single room for Venice, per her request, and one for Roman and Maya.”
“What?!” Roman and I shouted at the same time.
“What do you mean, one for Roman and Maya?” I asked furiously.
“I did not agree to share a room with him!” The thought alone made me want to jump right back on the private jet to Valesca, Hawaii be damned.
“Yeah, I like I really want to share a room with you either!” Roman snapped. “You snore!”
I gasped. “I do not!”
“How do you know she snores?” Adriana asked curiously.
“I do not snore!” Then her question sunk in, and Roman and I gazed at each other, horrified, while the others eyed us with a mixture of suspicion, amusement, and cluelessness (the last one would be on Zack’s part).
“I guessed,” Roman muttered. “She looks like a snorer.”
“No, I don’t!” I stomped my foot childishly. I do not snore! Do I?
Carlo cleared his throat. “Well, once you’re both done acting like you’re on a kid’s playground, can we get back to the problem at hand?”
“I thought you already told us the problem. I—“ I jabbed a finger at myself. “Have to share a room with him.” Now I pointed at Roman.
“That was planned beforehand,” Carlo said dismissively. “I mean, it just makes sense. Parker and Adri are obviously together, Venice doesn’t want to room with anyone for some reason, and trust me, you do not want to room with Zack.” He didn’t mention the fact that he and Roman were still acting cool towards each other, which meant they wouldn’t be rooming together. “Anyway, you two are in the Orchid Suite. However, I thought that there would be more than one bedroom, but it turns out there, er, isn’t.”
The color slowly drained from my face while Venice burst into a fit of giggles beside me. I glared at her, shutting her up. While I was glad Venice was here, I am not happy about the fun she was having at my expense.
“I’m not sharing a bedroom with her,” Roman declared pompously.
“No, correction, I’m not sharing a bedroom with him.”
“You’re right, you’re sharing a bedroom together,” Carlo cut in calmly. “Sorry, I didn’t know.” He looked apologetic.
I was about to cry. “Carlo! You can’t! Why don’t we switch it around? I can trade places with Zack and stay with you instead!”
I wouldn’t mind. I knew Carlo wouldn’t do anything, and I’m always comfortable around him.
“Yeah, I bet you’d like that,” Roman sneered.
I ignored him. “Please?” I begged, nearly hyperventilating at the thought of sharing close quarters—or any quarters—with Roman.
Carlo scratched the back of his neck. “You have to ask Zack.”
I swiveled my head towards the blond, a pleading expression on my face.
“Sorry, My-My.” Zack looked guilty. “I can’t share a room with Roman, he gets really violent when he’s tired.”
“And so you’d rather I be there instead?” I near-yelled, drawing scandalized glances from the people around me.
“But you’re a girl, he can’t hit you,” Zack said cheerfully. “I’m a guy, he can hit me. Besides, it’s only for two nights!”
“That’s true, it won’t be that bad, honeybee,” Parker assured me.
I shook my head frantically. “V? Can I share with you?”
She didn’t meet my eyes. “I mean, you could, but I don’t know if there’s enough space. Besides, I don’t think you can sleep if you shared with me.”
Oh right. I may not snore, but Venice did. Loudly. Very loudly. The one time we attempted a sleepover I had to sneak into the guest room next door, and even then I could hear her through the walls.
“Parker? Adri?” I gazed at my two last remaining hopes with my best puppy-dog expression.
“Sorry, no can do. We have plans.” Adriana smirked, and the rest of us made gagging noises.
I don’t even want to know.
“Ok, guess that’s figured out. We’ll all get freshened up then meet for dinner before hitting the club,” Carlo announced. The Perrys’ birthday wasn’t until tomorrow, so tonight we were just relaxing until the festivities really started.
A low snarl erupted from Roman’s lips before he stomped off towards the elevator, the others staying a safe distance away.
“Carlo! How can you do this to me?” I hissed once they were out of earshot. “You know why I can’t stay in a room with him!”
Carlo smirked. “Au contraire, my friend, I know why you should stay in a room with him. We need to activate Phase One of Operation Revenge.”
My jaw dropped. “You did this on purpose!” I accused. “I bet you even told Zack to feed me that bull—“
“Regardless, it’ll be…eye-opening,” Carlo interrupted, smiling cheekily. “Shall I brief you on Phase One?”
“I didn’t even know there was a Phase One,” I groused. “Or an operation, period.”
“Don’t you remember our conversation from last week?”
“I thought you were joking!"
“I wasn’t. Anyway, Phase One is seduction.”
Now I was sure I heard wrong. “Excuse me?”
“Seduction,” Carlo repeated. “Although I suppose that’s not quite right, since seduction implies you will go through with the deed. I suppose you should just—tease him a little?”
“Carlo Tevasco!” My face was bright red by this point, whether from anger or embarrassment, I couldn’t tell. Probably a mixture of both. “I am not seducing him! Or teasing him! In fact, I am not talking to him, period.”
“It’s a bit hard to get revenge that way. You do want revenge, don’t you?”
“Well, I—you—it’s just—“ I closed my eyes, drawing in a deep, calming breath. “I’m sure there’s another way.”
“Listen, Maya, this is the perfect weekend to do that. I have it all planned out. When have I ever led you astray?”
“That time you made me eat an Almond Joy?”
“You need to get over that. I promise it will work.”
I bit my lip nervously. “How do you even know I can seduce—“
“Tease.”
“Fine. How do you even know I can tease him? I’m sure he’s not attracted to me that way. He hates me.”
Carlo shook his head slowly, like he was disappointed in me. I found that a bit unfair. If anything, I should be disappointed in him for setting me up like this.
“Maya, you sell yourself short. It doesn’t matter whether he likes you or not, he’s a guy. And trust me, he’ll be attracted to you once he sees you in your lingerie.”
I was horrified. “What lingerie? I didn’t pack lingerie!”
“The lingerie you bought with Adri all those weeks ago,” Carlo answered simply. “Might as well put it to good use. Don’t worry, I put it in your suitcase at the last minute.”
I turned even redder at the thought that Carlo had seen all the silky, lacy scraps of material Adriana practically forced on me.
“Oh, and don’t do anything until you get back to your suite after dinner and you’re ready to go to bed.”
I sighed, a headache setting in. “But I don’t know how to se—how to tease people.”
Carlo smiled smugly, obviously knowing he’d won. “Don’t worry. That’s what I’m here for.”
* * *
I couldn’t believe I’d let Carlo talk me into this. This was a very, very bad idea. The worst idea in the history of bad ideas. In fact, I think sunbathing topless in Moscow during the middle of winter would be a better idea than this.
“Maya! What’s taking you so damn long!” Roman pounded furiously on the door. “You’ve been in there forever!”
I forced myself to steady my voice before answering. “I’m a girl! Deal with it!”
I heard him utter a string of profanities but at least he stopped bothering me. I shouldn’t be feeling like this. After all, I was currently in what is possible the most beautiful bathroom in the world, complete with a steam shower, therapy pool (I’m not sure what that means, but I need to use it after dealing with Roman all night), a plunge tub, and views of the hotel gardens.
Dinner had been fine, once I got over my horror at not only having to share a bedroom but a bed with Roman (since both of us absolutely refused to sleep on the couch).
The problem started after dinner, ergo fifteen minutes ago, when I put on the darned lingerie (Carlo decided I should go for black).
I gulped, staring at myself in the mirror. I couldn’t believe people actually wore this stuff. The “lingerie” looked more like a very, very tiny dress or a long top, with a tied satin ribbon at the bust. Its straps were dental-floss-thin, and the front dipped low to reveal an unnerving amount of cleavage, pushed up by the dress/top’s built-in bra. The bra area itself and the “skirt,” which is just a little ruffled flounce of material that barely covered my decent parts, were made of soft tulle. The rest of the lingerie was sheer.
Yep, that’s right. As in see-through, for the most part. To make matters worse, the back dipped so low as to be indecent, which meant I was barely getting any coverage no matter how you looked at it.
In my opinion, I looked totally slutty.
I gulped, lunging towards my makeup bag and frantically dialing Carlo’s phone. He answered on the first ring.
“You have to go through with it,” he said before I had a chance to speak.
I glowered at my cell. “I didn’t even say anything.” My shoulders slumped. “Seriously, I can’t do this. I look like a hooker!”
“You are not a hooker, you’re a…seductress.”
“Who looks like a hooker.”
“Come on, remember what I taught you earlier? Breathe, be confident, you’ll do fine.” He paused. “How long have you been in the bathroom?”
I blushed. “None of your business. Can we put this off for another night?”
“No. I have another plan for tomorrow night.”
I groaned, seriously regretting confiding in him. Who knew Carlo could be so diabolical?
After ten more minutes, he finally convinced me to finish Phase One. At least, I hoped I could finish it. Taking a deep breath, I wiped my sweaty palms on a guest towel and covered myself with a short black satin robe.
I slowly turned the doorknob and stepped out into the bedroom, rearranging my face into what I hoped was a seductive expression.
Roman wasn’t there.
I frowned. Crap. Now what? Maybe he was in the outer suite. When I went to check though, he wasn’t there either.
Great. I pouted, going back into the bedroom. Even though I wasn’t all that happy about this part of the plan, I was upset I’d psyched myself up for nothing. I didn’t even know if he’d be coming back tonight.
Slightly disappointed at the thought, I sighed, running a hand through my hair. I’d curled it before dinner, but the curls had loosened into big, natural waves after a few hours.
Well, since Roman wasn’t here, Carlo couldn’t blame me for not trying. At least now, I could get out of my not-so-comfortable lingerie.
I slipped out of my robe and hung it on its hook in the bathroom, then re-entered the bedroom and bent over to fish some PJs out of the bottom drawer.
“What are you doing?”
I froze. The voice was so familiar. I knew it was him. After all, who else could it be? But he sounded different, more…hoarse? I’m not even sure.
Gulping audibly, I slowly turned around, my heart pounding so hard it felt like it was going to batter its way straight out my chest.
Roman was standing in the doorway, wearing a pair of low-slung jeans and a soft, well-worn gray T-shirt.
I gulped again, trying not to drool over his muscular arms and broad shoulders. This was the first time and hopefully last time I see him in an outfit like that, because if this turns into a regular occurrence, I might go into cardiac arrest.
It should be illegal for someone to look that good, especially if their insides didn’t match.
“What do you mean?” My voice high-pitched and squeaky, not a seductress’ voice at all. I quickly tried to compose myself. “I was just changing, that’s all.” I nudged the drawer closed with my leg. I guess I was stuck in this outfit for the rest of the night.
Roman’s gaze swept over me, making my skin tingle as warmth raced through me. Every area his eyes rested on burned pleasantly. There was a strange expression on his face as he took me in.
“You’re going to sleep in that?”
Be cool. Be confident. “Of course.” I ran my hand through my hair the way they did in movies—at least, I hoped I did it like that—tousling it a bit, and walked slowly over to him.
I saw his breath hitch a little as I neared, giving me the confidence booster I needed. “Will that be a problem?” I peered up at him through my lashes in my best attempt at a smoldering look.
Apparently it worked, because when I trailed a finger down his chest, I could feel his heart beating wildly. I hid a smirk. I was beginning to enjoy this.
“What are you doing?”
Wow, he sounds like a broken record.
“I’m just talking to you,” I said innocently, trailing my hand lower until it rested on his rock-hard abs. Yeah, I was definitely enjoying this too much.
Who knew abs could cause a girl’s mood to do a total one-eighty in two minutes?
Roman’s hand immediately snapped up to grip my wrist before it could go any lower, not that I’d been planning on going any lower. A girl had to draw the line somewhere.
“You know, a few hours ago you couldn’t stand me. And now you’re…trying to seduce me?” His voice was suspicious.
Oh, darn it. Why did he have to turn smart all of a sudden? Ok, time to improvise.
I closed the distance between us, until we were pressed up against each other, trying to ignore the explosion of tingles that went off in my own body. “Is it working?” I breathed, running my hands up his arms. My mouth dried at the feel of smooth skin covering rock-hard muscles.
Holy crap, he had a good body. I mean, I always knew he did, but it was one thing to see it and quite another to feel it.
Ugh, now I feel like the biggest perv on the planet, albeit a happy one.
Roman’s eyes darkened, but it wasn’t from anger, I soon realized. It was from lust. I gulped for the third time tonight. The look on his face scared me a little—I was so not used to guys lusting after me, and no, Parker’s perverted jokes don’t count—but it also excited me a bit.
To be honest, the idea that I could do that to someone like Roman gave me a heady rush, but I hoped I wasn’t in over my head. Carlo had told me to use my judgment as to when to stop, assuring me that Roman wouldn’t push me into doing anything I didn’t want.
Judging from the way he was looking at me right now, though, I wouldn’t be too sure about that. He was eyeing me the way a starving man would eye a juicy steak.
“Oh, it’s definitely working,” he growled, lowering his head until we were mere inches apart.
I gasped as he gripped my hips and pressed me even closer. He was right. It was working. I could, um, feel it.
My face turned bright red, and I started to sweat nervously. I go back to my earlier point. This was a bad idea. What the hell am I supposed to do now?
“Was this the lingerie you bought earlier?” Roman whispered, toying with one of the straps. They were so thin and he was so strong I was afraid it would snap at any moment.
As if he heard my inner panic, he let go of the strap, but I barely had time to breathe a sigh of relief before he started caressing the bare skin on my shoulders, sending my heart into overdrive. I was glad he was holding me, because I would’ve collapsed right then and there.
Screw the operation. I needed to get away from him. Now.
The only problem being, my feet didn’t exactly want to move.
“What’s wrong?” Roman moved his head so it hovered just above the sensitive spot behind my ear. I instinctively grasped his shoulder, my nails digging into his skin. He didn’t seem to notice. “You’re usually not so quiet.” When he spoke, he lips brushed my skin, so gently I could barely feel it, only I did, and it was causing some very strange and unwanted reactions in me.
I needed to take back control.
Closing my eyes, I tried to focus, sifting through Carlo’s advice until I found a suitable one.
“Well,” I murmured, pulling away and taking several slow steps back while keeping my eyes trained on his. I stopped when I felt the bed hit the backs of my thighs, and I sat down, leaning back so I was propped up on my elbows. I made sure to keep my legs crossed. Flashing him was not part of the plan. “Talking isn’t high on my list of things to do right now.”
“Really?” Roman’s eyes darkened even more. “Funny, we agree on something for once.”
Then, he did something that totally shocked me. He started taking off his top.
My jaw dropped. Uh-oh. “Wh-what are you doing?” In my panic, I completely forgot about my seductress voice.
“Since you’ve changed into your…outfit for the night—“ Roman tossed his shirt carelessly on the floor, and I nearly drooled when his lean, muscled torso came into view. It was every bit as beautiful as the one other time I’d seen him shirtless, after I fell asleep in his room. “—I figured I should do the same.” He gave me a wolfish smile as he began unbuttoning his jeans. “Did I forget to mention I sleep in my boxers?”
The room suddenly turned into a sauna. “I believe so,” I croaked, silently cursing Carlo with all my might. This was all his—oh my. Roman stepped out of his jeans. The temperature rose another ten degrees, at least.
He eyed me hungrily, and a swarm of butterflies immediately invaded my stomach. I unconsciously licked my lips.
Bad move.
Before I even knew what happened, Roman was on the bed. More specifically, he was on top of me on the bed, his legs straddling my hips. The only thing that kept the entire length of our bodies from pressing against each other was the fact he had propped himself up with his hands.
My breathing became shallow, even as I dimly realized the tables had totally turned. I wasn’t teasing him, it was more like he was teasing me.
Although is it still considered teasing when he’s about to kiss me?
As I lay there frozen, unsure what to do, his mouth began its descent to cover mine. The majority of me was yelling abort! Abort! but there was another, shameful part of me that wanted the kiss to happen.
Then, in what had to be either my stupidest or smartest move of the night, I blurted out, “Thank you.”
Roman froze, his face so close to mine I could count all the individual gold flecks in his eyes. “Thank you?” His voice was strangled.
“Yeah.” I fought to retain my calm. “I wanted to see the effect this lingerie has on the opposite sex—practice and all—so thanks for helping me out.” I shrugged to the best of my ability, considering I was pinned down on the bed.
Confusion clouded his features. “Practice for what?”
I said the first thing I could think of. “For when I wear this for Carlo later.” The minute the words left my mouth, I wanted to hit my head against the wall. Wow, I just keep digging myself into deeper holes.
And just like that, the passionate, lustful Roman was gone, replaced by one I knew so well. Only, not really, because even though he roughly pushed himself off me, he wasn’t scowling at me like I expected him to. Instead, his face was a stony mask and completely unreadable.
“Glad I could help,” he finally said coolly.
I swallowed, sitting up straight and involuntarily grabbing a fistful of the comforter in my hand. This wasn’t what I expected. Angry Roman, I could handle. But this one, the cold, detached one? I had no clue how to handle him.
He walked over to the other side of the bed and grabbed a pillow off of it.
“What are you doing?” I asked, confused.
“I’m sleeping in the living room tonight.” Roman turned his back to her. “Maybe that way you could pretend Carlo’s sleeping next to you later.”
I watched, slightly stunned, as he disappeared into the living room.
If I didn’t know better, I would’ve sworn he was hurt.
I should probably feel triumphant right now, but the only thing I felt was lost.
* * *
“I want to call it off.”
“What are you talking about?” Carlo kept his voice low as we stepped out of the open-air Jeep. “According to what you told me, you did well last night. Better than I expected, really.” He looked like he was trying not to laugh.
I frowned at him. “Thanks,” I said sarcastically. “Honestly, Carlo, this whole getting revenge thing isn’t me. I can’t handle another night like last night.”
“You don’t need to,” he said. “We finished phase one. We need to move on phase two.”
I was curious despite myself. “Which is?”
“Jealousy, of course,” he answered flippantly.
I shook my head frantically. “No, we can’t. It’s—“
“Shh.” Carlo shushed me as we stopped into a clearing. I gasped at the sight before me, all thoughts of the plan flying away for the moment.
Wow. We had given Zack his gifts earlier, and luckily, he had loved the photo canvas I’d given him, with a collage of his favorite photos that he’d taken (I had to thank Adriana for helping me out with that one).
Now, it was time for the real celebration for the twins: a giant carnival-style party.
As I took in the spectacle in front of me, I couldn’t help but wonder how much time and money went into planning this party. I also couldn’t believe how many famous people the twins were friends with, and how many of those famous people flew all the way to Hawaii to celebrate two high schoolers’ birthday.
Fortunately, I didn’t see any other Valescans, but I did spot several Victoria’s Secret supermodels, professional athletes, movie stars, and singers, including a certain high-profile rap star mogul and his equally high-profile R&B songstress wife. Everyone was standing in the clearing with big smiles on their faces, while Parker and Carlo untied the blindfolds covering Adriana’s and Zack’s eyes.
The blindfolds fell away, and for once, I saw shock cross Adriana’s face as she stared at the giant carnival grounds in front of her. There was a Ferris wheel, merry-go-rounds, the whole shebang, and above all that was a giant sign that spelled out HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ZACK AND ADRI in blinking neon lights.
“Surprise!” all the guests shouted.
“What?” Adri exclaimed, clapping a hand over her mouth. “No way!”
As everyone went to say happy birthday to the twins, I lingered behind, grinning at the sight of their happiness. Carlo told me earlier that Adriana was had been a huge fan of carnivals as a child, but her parents never let her go because they thought carnivals were too “low class.”
“You guys are really good friends,” I murmured, too starstruck to even approach some of my favorite celebrities, who were milling around like regular people. I narrowed my eyes at Carlo. “But don’t think I’m changing my mind about the plan.”
He sighed. “Maya, when will you learn to trust me?”
“I do trust you, I just don’t like hurting people.”
“Hasn’t he hurt you enough?”
I fell into silence. It was true. Roman had hurt me a lot, but did I really want to stoop to his level?
“Come on,” Carlo said quickly. “We can talk about this later, ok? Let’s just go enjoy ourselves for the time being.”
I breathed a sigh of relief. “Ok,” I agreed happily.
For the next few hours, I forgot about all my worries as I ran around the carnival grounds like I was a child again. They even had popcorn and cotton candy and everything! After a while, it didn’t even seem all that strange to share the Ferris wheel with one of the stars from a hit vampire-themed TV series. Let me tell you, he is even hotter in person.
In fact, there were so many people I managed to avoid Roman the entire night. Actually, even if I didn’t try to avoid him, he probably would’ve avoided me the way he had all day. Every time I came within five feet of him, he just moved away. Which was fine by me.
Really.
Soon, though, the rides stopped and the carnival grounds turned into a giant dance floor. The DJ from Iceland had been playing music all night long, but now he segued into a series of slow songs, and everyone paired up to sway to the music.
Well, everyone except Zack and Venice, who were doing some sort of strange interpretive dance mixed with the flamenco mixed with...hip-hop? I'm not sure, but needless to say, everyone was giving them a wide berth.
I sat down on one of the benches, watching the couples wistfully. The whole scene was so romantic, it actually made me wish I had a boyfriend.
Unwillingly, I felt my gaze slip to Roman, who was of course surrounded by a gaggle of young models and actresses near the merry-go-round. I blushed as we locked eyes for a second, and a weird look crossed his face before he turned away, totally ignoring me.
A moment later, he broke away from the group to lead a leggy blonde onto the makeshift dance floor.
I frowned. Well, he seemed to be having fun. Anger suddenly surged through me. Why did he get to have all the fun? I should be out there flirting too! I didn’t know why I was still feeling so bummed about last night. Surely I must’ve imagined the hurt look on his face.
Devils don’t have feelings.
“Excuse me, would you like to dance?” A smooth British accent cut into my thoughts.
I looked up, my breath catching when I saw the very handsome, very famous face of Oliver staring down at me. Known only by his first name, Oliver had recently been named as the “male model of the decade” by Vogue. Even in person, he looked photoshopped.
“You want a dance? With me?” I squeaked, pointing to myself.
He nodded, giving me a dazzling smile no girl could resist. “Only if you would like to, of course.”
Oh, would I look to!
I happily accepted, feeling better now that I wasn’t sitting by myself like some loser while Roman was flirting with everything in a skirt.
Oliver led me to the middle of the dance floor, near where Roman and the blonde were dancing. He gently grasped one of my hands in his while his other arm slipped around my waist.
Just then, Edwin McCain’s classic “I’ll Be” came on, and I sighed, wishing I was with someone I loved. It was the ultimate romantic song, and while Oliver was hot and all, it would’ve been so much better if I was dancing with my boyfriend. If I had one, that is.
“What’s wrong?” Oliver murmured, his intense blue eyes boring into mine and making me a bit weak in the knees.
Did the boy even know the effect his looks had on people? Seriously, he was almost as good-looking at the Scions. In fact, he might even be on par with them. It’s not fair.
“Nothing,” I lied, watching Roman and the blonde out of the corner of my eye. Gosh, they looked like they were glued together! Feeling disgruntled, I smiled at Oliver and pulled my hand out of his grasp to wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him closer.
He looked surprised but not displeased as he rested his hands on my hips. “Good. I don’t want any unhappiness to mar that beautiful face of yours,” he murmured.
Ok, so that was cheesy as hell, but he was hot and seemed nice enough, so I’ll give him a pass. “Thanks."
I rested my chin on his shoulder, and as we turned, I locked eyes with Roman again. He was glaring in my direction with a very angry look on his face.
What was his problem now?
Choosing to ignore him, I averted my gaze, then stiffened as I felt Oliver’s hands slip lower to a rather inappropriate part of my body. Hoping it was an accident, I moved it back up to my hips, where it stayed for about ten seconds. Then it moved back down.
“I don’t think I’m feeling well. I should go sit down,” I said, highly uncomfortable now.
He frowned down at me. “Why? We’re just getting started.”
I shook my head. “No, really, I should go,” I insisted, but Oliver wasn’t listening.
He was looking at something over my head, a rather wicked smile on his face. “Amazing. I believe he really minds this time.”
I frowned. “What are you talking about?”
Instead of answering me, Oliver grabbed my face and crushed his lips against mine. I let out a muffled squeal of surprise, too shocked to do anything for a moment. I was just about to push him off when I felt someone yank him away from me.
I stumbled back a bit, then gasped as Roman threw Oliver to the ground and punched him in the face. Blood spurted from the male model’s nose and dripped down onto his pristine white shirt.
“Roman! What the hell are you doing?” I screamed, while the people around me stopped what they were doing to stare at the spectacle in front of them.
Roman ignored me as he went to punch Oliver again.
Oliver managed to roll away at the last second and he stumbled to his feet, wiping some of the blood from his face. “Bloody hell, that hurt,” he muttered.
“Yeah, well, it’s going to hurt a lot more when I’m through with you,” Roman growled, a dangerous expression on his face.
“Oh yeah? Let’s see you try then,” Oliver taunted.
I groaned. Did he want to die?
I looked around frantically, hoping to spot Carlo, Parker, anyone, but I couldn’t find my friends anywhere. Even Venice and Zack were gone. None of the other party guests seemed willing to help. In fact, some of them were recording the fight on their phones. I guess celebrities weren’t much better than teenagers after all.
“Stop!” I shouted as Roman and Oliver continued to fight each other. I was nearly crying in frustration.
Finally, I couldn’t take it anymore. Even though I knew it was a stupid move, I ran towards them and managed to yank them apart.
“Stop fighting! Do you guys know how stupid you’re acting right now?” I demanded angrily.
Roman glared at me, his eyes ablaze. “I can’t believe this,” he hissed, his face a mottled red as he trained his gaze on my hand, which was currently pressed against Oliver’s chest to hold him back. “You’re taking his side?”
“I’m not taking anyone’s side!” I cried exasperatedly. “I just don’t want you to fight anymore!”
“Yeah? How would Carlo feel about you messing around with another boy behind his back? Again?” Roman sneered, obviously referring to our little moment last night.
I flushed. I couldn’t believe he was bringing this up right now. “That’s our business,” I hissed.
“Yeah, mate, you need to calm down,” Oliver said. “It’s not my fault she’s more into me than you.”
That seemed to make Roman snap all over again. I swore I saw his blood pressure rise as he lunged towards us to take another swing at Oliver.
“Stop!” I screamed, trying to block him. I did, in a way.
The only problem was, the punch Roman intended for Oliver ended up hitting me instead, and let me tell you, he hadn’t been holding back at all.
I managed to see horror cross everyone’s faces before I blacked out.