All I've Never Wanted(43)

“Excuse me, but ‘that girl’ is still in the room; hence, she can still hear everything you say,” Maya snapped, stepping out.

The room fell silent.

She blinked. “What? Do I look that bad?” she asked nervously.

Adriana herself was a bit stunned, which was no small feat. “Bad?” she echoed. “Maya, you look freakin’ gorgeous!”

And she did. The dress’ soft cream color stood out in stark contrast next to Maya’s tanned skin and glossy dark hair. The bodice was fitted and showed off her smooth shoulders, but the skirt fell in soft folds to just above her knees. The gold band encircling the waist gave the entire outfit a Greek-goddess feel.

“Really? It’s not too…I don’t know, it’s not too much?” Maya examined herself in the mirror.

“Of course not! Right?” Adriana asked the boys pointedly.

The four of them just stared at Maya like they were in a trance, even the usually composed Carlo.

Even Roman, Adriana thought, rather wickedly.

“Uh, right.” Parker snapped out of it first, a mischievous smile spreading over his face as he wrapped his arms around Maya’s waist. “Man, I’m so lucky to have such a hot girlfriend.”

Adriana smirked when she saw Maya wriggle a bit.

Anyone less dense than Roman and her brother could tell Maya and Parker weren’t really dating.

Thankfully, though, most people in Valesca weren’t that observant, which suited Adriana just fine.

She had her own plans for Maya.

* * *

“Ugh! Why do girls shop so much?” Zack complained, throwing two armfuls of shopping bags from almost every store on Fifth and Madison Avenues into the booth. “Who invented shopping anyway? It’s like torture.”

“Well, you didn’t have to come with us,” Adriana pointed out, looking unconcerned. “You could’ve just stayed home.”

Zack snorted. “Right. Valesca versus New York. Gee, I wonder which one is more exciting? Although I probably should’ve stayed home. At least I could’ve played Halo,” he muttered.

I just laughed. The Perrys’ relationship was just too funny. I stared happily out the window. It felt so good to be away from Valesca, even if I did have to be here with the Scions. They really weren’t that bad, though. Well, except for Roman.

“Hey, I never got a chance to thank you for the lunch, by the way,” I murmured to Carlo, as he slipped a seat next to me. For some reason, I didn’t want the others to know what he’d done.

“It’s no big deal,” Carlo answered, smiling a bit. "I had to make up for that horrific Almond Joy experience somehow."

I nodded slowly. "True, that was a pretty horrific experience," I agreed laughingly, before turning back to the others, who were still on the topic of shopping. More specifically, they were talking about boys and shopping.

“…just because I understand girls doesn’t mean I necessarily enjoy shopping, at least not for myself,” Parker was insisting. “I’m not metropolitan, you know.”

Adriana eyed him dubiously. “I don’t think that’s the right word.”

“Isn’t it cosmopolitan?” Roman sounded bored.

“No, that’s a drink.”

“Isn’t it neapolitan?” Zack tried.

Adriana rolled her eyes. “That’s an ice cream flavor.”

This time, I rolled my eyes. “Metrosexual. It’s metrosexual, people,” I cried, throwing up my hands. “And this is what Valesca charges a hundred thousand dollars a year in tuition for?”

“No, they charge that money so they can switch the chandeliers from Swarovski to Baccarat,” Adriana corrected me.

“It’s good to see my money’s being put to good use,” I huffed.

“I thought you were on scholarship,” Parker pointed out.

“That’s not the point.”

I fished through my bag for my phone as a waitress came over to take our drink orders. After all that shopping, everyone had agreed to stop for some refreshments before heading to some restaurant named Masa for a sushi dinner.

“Oh, no!” I exclaimed.

“What’s wrong?” everyone asked at the same time.

“I think I left my phone in Barneys.” My face fell as I scrambled to get out of the booth. “I gotta go get it! My mom will kill me if I need to get another phone again.”

“Do you want me to come with you?” Parker asked, playing the role of concerned boyfriend perfectly.


I shook my head. “No, it’s fine.” I was already halfway out the door. “I’ll be right back!” I called over my shoulder.

I nearly ran down the street back to Barneys, glad I was inNew York so I didn’t have to feel too bad about knocking into people.

When I arrived at the dressing room, I was relieved to see Tracy was still there.

She looked surprised to see me. “Hello again, Miss Lindberg,” she greeted me politely. “Can I help you? Is there something wrong with your purchases?” She sounded worried, obviously thinking about her commission.

I shook my head. “No, but did you find a phone by any chance? I think I might’ve left mine here.”

“Oh, well…” Tracy glanced at the closed dressing room door. “A gentleman went in right after you left. In fact, he’s in there now, so after he leaves, perhaps you can check.”