If you're loved by someone, you're never rejected, decide what to be and GO BE IT
-The Avett brothers
Recommend Reading Introduction to Unproven
DEFINITELY READ Prologue
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
chapter Six
Chapter Seven
The four of them gaped in unison as they pulled onto Kara’s street. Cars were lined up bumper to bumper all the way down the road, and the music blaring from inside the house was so loud the windows on Andie’s Intrepid were actually vibrating.
“Umm, first off where are we going to park, and second how are they going to keep the cops from being called?” Sonya asked worriedly.
Andie gave her a sidelong glance, “Well honey, I guess we should find another street to park on and walk over. Then if the cops are called we won’t be boxed in.”
They found a spot three blocks away, and as they climbed out Amanda held up her hand. “I vote we carry our shoes, I’d rather not have blisters before we even dance.”
“Good idea.”
“I know, I’m full of those.”
“Well you’re full of something…”
“Hardee har har!”
The moment they turned the corner they ran into other party-goers, who by the looks of them had been at it for quite a while.
“Whoaaa, who are you lovely ladies?”
“Hi, Brian,” Andie’s tone dripped sugar.
He did a double take. “Andie? Holy shit!” Brian swept his gaze over them as he wobbled. “What happened to you girls, damnnnn, you are lookin’ fiinneee.” He stepped between Andie and Sonja and held his arms out to them. “Let me escort you.”
They took his arms and Amanda rolled her eyes as they continued down the sidewalk. “Brian, how is it that you’re already drunk?”
“Pre-gaming at my house with the fellas.”
The “fellas” were a group of guys who preferred watching sports to playing them. Most of them were either overweight or whip thin, Brian being the only one among them that might have played a game of basketball. Ary thought he was nice-looking in a boring kind of way, though that might have been because she compared every guy to Grayson and it was impossible to measure up to that.
They entered the lavish town house on the second level and walked to the railing that overlooked the large downstairs living room which was packed full of gyrating teenagers, the music so loud it was hard to think much less talk. Ary scanned the floor for a particular face but didn’t locate it before being tugged toward the staircase.
“We need some drinks!” Andie shouted.
“I know!” She shouted back.
“I’ll show you where,” Brian took the lead and they followed him down the stairs and to the right, into a dining area where a keg was set up in the corner. A table stood to the right, lined up with liquor bottles, juice, and sodas and they hurried over to it.
Once they had their drinks, something entirely too strong that tasted like coconuts and peaches, Ary tugged Andie’s hand and pointed. “I think that leads to an outdoor deck!”
“Okay, let’s go!”
They left the house through a sliding glass door, and once it was shut behind them it provided a little relief from the gonging of the bass.
“Oh. My. God.”
They turned in unison to face Brooke Simmons and Lisa Grey, both wearing pale-yellow designer dresses, their dark hair done up identically giving the overall impression of twins. Evil twins.
“Wowww, look at you girls. Did you just get back from a makeover show?” Lisa asked sweetly.
“No,” Andie answered just as sweetly, “we sprinkled fairy dust and chanted thirty and flirty.”
Brooke made a noise that almost passed for a laugh, her expression one of amused disdain. “Well, I have to say the four of you clean up well.” She turned to Lisa and murmured something, then turned back to them with a winning smile. “Nice outfits are they from Jaymart?” Lisa giggled and poked her in the ribs.
Andie continued smiling as she answered, “You know I find it amazing you believe we care about your opinion, as if you matter to us. Honestly Brooke I pity you, but not as much as I pity me for being in your presence.” She turned and walked away before Brooke could respond.
“She means it you know,” Ary told Brooke, who was now scowling. “We’ve never wasted one second of our lives wishing we were anything like you. The opposite in fact, we’re all intensely grateful that the whole petty, bitchy gene pool passed us up.”
“Oh yeah Ary, you go girl, you need to drink more often!” Amanda laughed. “Come on, let’s go find Andie.”
Ary started to follow her and stopped. Grayson was standing about five feet behind Brooke, staring at her as if she’d grown an extra head. She thought it was what she’d just said that caused it, until she noticed his eyes traveling her body and remembered what she currently looked like.
She offered him a small smile which unfortunately Brooke caught.
The awful girl glanced back and forth between them and uttered a malicious laugh. “Oh you can’t be serious, I don’t care how much you change your appearance you will never be in his league.”
“Are you speaking for me now, Brooke?” Grayson gave her a look that would have withered the average person. Brooke was not the average person.
“Oh come on Grayson, there is no way you could possibly be into…”
He narrowed his eyes, “Why don’t you let me worry about who I’m into.”
“Okay, what-ever. Come on Lisa,” Brooke grabbed the other girl’s hand and pulled her into the house.
Ary waited for him to say something, afraid she would spoil the moment if she opened her mouth.
“So you did mention something about a change earlier, didn’t you?”
It was a rhetorical question but she still thought she should say something; unfortunately the intensity in which he was regarding her was having that mind-numbing effect again, so she nodded mutely instead.
“Quiet again? You weren’t so quiet a second ago when you put Brooke in her place.”
She coughed out a nervous laugh, “You heard that, huh?”
“The petty, bitchy gene pool, yeah I heard it. Not bad.”
“And true.”
“I believe you.” He glanced at her cup. “Need a refill?”
“Um, yeah sure.”
He took it from her, “What are you drinking?”
“Uhh, something fruity with coconut rum.”
“Got it.”
She watched him disappear into the house and took a deep, calming breath. This whole day was taking on a surreal quality, and she found herself worrying it was still the night before, she was dreaming, and had yet to ever speak to him. God she loved his voice. Well she loved every aspect of him, but she’d never noticed his voice before and it was masculine and melodic. Hypnotizing, like his vivid blue eyes.
He came up behind her and she startled, almost knocking the cup from his hand. “Oops, sorry, I am so sorry!”
He chuckled. “No big deal, it didn’t spill.”
He handed it to her and she looked up at him, and suddenly she wanted to get it over with. To make the proposal now so she could stop worrying about it. For months she’d imagined this night in a variety of ways, most of them ending with her dancing close to him and whispering her intentions in his ear. But she now realized if she didn’t put it out there she was going to continue to be nervous and jerky which was the exact opposite of sexy, and as much as she might want to pull off the sexy routine she had no experience with it. She would definitely be better off taking the direct route.
She cleared her throat. “Can we go somewhere more private? I need to ask you something.”
His brows drew in slightly as he nodded. He took her arm and wove them through the kids on the deck, then down a set of steps into the backyard. He found a quiet corner and stopped, looking down at her curiously.
“Okay,” she cleared her throat again. “God, this is a lot more difficult than I imagined.”
His lip curved, “Are you trying to ask me out, Aryanne?”
She smiled weakly. “Not exactly. I told you this morning that my friends and I were making some changes, and obviously you can see some of that.” He perused her body again and she laughed quietly before continuing. “Yeah that, but not only that. See we’ve spent the past few years being model students with no social life, which was fine at the time, maybe we weren’t really ready for more, but now we are. And we decided that we wanted to start the summer off with a bang.” She laughed at her word choice and when his eyebrow raised she bit her lip and said, “Literally.”
“Literally...” His brows drew together. “Are you talking sex?”
She met his eyes. “I am.”
Ary would have found the shock in his expression funny if it didn’t quickly change to something else, something predatory.
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