The after-party was well and truly underway by the time Wes and I arrived. It was in the same clearing in the woods where Luther had held his last party, and tonight there were huge white lanterns strung between the trees that surrounded the wide-open space, and a live band was blasting out a tune on the other side of the dancing crowd.
Most of the students had changed out of their formal wear, but Wes and I were still dressed in our outfits from the ball. Wes was in his shiny black tuxedo, and I was in my flowing white dress. I hesitated at the edge of the clearing as I watched everyone dancing and having fun. I didn’t know if I could pretend I was okay when I so clearly was not. It felt like everyone here would be able to see my heartbreak as plainly as if it were written in permanent marker across my face.
Wes gave my hand a tight squeeze. “Let’s go get some drinks.”
“Uh, sure.” I still wasn’t certain if I wanted to stay at the party, but if I was, a little liquid courage was probably going to be necessary.
His hand dropped from mine as he started into the party, but I didn’t move to follow him right away. Instead, I paused as I watched him disappear into the crowd. The small amount of confidence I’d had in my reasons for coming here was slipping away. I’d thought it might offer a brief distraction and maybe I’d be able to talk to Noah and ask him why all this had happened. The latter was enough to make me shrink back into the safety of the trees. Now that I was here, Noah was the last person I wanted to see.
I lurched forward as someone knocked their shoulder into mine, and I stumbled as I tried to stay on my feet. Thankfully, I managed to avoid falling to the ground and making my dress any dirtier than it already was.
“Oops, I didn’t see you there, Charity.” I recognized Veronica’s high-pitched voice immediately. Her words were met with cackling laughter from her friends. “Although, I guess we can’t call you that now we know you’re actually Isobel LaFleur.”
How did she know already? Maybe she’d seen us dancing together. If Matthew was as well-known as Wes had suggested, our dance might have been enough to alert the entire school.
As I righted myself, I turned to face Veronica. The scrap of clothing she was wearing was barely long enough to cover her underwear. She had to be freezing. Not many girls would have been brave enough to wear a dress like that, but she had the build of a model and could pretty much wear anything. Even now I could see several guys drooling as they watched her. It didn’t matter how hot she was though; her looks could never wipe away the viciousness that was always present in her eyes. They were a little hazy tonight. Probably from one too many drinks.
“Imagine my shock when your father introduced himself to my parents tonight and I overheard him talking about you,” she continued. “But don’t think that changes anything. Just because your daddy happens to have money doesn’t mean you’re one of us. Once a charity case, always a charity case. We all know you don’t belong in this school.”
It was hard to argue with that. Ever since I’d arrived at Weybridge Academy, I’d felt out of place. I’d never be one of them, and I didn’t want to be. Certainly not if it meant becoming anything like Veronica. It seemed Wes had underestimated her. Finding out who my father was hadn’t dampened her vendetta against me. It seemed to have reignited it.
“This only serves to prove what a fraud you really are,” she continued. “First you lie about your mother because you’re embarrassed by her. Next you lie about your father.”
She lifted her hand and tapped her fingers on her cheek, an exaggerated look of thoughtfulness covering her face. “But why would you lie about such a thing?” she wondered out loud. “Perhaps you were trying to keep Noah from finding out. Understandable, given the history between your two families. Still, I don’t think he’ll be very happy to hear he was being manipulated again.”
My breath caught in my throat. Was Veronica talking about the feud Noah had mentioned? What did she know about it all? I felt the desperate urge to ask her, but Veronica was the last person I wanted answers from, and I refused to admit my ignorance to her. Instead, I gritted my teeth. “I didn’t manipulate anyone.”
She glanced down at her nails, ignoring my response as she inspected her manicure like she was suddenly bored by the whole conversation. “Anyway, I’m sure it won’t be long before Noah learns the truth and breaks up with you. Then everything will return to the way it should be.”
My eyes widened with surprise. She didn’t already know Noah had broken up with me? How was that even possible? She had to have seen him when he’d returned to the ball. If she didn’t know the truth, I was hardly about to enlighten her. I couldn’t bear to witness the satisfaction I knew would light up her cruel features.
“Are you done, Veronica?” I asked.
She lifted her eyes to meet mine, slowly lowering her hand back to her side. “It depends. Are you done lying to everyone?”
The girls surrounding her all shared knowing smiles. They were all looking at me like they’d won. And I had to wonder if they had. Would everyone else at school share their opinion? Was I about to be outcast yet again simply because I hadn’t shared private details about my family?
“There you are!” Anna gasped, looping her arm through mine. I hadn’t seen her coming, but I couldn’t have been happier she was here. I didn’t tend to shy away from confrontations with Victoria, but I was feeling too broken to handle her right now. “We’ve been waiting for you to get here.”
Anna was grinning at me, but when she turned and saw Veronica standing across from us, her nose scrunched like she’d just been hit by a foul smell. “Geez, Veronica, did your dress shrink in the wash or something? Seriously, you’ve got to leave some mystery for the guys.”
Veronica didn’t look even slightly bothered by Anna’s comment. “At least my clothes are clean.” Her eyes dipped to the mud staining the bottom of my white dress. “I guess you can take a peasant out of the village, but you can’t turn her into a princess.”
She didn’t give us an opportunity to respond as she turned on her heel and disappeared into the crowd with her friends trailing behind her. Anna growled and started after her, but I grabbed her arm, pulling her back.
“She’s not worth it.”
Anna let out a slow breath and nodded. “You’re right. We’ll go get drinks and let karma deal with Veronica.” She lifted her head to the sky. “Karma, if you’re listening, I’m pretty sure I saw some poison ivy on the path here tonight. If you could help Veronica trip into it, I’d really appreciate that.” She grinned as she turned to me. “Just think, she’s got all that exposed skin…”
I shook my head at my friend. “That’s brutal, even for you.”
“Eh, she deserves it.”
Anna took my hand and pulled me into the party. We wound our way through the crowd of dancing students to the other side of the forest clearing. There was a long drinks table set up near the makeshift dance floor, where Cress and Sawyer laughed as they drank shots.
Wes was there too, holding two bottles of beer. He turned as we approached and smiled as he offered me one of the bottles. “I was just coming back to find you. You like beer, right?”
“This is great, thanks.” I took the beer, but I didn’t take a sip. My stomach was swirling uneasily and I wasn’t sure if beer was going to help. Ever since my run-in with Veronica, a wave of nerves had hit me, and I felt kind of sick.
“You’re here!” Cress squealed, gathering me in a hug as she found me standing behind her. She was smiling so brightly, but the smile fell from her lips when she took a good look at me. “You look upset. Why do you look upset?”
I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat. I thought I was holding myself together quite well, considering. But Cress somehow seemed to sense something was off. I didn’t know what to say, and it felt especially hard when my friends were all looking at me, waiting expectantly. I didn’t think I could utter the words without breaking down, and that was the last thing I needed right now. All I wanted was to forget. So, I stole the shot glass out of Cress’s hand and knocked it back.
The liquor burned as it made its way down my throat, and I scrunched my eyes as I shuddered. I wasn’t a big fan of tequila, and I chased the shot with a sip of my beer.
When I opened my eyes again, I caught Cress wincing. “That bad, huh?” she asked.
“It must be something terrible,” Sawyer added. “She didn’t even have salt or lime with her shot.”
“I don’t want to talk about it,” I said. “At least, not right now. Let’s just focus on having fun.”
Nobody pushed me to explain, and Sawyer happily handed me another shot. “Well, if you want fun, you’re going to need another one of these.”
I took the drink without complaint before dragging the girls onto the dance floor. If they had been worried about me before, they would only be more concerned now. I was absolutely terrible at dancing and normally did anything I could to avoid being dragged onto the dance floor. But tonight, dancing was the perfect escape. All I cared about was numbing the pain that radiated through me and fogging my brain so I could stop thinking about the boy who broke my heart.
I danced with the girls for song after song. And for a little while, I was able to forget why I was so damn miserable. But the pain never totally went away. My body grew tired, and my blood started to cool. The alcohol no longer ran hot through my veins, and the ache in my heart returned with a vengeance.
When it grew too much to bear, I left the girls on the dance floor in search of another drink. I wandered through the dancing crowd to the drinks table but hesitated when I reached it. As much as I wanted to numb the pain once more, I wasn’t sure alcohol was the answer.
“You okay there, newbie?” I looked up at Luther standing beside me. My body stiffened. Where Luther was, Noah wasn’t usually too far behind.
“I’m fine. Just searching for a drink.” I gave him a tight smile, trying to hide the tension I was feeling.
“You don’t look like you’re fine,” he said. “Then again, neither does Noah.”
I tried to ignore the way my heart leaped and then plummeted at his mention of Noah. “Oh, I didn’t realize he was here.”
Despite the resolve I’d felt when I’d told Wes we should come to the party, I’d been doing my best not to look for Noah tonight. It wasn’t easy, and I still found myself glancing at people on the dance floor or by the drinks table. My heart would skip a beat when I thought I saw him, but so far, there was no real sign of him.
“He’s not here,” Luther replied. “He refused to come tonight and went back to his room after the ball finished.”
I wasn’t sure whether to feel relieved by this or not. I’d been feeling sick to my stomach all night at the thought of seeing Noah, but there was still a desire to confront him growing inside me. Another part of me just desperately missed him.
“What happened between you two tonight?” he asked. “Because Noah was like a zombie all evening. You should have seen the way he flinched when I mentioned you. He refused to talk to me at the ball. He said it wasn’t the time, but I know something happened.”
I reached down and plucked the first drink my hand came across out of the ice bucket. I didn’t intend on drinking it. I just wanted a reason to leave. “I’ve got to go. I’m sure you can talk to him about it.”
I turned away, but Luther reached out and lightly grabbed my arm, stopping me. “Noah really likes you, Isobel. I’ve never seen him like this about anyone, or anything. I know it was probably a lot to see Veronica on his arm tonight, but he really wanted to be there with you.”
I spun back to face Luther. “Veronica is the least of our problems,” I replied. “You should talk to your friend.”
His eyes widened with surprise, and he opened his mouth to question me, but then he stopped, a look of confusion and concern crossing his features. Like Veronica, Luther didn’t seem to know Noah had broken up with me. I was also assuming he didn’t yet know about Matthew. Perhaps I had a few more hours to savor before the whole school knew about both.
“Enjoy your party, Luther.” I shook his arm off and walked away.
I briefly considered opening the drink in my hand but then placed it down on the nearest table. I was tired, and the party wasn’t helping to distract me from Noah anymore. Now that I knew he wasn’t here, the small part of me that had considered confronting him was also done with the party. All I wanted was to go to bed, so I hunted down the girls to let them know I was leaving.
They were coming off the dance floor when I found them with Sawyer and Wes following closely behind. I wondered if Cress could sense the pain I’d endured tonight because, as soon as I said I was planning to leave, she wrapped an arm around my shoulder.
“Okay, let’s get you home then,” she said.
I gave her a sad smile and nodded. Anna wrapped her arm around the other side of me, and the boys led the way as we headed back through the crowd and started down the track back to the house.
The twins quickly pulled ahead of us as we followed the lanterns that dimly lit the way. I suspected the guys were giving me some privacy to talk with the girls. As Wes gripped his brother in a playful headlock, I had to wonder where they found the energy after a night on the dance floor. Then again, simply breathing felt like hard work to me right now.
“Do you feel up to telling us what happened tonight?” Cress asked, as the noise of the party turned to a muffled beat. She said it gently, and I knew she’d leave me alone if I didn’t feel ready to talk about it.
I blew out a breath as I considered my friends. My heart actually contracted in pain when I thought about Noah and the things he’d said to me. It seemed silly because I’d only known him a few weeks, but somehow, he’d managed to embed himself deeply into my heart in that short time. His rejection hurt far more than it should have.
As I looked at the two girls, I remembered Cress was Noah’s cousin. What if she rejected me because of who my dad was too? The thought was enough to steal the breath from my chest, and I struggled to get it back.
Cress’s eyes widened, and she rubbed a hand down my back as I started to hyperventilate. I couldn’t lose both Cress and Noah in the same night. And what if I lost Anna as a friend too? There was no way I could survive another day at this school without my friends by my side.
“Isobel, it’s okay,” Cress said.
“Take deep breaths,” Anna added.
They shared a concerned look as I tried to calm myself down. I was freaking out, but I did as Anna suggested and took some deep breaths in and slowly blew them out. I really didn’t think the drinks I’d had were helping the situation. I’d been blissfully numb for a while there, but now every emotion felt darker and so much worse. Tequila was not a good friend. She was all false promises and bailed on you when you needed her the most. Tequila was a bit of a bitch.
“You don’t have to tell us if you don’t want,” Cress said as I started breathing calmly again.
“No, I want to tell you guys.” I knew they’d find out one way or another, and I’d never meant to keep my father’s identity a secret. I exhaled before I began. “Noah broke things off with me tonight.”
The two girls gasped.
“Why on earth would Noah break up with you?” Cress asked. “He’s crazy about you.”
“My father was at the ball tonight. When Noah’s grandfather found out who he was, he demanded Noah break up with me.”
“What?” Anna scoffed. “Why does it matter who your father is?”
“Apparently there’s a feud between our families…”
“Well, that’s just ridiculous,” Anna replied. “What kind of medieval shit is he trying to pull? Who even says feud these days?”
I shrugged. I was as dumbfounded as she was.
Cress had stayed quiet. There was a look of confusion in her eyes, and I could see she was trying to piece it all together.
“You’ve never really spoken about your father,” she finally said. “Never told us who he is.”
“Only because I don’t have a relationship with the guy,” I explained. “He left my mom before I was born. Even I didn’t know who he was until a few weeks ago. I wasn’t intentionally keeping it from anyone. I just don’t particularly like him or want anything to do with him.” Although, after everything he’d revealed to me tonight, I had to wonder if my feelings toward him were starting to shift.
Cress nodded, and I could see she believed me. At least she hadn’t jumped to the conclusion I’d been deliberately lying like Noah had.
“Isobel, I’m just trying to understand… Who is your father?” Cress continued.
My body tensed at her question. This was the moment of truth. The time when I would find out if I was about to lose both Noah and my friends all in one night.
“My father is Matthew LaFleur.”
After Noah’s reaction, I expected some kind of explosion from the two of them. To see looks of disgust or to see them shying away. Cress appeared thoughtful though, and Anna gave me a completely blank look.
“Who?” Anna shrugged. She seemed so blasé about the whole thing I might have laughed with relief if I wasn’t still terrified to hear Cress’s response.
Cress didn’t immediately react and took her time as she considered my revelation. “Matthew LaFleur as in The LaFleur Corporation?” she asked.
“That’s the one.”
She bit her lower lip and glanced at Anna who still looked clueless.
“What?” I asked. “What am I missing?”
“Don’t look at me,” Anna said. “Never heard of the guy.”
Cress slowly returned to meet my anxious gaze. “The LaFleur and the Hastings families are business rivals,” she said. “I remember my parents used to talk about it a lot when I was younger. There was always some new drama between the companies as one tried to one-up, or screw over, the other. From what I understand, they’ve been at each other’s throats for decades.”
“This seemed like more than just a business rivalry,” I said.
“You might be right,” she agreed. “You know my family doesn’t have much to do with the Hastings family anymore, so I don’t know much about it. But I do remember overhearing one conversation…”
“What?” I felt myself edging slightly closer to Cress as she hesitated. She wasn’t scowling at me like her cousin had, and there wasn’t anger in her eyes. If anything, she just seemed thoughtful.
“Well, it was years ago, but I remember once when I heard my mom and dad talking about it all. My dad said that Mr. LaFleur would do anything he could to destroy William Hastings. Something about the way he said anything stuck with me, I guess.” She paused again when she saw the look of concern in my eyes. “They were just gossiping though. And it was so long ago. I’m sure your father isn’t like that.”
She was trying to reassure me, but my stomach plunged. If her parents were gossiping about my family wanting to destroy Noah’s, then surely there had to be some element of truth to that. I felt like I was going to be sick. Was my father the villain in all of this? And what did that make me?
“Seriously,” Cress emphasized. “William Hastings is not a nice man. Even if your dad did want to destroy him, I don’t think anyone would blame him…”
It still wasn’t what I needed to hear, and it left me terrified my friends would want nothing to do with me. Even if they didn’t hold a personal grudge against Matthew, maybe they would worry that I was just like him. That this apple hadn’t fallen far from the proverbial tree.
It took me a moment to build up the courage before I asked, “Does this change anything for you guys?” My heart was in my throat as I looked at my friends. “Now that you know who my father is?”
Cress gathered me in a hug straightaway. “I would never think differently about you because of who your father is. Never.”
Anna quickly joined in on the huddle. “Your dad could be the devil, and I’d still have no doubt about the fact you’re the sweetest person ever. None of us are like our parents, and Noah’s an idiot if he thinks different.”
Tears gathered in my eyes as the two girls held me tight. I didn’t know how much I needed this reassurance until now. I loved these girls so much.
“Uh, is this hug a girl-only thing, or are boys welcome to join the sandwich?” one of the twins called out to us from up ahead. Given the cheeky tone in his voice, it definitely had to be Sawyer. I’d thought he was too busy messing around with his brother to notice us, but the boy seemed to have a sixth sense that alerted him whenever there was an emotional moment that needed ruining.
Anna and Cress laughed as they drew back from the hug.
“Sawyer, learn to read the room!” Anna shouted at him.
He simply shrugged, his face lighting in a cheeky smile in reply. “Hey, you don’t get what you want in life unless you ask.”
“Oh, well, in that case. Sawyer, can you disappear?” Anna fired back.
Even I couldn’t hold in my laughter.
Tonight might have been a disaster for my love life, but it only made me appreciate my friends more than ever. And I had a feeling I was going to need them if I wanted to survive the rest of the school year.
