Reason and Romance (River Valley Book 1) (13 page)

She scanned the long list of senior kids’ names. There were certain prerequisites for the Court. One had to be an excellent student and be involved with extracurricular activities. In a sense, the school had already weeded out the undesirables.

Random names jumped out at her.
Abdullah al-Hassan. Philippa Atherton. Samuel Choi. Grant Darlington. Devon Kim. Justin Latimer. Sabrina Latimer. Vaughn Mackintosh. Quentin Maxwell. Alexander Montgomery.

Travis’s name wasn’t there, but considering the fact he was in the dean’s office as often as she was, it would have been a shock if he’d ended up on the list. And … yes, she could admit privately she was a little disappointed her name wasn’t mentioned. Back at home, her chances would have been pretty good. Jason was popular enough, and she’d been his girlfriend for three years.

Not anymore. Move on, Adrian.

She clicked her pen and checked the box for Justin. An easy choice since he always made sure to smile at her and talk to her every day. Yes, Justin was a friend now. Even better, he was a real one, along with Travis.

Alex, on the other hand …

Oh, he was civil. He didn’t talk to her as much as he talked to Nicky, but when he did, he was always polite. He even smiled at her, but he never referred to their one-night stand. In short, his behavior was flawless.

And that was the problem.

It was hard not to stare at him and wonder how she had lost control and slept with him. She knew she’d been drunk, yes, but somehow she’d gotten it into her head that she had to have him. And if that wasn’t bad enough, she hadn’t been so drunk that she’d forgotten just how much she’d enjoyed it. Sex with him had been … well, Alex had known what he was doing.

It had been that good, but maybe it had only been good for her and her alone. Alex was considerably more experienced, so maybe he thought she was bad in bed. And she couldn’t even hit him up for another round.

Before she could question her judgment, she quickly checked off the box for his name.

Once she was done, she handed her ballot in. She didn’t quite like Quentin or Grant, but they got her votes. Quentin had actually dialed down his insulting comments a notch. Grant hadn’t warmed up to her, but seeing how he treated everyone exactly the same, including Alex, there was no use in getting offended. The only person Grant treated with some warmth was Justin.

She had explicitly not voted for any female nominee. Vaughn Mackintosh’s name was on the list, but it would be a cold day in hell before Adrian checked off her name. Quentin had told her that the blond girl had been responsible for the rumors about her and Alex, a claim Adrian hadn’t wanted to believe, but now she knew it was true because it was apparently an uncontested fact Vaughn was the school gossip queen.

Actually, it was the damned twinkle in the blonde’s eyes that bothered Adrian the most. For whatever reason, the other girl had taken to smiling broadly whenever Adrian glanced her way.

Well, whatever.

If Vaughn became too much of a problem, Adrian would just have to deal with her. That was one good thing Jason had taught her. She’d mistakenly believed she had needed him, in order to be strong, but even though he’d cheated on her, she was standing on her own, wasn’t she? Slowly and painfully, but she was doing it.

Quentin pounced on her after class. “Are you going to the dance? And don’t say no. Even the pimple-faced girls who can’t get laid are going.”

“Oh, I’m staying home. I can do without the inferior mating ritual that passes off as Homecoming.”

“Adrian, Adrian.” Grinning, he slid his arm around her waist. “I thought we’d cured you of your bitchiness, but I guess not. You’re my date.”

She tried to shrug him off. “Oh, I am? How nice of you to tell me.”

“I know,” he said without any trace of shame. “Think of it this way, darling. You get to climb the social ladder, and I get to drool over you all night. How can you resist?”

“All too easily. Why don’t you ask someone else?” Adrian’s glance took in the busy hallway. “There are a lot of girls who would love to go with you.”

“But you’re the only one who says no to me.” His grin widened. “And the only one who says no to Alex.”

It took an effort to keep her bland smile in place. She’d never confirmed that she’d slept with Alex, but Quentin had already made up his mind.

She snorted. “You don’t quit, do you?”

“Nope. I just keep going and going. All night long, baby.”

Shaking her head, she walked away, and this time he let her go. Had he been anyone else, she would have thought he was trying to be friendly. And maybe he really was trying, but the first week of school had scarred her deeply. There was no use in pretending it hadn’t hurt her, all those furtive glances and whispers. That hadn’t stopped, but now there was a different undertone. If she so much caught one of them looking her way, they nodded briefly or flushed.

If not for Travis, she might have lost her mind. As it was, he was her closest companion because they cooled their heels in the dean’s office often. They ate lunch together, sometimes with his friends or with Alex’s. More often than not, Justin joined them.

“Why is everyone so excited about Homecoming?” she vented to Travis. She waved her hand at the semi-naked Tarzan figure hanging from the school’s ceiling. It had to be, what, the seventh one she’d spied so far. “My old school didn’t take it so seriously.”

“Dude, you’re no fun.” A few of the more enterprising girls had taken to wearing “hot jungle girl” outfits, and he all but visibly drooled over their strutting. “Are you going to the dance?”

Adrian shot him a wry look. “You remember what happened at the last party?”

That snapped him out of his drooling. He turned to her, frowning. “You gotta stop beating yourself up about it, Adrian.” His blue eyes were unusually serious. “You were in a bad place, back then. Anyway, that’s done and over with.”

She tried not to gape at him. How had he known that she couldn’t stop thinking about it? And because he’d used her name, something that he didn’t usually do, she confessed. “Well, Quentin did ask me, but I said no.”

“Maxwell? Not surprised.”

“Oh?”

“Oh yeah, he wants to sleep with you.”

A laugh escaped her. “Well, yeah, I guess that’s true. Are you going?”

“Yeah. I wanna see the shitstorm.”

“What shitstorm?”

“Something always happens at dances. It’s like … dude, they go batshit crazy! Breakups, fights, betrayals, and tearful confessions.” Travis’s guileless gaze swung back to her. “Dude, I love our school. Anyway, if you don’t want to go with Maxwell, you can go with me. We’ll have a blast!”

His enthusiasm was hard to resist, and she smiled at him. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

The dance was the main topic when she sat down at Alex’s table, temporarily bereft of Travis’s company since he’d gone off to buy his lunch.

“We should go as a group,” Bri Latimer declared. “It’ll be more fun that way.”

“Hey, that’s not a bad idea,” her twin brother said. “Adrian, do you want to go? Maybe I could take you—”

Quentin flashed a grin. “Nuh-uh. She swooned in my arms when I asked her. Find another girl.”

“Oh.”

“I’m not taken,” Adrian said firmly before Quentin could jump in again. Damn him and his big fat mouth. “I’m skipping this one.”

Justin’s sister tilted her head. “Why?” she said, sounding surprised. She’d been markedly cold toward Adrian ever since Adrian had danced with Justin at that infamous party, but her attitude had gradually warmed in the last few days. “It’ll be fun.”

“No, not really. Who’s your date?”

“I don’t really have one yet.”

“Tell you what, you can always have Quentin.”

Bri smirked. “No, I think I’ll pass on that one.”

“Exactly.”

“Point taken.”

“Hey!” Quentin protested. “What am I, chopped liver?”

Adrian’s sister had been listening with poorly concealed envy because their father had decreed she was too young to date—a decision that Adrian fully supported—so that meant school dances including Homecoming were out.

Now Nicky shrieked. “What? You’re not going? Adrian!”

“I’m not in the mood.”

“But it’s not fair! I want to go, but I can’t! You can go even if you don’t want to!”

Alex looked up from his lunch tray. He’d been so quiet that Adrian had almost forgotten he was there, but now he was speaking. “All dances are the same. There’s always next year anyway. Trust me, you aren’t missing anything.”

“But you won’t be here next year,” Nicky pointed out, “and I want to see this one! Oh, Adrian, you just have to go! You can tell me everything when you come home. Please!”

She sighed. “I’ll think about it—”

“How can you even stay home? Besides, Jason isn’t—” Nicky stopped, her eyes wide.

It was a punch Adrian never saw coming. She’d hoped against hope that Nicky hadn’t heard about the breakup, but of course, Nicky still kept in touch with old friends. She was online far more often than Adrian, so she would have picked up on it one way or another, but until now, she’d never ever referred to the breakup. Come to think of it, that silence should have made Adrian suspicious because Nicky just couldn’t keep quiet.

Why now, Nicky? Why can’t you just think for once?

Another silent wave of questions followed immediately. Why had Nicky never confronted her about the rumors about her and Alex? Adrian had fully expected that round of questioning, but when Nicky didn’t bring it up, she’d been content to leave it alone.

Her mouth almost twisted. It was the same mistake she’d made with Jason. Even though she’d known there was something wrong, she’d been afraid to rock the boat. If she had confronted him earlier, if she had spoken to Nicky earlier …

Alex’s soft drawl diverted her attention. “Jason? Isn’t he your sister’s boyfriend, Nicky? The one who came to visit?”

Nicky flushed to the roots of her hair. She was turning into a human tomato before everyone’s eyes, and Adrian knew it was over.

“Yes, you met him,” Adrian answered for her.

Alex’s gaze met hers. “Everything all right?”

“We split.” She threw in a casual shrug. It wouldn’t do to seem heartbroken. “Let’s just say that things weren’t … great between us for a while. The move here kind of accelerated everything.”

“When did this happen?”

“A few days ago,” Nicky blurted before Adrian could wrap her hands around her sister’s throat. “He cheated on her.”

His gaze flickered, and in that moment Adrian knew he’d figured it out. She could practically see the wheels turning in his head as he did the math. Her, the breakup, and the party—it was all coming together for him.

Justin shook his head. “Oh man. I don’t know what he was thinking.”

Her jaw tightened. Yes, Jason had cheated on her, but damned if she’d hold up a sign that screamed: “PITY ME.”

Quentin tossed a piece of bread at Justin. “Adrian, baby, that’s just all more reason to go with me. I can heal your broken heart.”

This, she could deal with. As odd as it sounded, Quentin’s irreverent humor was easier to accept than Justin’s honest sympathy.

“I don’t think so,” she said.

Alex leaned back and regarded her, his gaze veiled. “Quentin’s right, you know. You don’t want anyone to think you’re staying home crying for your boyfriend, do you?”

Her hand itched to slap him. What, his ego was hurt because she’d used him as a stand-in for Jason? He didn’t have room to talk since his dating record wasn’t exactly stellar.

“Funny, I haven’t heard anything about you having a date. Maybe you shouldn’t have cut Mandy loose,” she said.

His smile was killer. “Are you volunteering?”

Quentin’s dark eyes were alight as he watched them.

“I think it’d be a trip straight to hell.”

For the first time that day, Adrian saw Grant smile. “Yeah, that’s what most of his dates said about him eventually.”

Alex didn’t acknowledge the hit. “So you’re not going, Adrian? Just because I don’t have a date yet? I’m flattered.”

“Oh, don’t flatter yourself. I just need to find someone who’s an actual gentleman.” Adrian reached over and laid a hand on Justin’s wrist. “Someone like him.”

“You can borrow me anytime,” Justin said gallantly. He scooted closer and draped an arm around her shoulders. “I’d like to go with you.”

“Great, it’s on.”

She could have done worse, she decided. Justin was the nicest of Alex’s friends, and other than Travis, he’d been consistently friendly.

“Hey, what about me?” Quentin protested. “I asked you first.”

“Suck it up,” Justin said with a grin. “It’s her choice.”

His twin sister didn’t seem too pleased, but she shrugged. “Well, if that’s settled …” She turned to Alex immediately. “How about it?”

Surprise flickered in his eyes. It was genuine, Adrian was sure of it. Even Alex couldn’t fake it that well. He shifted his gaze to Justin. If she didn’t know any better, she would have said it was downright apologetic.

Justin sighed. “Bri …”

“Oh, relax! It’s not like I’ll have wild jungle sex. You’re just as bad as Mom and Dad. Alex, come on.”

Alex hesitated, then shrugged. “Sure.”

Adrian had to smile. She’d never seen Alex figuratively backed into a corner, but of all girls he could have chosen, he’d ended up with someone he couldn’t afford to offend. He was going with Bri Latimer, and Adrian was going with Justin Latimer. How hilarious.

Quentin chuckled. “Okay, now you guys are just pairing off. Grant, will you go with me? Say yes, sweetums.”

Grant gave him the finger. “Find your victim somewhere else.”

They made plans to meet at Alex’s house—it was technically Adrian’s house too—for pictures before the dance.

It was almost frightening how quickly the week went by. Back home, she would have gone for a long shopping trip for the perfect dress and shoes. She’d existed in a serene bubble of existence, secure with Jason and their relationship. Here, she was thrown into an unstable, glittering world. People watched her every move and dissected every word she said.

She was doodling in her notebook when the principal’s voice boomed over the PA system. “The results are in! We have your nominations for Homecoming Court. From these nominees, we will pick our King and Queen tomorrow.”