OLIVIA LAMINATED HER SHOULDERS WITH SPF 85; THEN, confident every square inch of her skin was adequately protected from the bright September sun, she pulled a wide-brimmed hat over her short curls and snuggled back into the chaise longue.
Jezebel sniffed the air disapprovingly. “What’s the point of sunbathing if you wear all that crap?”
Olivia tightened the halter straps on her cherry-print bikini top. “I like the way the sun feels.”
“See, Jez,” Amber said, “I’m not wearing any sunscreen. You know why? Because I noticed when I watched The Warriors that the women were all amazingly tan.” She had reclined the lounge so it was completely flat and lay on her stomach to work on her back tan. “As a serious actress,” Amber continued, turning her head toward them, “I think it’s important to fully embrace my character.”
Behind her enormous sunglasses, Olivia rolled her eyes. “As a serious actress,” she said, effortlessly mimicking Amber’s tone, “I think it’s important to fully protect my skin so I don’t look like a shriveled old prune by the time I’m thirty.”
Amber lay on her stomach for a moment longer; then, without a word, she reached out and dragged over a large umbrella, engulfing her lounge chair in its shadow.
“It’s good to have priorities,” Jezebel said, picking up a fashion mag.
They sunbathed in silence while Peanut prepped some nibbles in the kitchen. The conversation Olivia had overheard between Amber and Jezebel was still fresh in her mind, and she realized this might be the perfect time to do some digging.
“Can you believe,” Olivia began in an offhand manner, “it’s only been like four days since Ronny was killed?”
“Three and a half,” Jezebel said, flipping through an article on fall makeup trends.
“Are you trying to ruin my Saturday?” Amber asked.
“It just feels so strange,” Olivia continued, undaunted. “Tuesday night when we all went to sleep, we never imagined that someone we knew would be dead the next day.”
“I didn’t know him,” Amber said.
Out of the corner of her eye, Olivia saw Jezebel and Amber exchange a glance. What secret were they hiding?
“But I thought,” Olivia said, pushing herself to a sitting position, “Ronny and Rex knew each other? I heard—”
“Snacks!” Peanut trundled out through the patio door, her arms laden with bowls and plates.
Perfect timing as always, Peanut.
Peanut flicked the screen closed with her big toe and waddled over to the outdoor table. “It’s Mom and Dad’s new health-food line,” she said, laying out the spread. “Rhubarb oatmeal bars, veggie bacon-wrapped Tofurky skewers, savory quinoa cakes, and kale chips.”
Olivia scanned the plates of organic, vegan, gluten-free snacks that were the staples of Mr. and Mrs. Dumbrowski’s fresh-food-delivery empire, and was secretly thankful she had half a pack of crumb cakes squirreled away in her bag.
Amber leaned over the table and wrinkled her nose. “It looks like dog food. Can’t we order a pizza or something?”
Peanut’s face fell. “Oh, I . . .” Olivia might worry about the never-ending string of bizarre diets Peanut’s mom inflicted on her only daughter, but Peanut was proud of her parents’ business.
“I think it looks fantastic.” Olivia picked up a fake-bacon-and-Tofurky skewer and took an enthusiastic bite. “Mmmm.” She plastered a smile on her face as she forced herself to chew.
“Why not?” Jezebel grabbed a rhubarb bar, but Amber turned up her nose.
“At least the boys will be here soon,” she said.
Peanut caught her breath. “The boys?”
“Of course.” Amber readjusted her bandeau top. “What’s a pool party without boys?”
“Pleasant?” Jezebel said.
Peanut stared at the kale chip in her hand, then gently laid it on a napkin. She turned to the patio door and fussed with her swimsuit in the reflection, pulling at the retro polka-dot one-piece. “I wish you’d told me you’d invited them.” Her voice cracked. “I didn’t even put on makeup.”
“Lesson learned,” Amber said. “You should always put on makeup.”
Olivia stood behind Peanut and looped her arms around her waist, squeezing her tight. “You look amazing. Kyle’s going to swallow his tongue when he sees you.”
Peanut flashed Olivia a clandestine smile. “Thank you,” she said under her breath.
Amber returned to her shaded lounge chair and propped it into an upright position. “Kyle’s got his eye on some junior at St. Anne’s, so you might as well let it go, PeaPea.”
Peanut shook herself free of Olivia’s embrace and raced inside the house without a word.
“Really, Amber?” Olivia was tired of seeing Amber stomp on Peanut’s dreams. “Could you be a little less tactful?”
“I’m trying to help her,” Amber said. “Better she gets it into her head now that Kyle’s not interested. So pathetic to see your friend chasing after a boy who doesn’t give a shit about her, don’t you think?”
There was something sly in Amber’s tone that made Olivia question whether she was talking about Peanut and Kyle or Olivia and Donté.
“Same way I feel when I see my friend dating a douchebag,” Olivia countered. “Unless they deserve it.”
“What are you—”
“Cannonball!”
Rex tore around the side of the house in his swim trunks and leaped into the pool, hugging his knees to his chin.
Water exploded from the pool, splattering in all directions from Rex’s impact and dousing Amber from head to toe.
“Asshole!” Amber screamed the moment Rex’s head broke the surface of the water. “Look what you did.”
Rex tossed his hair out of his face and freestyled to the side of the pool. “What? You’re in a swimsuit. Aren’t swimsuits supposed to get wet?”
“Swimsuits, yes,” Amber growled. “Hair and makeup? No.”
“Lame.” Rex hauled himself out of the pool as Kyle and Tyler dragged a cooler through the sliding door.
“Brew!” Rex called out. “Stat.”
Tyler tossed a can to Rex, who caught it midair like a center fielder.
Before he could crack it open, Amber bogarted the beer from his hand. “Why yes, thank you. I’d love one.” She swiveled her hips as she returned to her lounge chair.
“You could have asked,” Rex sneered.
“You could have offered,” Amber said, matching his tone.
Aha, the bickering had begun. “I’m going to check on Peanut,” Olivia said, and quickly slipped into the house.
The bathroom door was closed, but Olivia could hear the gentle sobbing from inside. She knocked lightly. “Peanut? You okay?”
“Yeah!” Peanut said, so overly perky it was clearly an act. “I’m fine. Just, um, fixing my makeup.”
“You should come back out,” Olivia said. “The boys are here and . . .” Olivia paused, grasping for a ploy that might get Peanut to rejoin the party. She had to start showing Amber that the bitchy comments didn’t bother her, or Amber would never let up.
“And?” Peanut prodded.
Olivia swallowed. “And Kyle was asking where you were.” Okay, it was a lie, but just the white kind. The good kind.
“I’ll be out in a minute,” Peanut said after a pause.
It wasn’t always a grand DGM gesture that made a difference. Sometimes, it was the small things. Olivia smiled to herself as she padded down the hallway in her bare feet, but she stopped in her tracks as she neared the family room.
“He’s dead,” Rex said. “Nothing we can do about it now.”
Olivia flattened herself against the wall. Was he talking about Ronny?
“This had better be worth it,” Amber whispered. “I want DGM fubarred, got it?”
“Calm down,” Rex said, using that silky-smooth voice that always reminded Olivia of a serial killer.
“What did that guy have on you anyway?” Amber asked, slyness creeping into her tone.
“N-nothing,” Rex stuttered. Only Rex never stuttered, was never unsure of himself for a second. Whatever Ronny knew about Rex must have been epically damaging.
“You sure about that?”
“It doesn’t matter now,” Rex said through clenched teeth. Then his voice relaxed. “You talk to Jezebel about Tuesday night?”
“She’s on board,” Amber said. “And no, I didn’t tell her why.”
“Good.”
“But I swear to God,” Amber said, her voice steely, “if anyone finds out I was with Ronny that day, I’ll tell them—”
“Babe,” Rex said through a laugh. “I’ve got everything under control.”
“You’d better,” Amber pouted.
“Listen.” Rex dropped his voice and Olivia couldn’t hear what he said. She crept to the edge of the living room and caught the last few words. “We’ll make sure DGM goes down for Ronny’s murder. I promise.”
Thirty seconds of slobbering sounds indicated that an Amber–Rex make-out session was in full swing. Olivia was beginning to wonder how long she’d be trapped there when the patio door abruptly slid open, and Olivia heard two sets of flip-flops snapping onto the concrete outside.
She stood in the hallway, her mind racing. Amber was with Ronny the day he was killed. Rex was plotting to make sure that DGM went down for Ronny’s murder. And Rex’s connection to Ronny made him incredibly nervous.
Was it enough to kill for? Olivia wasn’t sure. Rex and Amber had been raised with unlimited money and freedom—they always got what they wanted when they wanted it, and that kind of arrogance and entitlement could possibly lead them to murder. A plot to frame DGM might be a stretch, but it was possible, especially if it got Ronny out of the way in the process.
Olivia would have to keep her eyes and ears open when it came to Amber and Rex. If they did kill Ronny, there must be proof, and if she could find it, she’d exonerate DGM entirely. She cringed at the idea of buttering up Rex, and maintaining her friendship with Amber was proving more and more difficult.
She’d just have to figure out a way.
