Sugar and Spice (17 page)

Chapter 29
Absolutely, Positively, Madly

“If I was single, I would so be throwing myself at that guy right this second,” Scarlett remarked. “Oh . . . my . . . God.”

Jane grinned. “Yeah. You and every other girl here. Aja might have something to say about that, though.”

In a large reception room at the Venetian, Aja and Miguel were getting ready for their much-anticipated engagement-party-slash-masked-ball. An entourage of harried-looking stylists, assistants, and others were doing a last-minute check of the couple’s outfits (a black tux for him, a long black-and-white evening gown for her, and jewel-studded black masks for both), while a line of photographers stood by, ready to snap away, and several bodyguards secured the area. There were PopTV crew, hotel employees, and others floating around the room as well.

Scarlett was hanging out with Jane, just killing time until Dana or whoever came by and rounded them up for filming. (Aja had graciously consented to PopTV inviting Scarlett, Gaby, Sophia, and a few other
L.A. Candy
cast members and their friends to the party, so they could make an episode out of it.) Every once in a while, Jane would make a random comment about the guest list or the bar, which had confused Scarlett at first, until she realized that Jane was communicating with Hannah on her earpiece.

“Speaking of
not
being single . . . where’s your boyfriend?” Jane asked Scarlett.

“What? Oh. He, uh, couldn’t make it,” Scarlett said.

Jane gave her a pointed look. “Scar, what is going on with you two?”

Scarlett fidgeted with her gold cuff bracelet, which she was supposed to tell reporters was a Mandy Monk original, and tried to figure out how to answer that question. She and Liam had continued with their “break” these last couple of weeks, with no phone calls or texts or emails whatsoever. And she had been deeply miserable the entire time. Before Liam, she used to think that she could happily stay single forever. Not anymore. Forget Aja’s hot fiancé—or any other guy, for that matter. She wanted only Liam. She just wasn’t sure if Liam still wanted
her
.

Scarlett peered around the room, stalling, hoping Jane would just drop the subject, already—and noticed Gaby and her publicist in the corner having a heated conversation. A beat later, Gaby glanced in Scarlett and Jane’s direction and shook her head, obviously upset. What was going on?

Before Scarlett could mention what she saw to Jane, she felt Jane squeeze her hand. “You know you can tell me if something’s wrong.”

“What? Yeah, I know. Thanks, Janie.”

“Is everything okay with you and Liam?”

Scarlett sighed. “No. We’re
not
okay,” she blurted out. “I think he’s ready to break up with me over this stupid show.”

“Oh, no! Because of Naveen?”

“That, and . . . I’m always shooting, and Liam can’t be filmed, so we don’t have a lot of time to be together. Plus, it’s been hard for him to find another job because of me. Oh, and the night of my birthday party . . . well, I think Trevor or somebody ‘lost’ his Evite, and Liam had these big surprise plans to take me to Malibu. He had the whole evening planned.”

Jane gasped. “Are you serious? Trevor told me he was going to talk to Liam about the party and clear it with him.”

“Well, obviously, Trevor ‘forgot.’ Or, more likely, he lied to you. Anyway, that’s not your fault, and besides, my party was amazing. Thank you for organizing it.” Scarlett paused, searching for the right words. “The truth is . . . I need to figure some stuff out. Like what’s important to me.”

“Yeah. You need to choose between the show and the guy you care about,” Jane said.

And college,
Scarlett added silently. On the plane ride to Las Vegas, she had finally made her decision. She was going to transfer out of USC in the fall. Which was going to mean leaving L.A.

“Listen, there’s something else—” Scarlett began.

“Jane! Scarlett! I’ve been looking all over for you girls!”

Scarlett saw Dana marching toward them, a walkie-talkie in one hand and a clipboard in the other. “You two have to get miked
now
! Jane, we need to shoot a super-quick scene of you and Hannah doing some final prep. And, Scarlett, you need to get over to St. Mark’s Square ASAP.”

Jane looked alarmed. “Final prep? What final prep? Everything’s all set.”

“Just make up some minor crisis. It doesn’t matter. We need a couple of mike packs over here, please!” Dana shouted to one of the sound guys.

Jane squeezed Scarlett’s hand again. “To be continued,” she whispered, out of Dana’s earshot. “About Liam . . . don’t worry. You guys are in love, and you belong together. It’s gonna be okay.”

“Yeah, I hope so.”

Scarlett gave Jane a quick hug. In love? They had never said, “I love you.” But Scarlett knew it was true. It’s too bad that it almost took breaking up for her to realize it.

Scarlett finished getting miked and headed for the doorway. She noticed that Gaby and her publicist were gone—in fact, everyone seemed to be spilling out of the room and into the hallway. Jane had mentioned that Aja and Miguel were going to be boarding a gondola somewhere soon, then traveling via canal to the St. Mark’s Square part of the hotel. There, they would make their grand entrance in front of hundreds of masked guests. Soooo Vegas!

Then Scarlett caught sight of Aja and Miguel at the back of the pack, momentarily alone. The couple exchanged a quick, tender kiss before rejoining their entourage.

God, they’re actually in love,
Scarlett thought, surprised.
It’s not just for the cameras or for publicity.

Scarlett pulled her cell out of her clutch to check the time. If she hurried now, maybe she could make a late flight back to L.A.? She could pack her bag, leave a quick note for Dana along with her mike pack (
Sorry, family emergency!
), and send Jane a text (
IT’S ALL GOOD. LUV U
). And then she could rush home and find Liam and tell him what she should have told him a long time ago.

Which was that she was absolutely, positively, madly in love with him. He was pretty much the best thing that had happened to her, ever.

She was also going to tell him about her decision to leave the show and USC and transfer to a new college. How would he take the news? Would he scoop her up in his arms and vow to follow her to Yale or Harvard or wherever because he was in love with her, too, and he couldn’t live without her?
(Yeah, wishful thinking.)

Flush with nervousness and excitement, Scarlett turned on her way-too-high designer heels and half ran, half hobbled to the elevator banks. She felt strangely free.

Once on the ninth floor, she rushed out of the elevator—and stopped in her tracks. A PopTV camera guy and Matt the director were positioned a little ways down the hall. They had their backs to her, and the camera guy was filming a girl with big hair and a ruffly red dress walking into one of the rooms.

Scarlett frowned. Wait, was that
her
room?

After a moment, Scarlett realized that no, that
wasn’t
her room, which was two doors to the left of the elevators; it was actually Jane and Caleb’s room, which was two doors to the
right.
She also remembered that Gaby was wearing a dress just like that downstairs.

Now Scarlett was thoroughly confused. Had Dana decided to do a quick scene with Jane and Gaby up here, before the party started? What about the Jane-Hannah scene?

But Scarlett had no time to stick around and find out. She had to slip in and out of her room and make her escape before Matt or anyone else could stop her. She was on a mission.

Chapter 30
What Happens in Vegas

“The gondola’s gonna be here in about ten minutes.” Hannah’s voice crackled over Jane’s earpiece. “I’ll make sure the DJ has their song ready.”

“Great!” Jane said excitedly. “Everyone’s got champagne . . . place looks awesome . . . I think we’re ready to start this party!”

Jane signed off and walked briskly across St. Mark’s Square, which was actually an indoor version of the world-famous Piazza San Marco in Venice, Italy. She loved the architecture of the shops and restaurants that surrounded the square, with its cream and pastel walls and high, arched windows.

Many of the guests were milling around or sitting at the large round tables decorated with gold silk cloths and antique candelabras. Jane tried to make out who was who, but it wasn’t easy, since almost everybody was wearing a costume mask. She knew there were more A-list celebrities than usual because of Aja and Miguel, who were one of the most powerful couples in Hollywood. She spotted D near the VIP seating area, chatting up a model type; she recognized him easily thanks to his purple vintage tux and spiky crew cut. She also saw Veronica Bliss talking to a short dark-haired guy (Jared Walsh?); there was no mistaking the petite redhead in Chanel, mask or no mask. And there were a lot of people
not
wearing masks: Hannah, Oliver, Trevor, Fiona, Xavier and Hank from the Venetian, Aja’s assistant, Anna Luisa, her publicist, Wanda, and Gaby’s publicist, Annabelle. Although where was Gaby? She must be out there somewhere, along with Caleb, Naveen, Scarlett, and Madison. Not to mention Sophia and Jesse, if they weren’t too wasted to make it down from their room.

Jane continued toward the dock where Aja and Miguel would be pulling up momentarily. At the top of the steps leading down to the water was an arch covered with roses, freesias, and tiny white lights. Thousands of flower petals blanketed the steps themselves. Two attendants in ivory waistcoats awaited the couple’s arrival. It all looked pretty spectacular, if Jane had to say so herself.

Her phone buzzed with a text; Jane glanced at it quickly and saw that it was from Braden.

FLYING HOME TOM. DINNER MONDAY?

Her heart skipped a beat.

Jane was so tempted to reply YES!!!!! But what about Caleb? She couldn’t be dating Caleb and hanging out with Braden, too—especially since she and Braden were a little more than friends. And also because she had decided to make more of an effort with Caleb. So he was a bit starstruck. Hollywood had that effect on people, and he would get over it soon. In the meantime, he was still the same great guy he always was: fun, sweet, thoughtful.
Hot.
She was going to try to talk him into more off-camera dates so they could be themselves again, the way they used to be, before he got the fame bug and before Dana started micromanaging their conversations. No wonder their on-camera chemistry was so lame, when they couldn’t even be themselves most of the time.

“Jane!” Oliver came rushing up to her. “Sorry to bother you, but Fiona wanted me to ask you . . . can we rearrange some seats at the head table? Aja’s sister and her husband weren’t planning to be here because they live in Martinique and they just had a baby. But they made some last-minute arrangements, and now they’re here, and it’s supposed to be a big surprise for Aja and Miguel. Is there anything we can do?”

“Ohmigod . . . the head table!” Jane went through a mental picture of the seating chart. Aja, Miguel, Aja’s parents, Miguel’s parents, Miguel’s brother and his wife . . . they couldn’t possibly move any of
them
over to another table.

“You know, the tables
are
kind of big,” Oliver remarked. “Maybe we could ask Hank or Xavier to have someone squeeze in two more place settings? And maybe get rid of one of the candelabras, to make space?”

“Yes! Oliver, you’re brilliant!”

Oliver blushed. “Glad I could help.”

“Yeah, well, it would have been a disaster if we couldn’t accommodate the sister and brother-in-law.”

“Guess I won’t be having this problem at
my
celebrity engagement party, since I don’t have any siblings,” Oliver joked.

Jane smiled. And then her smile faded. Oliver was an only child?

Jane flashed back to another mental picture, of an entry in Trevor’s notebook she had never been able to decipher. It was a short entry, with just four items:

Right age, height, attractive
From SD, only child
No acting aspirations, needs $?
Seems very willing to go along with it

Seems very willing to go along with it.
Jane felt sick to her stomach all of a sudden as a terrible realization dawned on her.

“Jane? Are you okay?” Oliver sounded concerned.

Jane reached under her clothing and switched her microphone off. She signaled for Oliver to do the same. He obeyed, looking confused.

“Oliver, tell me the truth,” Jane said as calmly as she could. “Did Trevor cast you to date Hannah?”

Oliver stared at her. “W-what are you talking about?” he stammered.

“Did . . . Trevor . . . cast . . . you?”

Oliver started to turn away, then stopped. “Look, it wasn’t like that, exactly,” he blurted out. “A friend of mine told me that some producer was looking for a guy my age to be on his reality show. I went in for the interview. Trevor practically signed me up on the spot. He said that all I had to do was be a part-time intern for an event planner, and he hinted that I might like some girl named Hannah.”

“Nice,” Jane said, disgusted.

“It’s not what you think!” Oliver said. “I couldn’t say no to the money. My dad got laid off last year, and I’m trying to pay my own way through school.” He raked a hand through his dark auburn curls. “Besides, you don’t understand. Hannah and me . . . it’s not like Trevor made me like her. I was just gonna see what happened. But then I fell in love with her.”

“You’re . . . in love with her?” Jane said, stunned.

“Head over heels. She’s the most amazing girl I’ve ever known.”

“Jane!” Hannah’s voice came over her earpiece. “The gondola’s gonna be here in, like, sixty seconds.”

Jane glanced quickly at Oliver. “Oh, hey, Hannah,” she said loudly. Oliver looked startled. “I’m on my way. Everything okay where you are?”

“Everything’s perfect!”

No, it’s not,
Jane thought grimly as she signed off, thinking about Oliver’s confession. She told herself that Hannah was going to need lots of support in the coming days and weeks. Because she was pretty sure that Hannah was in love with Oliver, too, and it wasn’t going to be easy for her when she learned the truth.

Although . . . something told Jane that Hannah would find it in her heart to forgive Oliver. After all, Hannah had done something similar when she first started working for Fiona, pretending to be Jane’s friend for the cameras per Trevor’s and Dana’s instructions.

“Jane, you’re not gonna tell her, are you?” Oliver said worriedly. “If she knew Trevor cast me like that, she’ll think I’m lying about the way I feel about her. And I’m not!”

Jane put her hands on his shoulders. “No, I’m not gonna tell her.
You
are.”

“What?”

“Yep. And it’s gonna be okay.”

“It is?”

“She might surprise you. She’s pretty understanding.” Jane gave Oliver a reassuring smile. “Okay, come on, back to work.”

Jane switched her mike on and hurried toward the dock, just as the DJ on the stage began playing “At Last” by Etta James. The white-and-gold gondola glided into the square, and the crowd erupted into wild cheers as Aja and Miguel, looking happy and radiant, stood up in the boat, waving and blowing kisses.

“Jane?” A guy in a black tux touched her arm. He lifted his mask.

“Oh, hey, Naveen! Are you having fun? Where’s Caleb?” Jane asked him distractedly. She noticed a PopTV camera guy about ten feet away, filming them.
Yeah, Naveen and I are having a pretty fascinating conversation right now,
she thought drily.

“I’m not sure. Have you seen Scarlett?”

“Not in, like, the last half hour. Listen, I’m sorry, but I’m working, so I’ve gotta run. I’ll catch up with you later—
ow!
”

Someone bumped into Jane, hard. She glanced up, startled, and saw a familiar-looking girl holding an empty wineglass.

“I’m such an idiot!” the girl cried out.

Jane looked down and saw the massive red stain blooming across the front of her white silk blouse. “That’s okay,” she said, trying not to sound as annoyed as she felt. She noticed that the camera guy from before was still filming.
Great.
“I have another blouse in my room. I’ll just go up and change.”

“Ohmigod, I’m so sorry,” the girl apologized.

Jane fake-smiled and hurried to the nearest exit, trying to hide the growing stain with her hand. She spoke briefly to Hannah, letting her know that she would be off-site for a few minutes. She made it to the elevator without receiving
too
many funny looks and pressed 9.

When Jane stepped onto her floor, she made a quick right—and was surprised to see another PopTV camera camped outside her door, along with Matt. The camera guy spotted her and zoomed in on her.

What’s going on?
Jane wondered. Was her red wine stain emergency really
that
interesting? But she couldn’t ask questions during a shoot, so she just kept walking to her door and inserted her key card in the lock.

She was halfway inside the room when she realized that she wasn’t alone in there. Two more PopTV camera guys were set up in opposite corners, filming.

And Caleb and Gaby were sitting on the edge of the king-size bed, kissing.

“What? Caleb!” Jane yelled.

Caleb and Gaby jerked apart.

“Janie!” Caleb exclaimed, swiping at the red lipstick smeared on the side of his mouth. “Listen, I can explain. That dude from your show told me to meet you up here so we could do a scene. Then
she
showed up and threw herself at me. I swear!”

“Jane, I’m sorry!” Gaby cried out. “I didn’t wanna do this. But Annabelle told me that if I didn’t, Trevor was going to kick me off the show!”

“Wait, what?” Caleb said, turning to Gaby.

Jane shook her head and covered her ears. “No! You know what? I’m really not interested in your explanations. Either of you.”

“But, Jane!”

“Janie!”

Jane went over to her closet and yanked a fresh white blouse from a hanger. “Have a nice life,” she said coldly, and stormed out the door.
So I guess this is what happens in Vegas,
she thought.

Once in the hallway, she pulled out her phone and called up the text from Braden.

DINNER ON MONDAY SOUNDS PERFECT, she typed.