Cruel Love (17 page)

She shook her head and looked down, suddenly overwhelmed, afraid her voice might crack if she tried to speak. She simply couldn’t bear the thought of having to say good-bye to Jasper.

Ariana took in a long breath and blew it out through her mouth. “I’m fine, really. It’s just … you didn’t have to do all this.” “Of course I did,” he said simply, lifting his shoulders. “I love you.”

Ariana swallowed hard and looked intently into his eyes. “How much?”

Jasper blinked, taken aback, but smiled. “I’d do anything for you. You know that.” “Anything?” Ariana asked.

He adjusted his arms on her waist, drawing her even closer. His forehead pressed against hers. Their noses touched. She could smell the mint on his breath. “I’d go to the ends of the earth for you, Briana Leigh Covington.”

Ariana’s heart expanded with warmth. Her smile widened, even as the tears threatened to overflow. He couldn’t have said anything more perfect. She tilted her head and touched her lips to his, gently at first. But she soon found she couldn’t control her emotions and she began to press harder and harder, holding onto him as tightly as she could. Hoping she’d never have to let go.

Jasper’s hand moved up her back and into her hair, cupping the back of her head. She shoved his jacket back from his shoulders and he shook it to the ground, edging her backward toward the bed. Never letting her lips leave his, Ariana tumbled onto her back, tugging him with her, and kicked her sling-back heels onto the floor. Jasper unzipped her dress, she unbuttoned his shirt, he slid his hands up under her skirt, she grasped at his bare waistline with hungry fingers.

“Wait,” Jasper said suddenly, breaking away.

“What?” Ariana gasped. Her lips were swollen and her very skin throbbed. “You don’t want to stop, do you?” “No, I just … your food. It’s gonna get cold,” he said, his brow creased.

“Screw the food,” Ariana replied.

Jasper grinned and she pulled his bare chest against hers, letting go of everything—of Meloni, of Reed, of the future—and giving herself entirely to Jasper Montgomery.

HAPPY
BIRTHDAY

“Wait until you see inside!” Maria gushed, practically dragging Ariana and Jasper toward the double doors of the club Tahira had rented out for the birthday celebration. “We’ve completely outdone ourselves.”

Ariana shivered with anticipation inside her white cashmere coat as Jasper squeezed her hand. She could hear the bass line of the music pounding from inside, and a screech of excitement wafted through the cold night air. For a moment, she paused at the threshold, letting Jasper reach for the door. is was it. e beginning of the biggest night of her life. She looked around, taking in the starry night sky, the twinkling lights decorating the topiary trees on the slate patio, the crisp scent of pine that hung in the air, and just like that she knew.

This was going to be a good night.

“Mademoiselle?” Jasper said, arching his eyebrows and gesturing politely at the open door. “Your celebration awaits.”

Ariana grinned and stepped inside. Past a coat check and a pair of thick velvet curtains, the cavernous club opened up before them. Ariana’s breath was completely taken away. Every single surface was covered with mirrors and clear crystals of all shapes and sizes. ey glittered on the walls and hung from the ceiling in strands and swaths. e cocktail tables along the periphery of the hall were adorned with silver tablecloths and the centerpieces were filled with sparkling jewels. Hundreds of people crowded the dance floor, holding their champagne glasses aloft, reveling in the sheer decadence of it all.

“Happy birthday, Ana!” Soomie called out, running over and throwing her arms around Ariana’s neck. She wore a dark gray full-skirted dress and black heels and looked relaxed and happy as she pulled away. “Wow. You look all … glowy tonight.”

“I
feel
glowy,” Ariana replied with a laugh. And she did. Tonight nothing and no one could touch her. Tonight, she was the star.

“Do you love it?” Tahira asked, appearing at Ariana’s other side. While Soomie’s dress was elegant, Tahira’s was more MTV Video Awards red carpet. She wore a short, low-cut silver dress and the highest heels Ariana had ever seen, the toes encrusted with diamonds. “e theme is On the Rocks,” Tahira announced, spreading her fingers wide.

“I
love
it!” Ariana exclaimed. “It’s like partying
inside
a diamond.”

Jasper slipped her coat from her shoulders, exposing the chic, aqua-blue sheath underneath. Maria took off her own mink jacket as well, to reveal a halter-necked black dress that just skimmed her knees and made her look impossibly slim. Jasper, gentleman that he was, hurried off over to the coat check desk with both girls’ coats and bags.

“That was the idea!” Tahira cried, her eyes wide. “Happy birthday, Ana!” She gripped Ariana into a tight hug and gave her two huge air kisses. “Thank you
so
much, Tahira. And you, too, Maria,” Ariana said, reaching for Maria’s hand. “This is like a dream come true.”

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here to help plan it, but clearly they didn’t need me,” Soomie said.

“I’m just glad you’re here tonight,” Ariana assured her. “I couldn’t have asked for a better gift.”

Soomie smiled, but Tahira scoffed. “Yeah, wait until you see the gift table,” Tahira said, leaning toward her ear. “You’ll be singing a different tune.” “Really?” Ariana asked, her eyes bright as she imagined piles and piles of elegantly wrapped presents, all with her name on them.

ank you, Briana Leigh, for being born in December
, Ariana thought happily. is party was exactly the kind of distraction she needed and the kind of celebration she knew she deserved.

“Well? Are you ready to greet your public?” Jasper asked, rubbing his hands together as he returned to her side. His sharply cut black suit fit him perfectly, and the light blue tie made his eyes seem even bluer than usual. He’d combed his hair back from his face and looked elegant and sophisticated—the perfect date for the perfect night.

“So ready,” Ariana replied.

Maria pushed her long brown hair behind her shoulders. “Then let’s do this, birthday girl.” Ariana grinned, and walked with her friends into the main hall.

“So let me tell you what the deal is,” Maria offered, hooking her arm around Ariana’s. She escorted her further into the room, where a few of Ariana’s friends from school shouted their greetings and called out, “Happy birthday!”

“Clearly, this is the dance floor, but we have the upstairs lounge as well if you want to escape the mayhem for a few minutes.” Maria pointed toward two sets of stairs at the back of the room, winding up in opposite directions toward a gallery area above. “en, outside, we have the entire outdoor deck, which overlooks the water.” She moved swiftly to the outskirts of the dance floor, trailing Soomie, Tahira, and Jasper toward a glass wall with several clear doors closed to keep out the cold. “As you can see, there’s a hot tub out there. We’re already taking bets on who’ll get drunk enough to be the first skinny-dipper.”

“Bet on me!” Tahira shouted, raising her arm. “I don’t even need to be drunk.” Ariana cracked up laughing. “Thanks for the warning.”

“This party gets better and better,” Jasper joked.

“And just
wait
until you see your birthday cake!” Soomie exclaimed, raising all ten fingers. “It’s incredible.” “I can’t wait,” Ariana replied.

“So? What do you want to do first?” Jasper asked, slipping his arm around her waist.

Ariana scanned the room, taking it all in—the happy faces, the gyrating bodies, the winking lights, the sparkling crystals. She felt so giddy she could have burst open like a bottle of Taittinger.

“Suddenly all I want to do is dance,” she said with a grin. “Woo-hoo!” Tahira cheered, throwing her arms over her head.

Jasper took Ariana’s hand as the others laughed. “Your wish is my command.”

After diving into the crowd, Ariana found that getting to the center of the dance floor was easy as pie. Everyone moved out of the way of the guest of honor and her entourage, and before long, she was moving to the beat with her best friends and boyfriend around her. Soon, Adam, Landon, and Rob had joined them, and Ariana smiled wider each time her entourage grew. She could feel the eyes of the crowd on her, and never before had she felt so entitled to the attention. Everything was as it should be. This was her night. She was the hottest girl at one of the most prestigious schools in the world. Everyone knew her name. Everyone wanted to be near her.

Life was perfect.

en, she opened her eyes. And the entire world stopped spinning. ere, right there, standing at the top of the dance floor scanning the crowd, was Dr. Victor Meloni in the flesh. Ariana froze and took one of Tahira’s wayward elbows to the side.

“Ow!” Ariana blurted, louder than strictly necessary. She grabbed Tahira’s wrist and yanked her away from the others, fighting the crowd to get to the gift table—which

was
rather impressively stocked. She ducked behind a huge Kate Spade box and pressed her back against the wall. “I’m sorry! God! What’s the matter?” Tahira hissed.

“What is
he
doing here?” Ariana asked, standing on her toes to see over the pile of presents. Meloni was moving slowly around the periphery of the room now, studying all the faces of the people on the dance floor.

Tahira whirled around, saw Meloni, and screwed her face up in confused disgust. “I have no idea,” she said. “Kind of pathetic though, no? Him crashing? ere aren’t even any other adults here.”

“Tahira, focus!” Ariana said through her teeth. “How could he have even known about this?”

Tahira lifted her shoulders and let them drop dramatically. “I don’t know! I might have said something in our therapy session about planning your party for you—you know, dealing with my grief by throwing myself into a project. He seemed impressed, actually. I—”

Ariana groaned and gripped her forearm tightly. She curled her fingers and squeezed, trying as hard as she could to keep it together.

“What’s the big deal? Do you want me to ask him to leave?” Tahira said, turning to the side. “Because what the birthday girl wants, the birthday girl gets!”

For a split second Ariana almost agreed to the plan. Let Tahira be the bouncer. But then she realized it was pointless. Dr. Meloni was here because he knew he would be guaranteed to finally get a glimpse of the elusive Briana Leigh Covington, and he wasn’t going to leave until he got one—and probably cornered her afterward.

“No. It’s okay,” Ariana said. Across the dance floor, someone had stopped Meloni to talk, and he now had his back to her. “I’m just going to run to the bathroom to freshen up and maybe say hello to a few people. I’ll be back.”

“Okay,” Tahira said. She shrugged once more, than shoved her way back into the throng of dancers. Ariana took a moment to herself to breathe.

Shit
, she thought.
Shit, shit, shit.

is was not the way this was supposed to play out. She was supposed to have more time. She had a whole plan, which she’d yet to execute. Ariana narrowed her eyes as Meloni broke away from his conversation and resumed his deliberate search of the party.

“Screw it,” she said under her breath. “I can do this.”

en she turned and took the darkest, most camouflaged route to the coat check, where she retrieved her bag and coat. She shoved her way outside and handed her ticket to the valet.

“Wait. My car’s right there,” she said, spotting the Porsche. “Just give me the keys.” The fresh-faced valet hesitated. “But I’m not supposed to—”

“Just
give me the keys
!” Ariana demanded.

He handed her the keys, his hand shaking. Ariana stormed over to her car, angrier about having to leave her party than anything else. As soon as she was safely inside behind the wheel, the engine started, she took out her phone and dialed Dr. Meloni’s cell phone number.

It took a few rings for him to answer, and when he did, the first thing she heard was the music. Dr. Meloni was at her birthday party right now and she wasn’t. How entirely wrong was that?

“Hello?”

Ariana took a breath and closed her eyes. “Dr. Meloni?” she said, pitching her voice up and throwing in a Texan accent. “Is this Dr. Meloni?” “Yes it is.” The background noise grew duller now. He was moving away from the dance floor. “To whom am I speaking?”

“Dr. Meloni, this is Briana Leigh Covington,” Ariana said, infusing her voice with emotion, choking herself up. “Miss Covington! I’m at your birthday party right now. Where are you?” he said.

Ariana clenched her jaw for a moment before answering. “I … I couldn’t do it. I couldn’t face all those people. Not tonight. I need someone to talk to, doctor.

Immediately. Tonight.”

“Of course!” He sounded happy, the jackass. Elated, actually. Because he’d won. He’d turned out to be right. Ariana’s fingernails dug into the skin on her thigh.

“Can we meet somewhere private? Somewhere away from campus? I can’t be here anymore. ere are just too many memories. Too many ghosts,” Ariana said, sounding tearful.

“Of course, of course. We can meet at my house. I’ll give you directions.” There was dead silence behind his voice now. He was probably getting his coat. “I have GPS,” she said flatly. “Just give me the address.”

He did, and Ariana stared at the front door of the club. It wasn’t like she needed to write it down. She’d long since memorized the route. Seconds later, Meloni strode out the front door and handed his ticket to the valet.

“I’ll be there in half an hour,” she said, glaring at him through the side window of her Porsche. “Good. And Miss Covington? I’m glad you called,” he said.

I’ll bet you are
, Ariana thought.

“Me too,” she said with some effort. Then she ended the call.

e valet pulled the doctor’s car around. He hoisted himself up behind the wheel and slammed the door, a Cheshire grin on his face. Ariana wished she could have walked over to him right then and there and shot him directly through the front of his skull. But she had no gun, and there were way too many people around anyway.