by Leila James
“I don’t know.”
He nudges me. “Sure you do.”
“Fine. I’m nervous. This doesn’t feel like me.”
“Daph. You have a right to feel however you do, but you look fantastic, so no worries there. You said he wanted to hit the dance floor with you, right?” Max does a few little dance moves designed to make me laugh, which I do.
“Yeah. Yeah, he did.” I plaster a bright smile on my face, and decide to make the best of things. This is going to be a great night.
After Scarlett’s Aunt Liz takes so many flash photos, I’m convinced I’ll see spots for the next three days, we step outside to find Xander and Max have sprung for a limo for us. More photos are taken, and then it’s finally time to go. Scarlett and I climb inside, followed by Max and Xander.
The conversation is lively and before I know it, we’ve arrived. As we pull up, we find we’re not the only ones with a limo. In fact, there are so many limos, I don’t know how we’ll find ours at the end of the evening. Just another one of those elite-as-hell Rose problems, I suppose.
When Max and I enter the lunchroom through the wide double doors, I smile to myself. All of the homecoming committee’s hard work has paid off. It’s stunning—even more beautiful this evening than it had been when I’d left this afternoon. The twinkle lights strung around the room bathe the space in soft light. It’s magical. It’s a dream. Why I ever thought attending a dance like this would be boring is beyond me.
Max places his hand at the small of my back as we make a slow circuit of the room. “This is gorgeous. How’d you guys do this?” He points at the billowing fabric that has been hung across the ceiling and down the walls to completely transform the place where we eat lunches most days into something out of a fairy tale.
I shrug with a smile. “It was pretty easy, actually. There’s this chandelier contraption at the center and magnets and all this drapey fabric and hooks and—” I laugh. “It’s really not hard to set up, it’s just hard to explain how we did it.”
Max chuckles shooting me his best crazy face. “I no longer wish to know how it was done. It’s nice, though. Well done.”
For over an hour, we spend time with Scarlett and Xander at the refreshment tables, then out on the dance floor. I’m not a great dancer, but Max can bust a move, so everyone watches him instead of me, which suits me just fine. In fact, Max is pretty much the perfect date for a girl like me. He keeps me entertained and happy.
The only person I’d be happier with is Micah, but he’s nowhere to be seen. My eyes drift over the room. When I see Xander and Scarlett off at the side of the dance floor taking a break, I tug on Max’s sleeve and point. We head over to join them.
“Having fun?” Xander scans the crowd behind us before looking at me for my answer.
“Yeah. I was just wondering if you knew where Micah is.”
He gives a regretful shake of his head. “I wish I knew. He brushed me off when I asked if he wanted to go in on the limo with us. Said he was already doing something with Beau.”
I frown, watching Beau across the dance floor, trying his best to twerk along to some Miley Cyrus song pumping through the speakers. “But he’s not with Beau, either.”
Xander nods, sliding me an uncomfortable glance. “I know.”
A sinking feeling hits me square in the gut and trying to steel myself, I look Xander in the eye. “Do you know something you’re not telling me?”
When Xander looks down at his feet, Max wraps an arm around my back. “Look, Xander, we get you’re caught in the middle. But where the fuck is your friend?”
Scarlett blinks up at Xander as she clutches the sleeve of his suit coat. “What do you know?”
He slides his hand over his jaw. “I know he lied to me about whatever his plans were tonight. That’s it. He’s never lied to me before in his life, so …”
Just then, a low rumble moves through the room, a literal wave of sound. As a group, we turn to see what’s happening.
Over at the entrance, my eyes are immediately drawn to Micah, who is hot AF in a tailored suit that hugs his muscular frame. He wears a cocky grin on his face and waves at a bunch of people as he enters the room.
My eyes dip to his side. Next to him, Alora hangs from his arm, her chest smashed against his bicep as she looks up at him and laughs at something he says.
He glances in our direction right before he stops in the middle of the room, takes her head between his hands, and lowers his mouth to hers, absolutely devouring her right there in front of the entire school.
My body quakes.
Throat thick with tears, I tear out of Max’s hold, turn, and race out of the room. Past the girls in colorful dresses, past the guys decked out in their expensive suits. Past the glitter and sparkle of what I thought was going to be an amazing evening and out into the hallway.
I come to a halt just outside the room, gasping for air.
My heart is broken.
I’m devastated.
My insides feel raw.
Why did I ever think he’d want me? I gave my heart to him. My body. Oh God, why did I ever trust him?
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TO BE CONTINUED ...
Ruined Rose, the conclusion to Daphne and Micah’s story, releases in April 2021.
PRE-ORDER NOW
Also by Leila James
ROSEHAVEN ACADEMY
BOOK 1: Savage Rose
BOOK 2: Tainted Rose
BOOK 3: Ruthless Rose
BOOK 4: Ruined Rose
Dear Reader
Welcome back to Rosehaven Academy! What the heck is Micah doing? How could he do that to her? Why???
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Next up, Ruined Rose releases April 2021, and it’ll have the answers to all of your questions and complete Micah and Daphne’s story.
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Come follow me on Amazon: author.to/LeilaJames
And join my NEWSLETTER through my website: https://www.leilajames.biz/newsletter-signup
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Until next time,
XO Leila XO
Acknowledgments
To Rebecca Kimmel, OMG, the angst! The hormones! Can we take much more? Yaaassss … I’m here for it, if you are!
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To Krista Dapkey, I bet you’re glad you had Ruined to work on right away. Cliffies, I swear.
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To Diana TC, Micah’s looking delicious, just as he should! Good job! I’m excited to show the covers off for this set of books!
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To SM, you are SO badass. :)
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To my family, XOXO Love you!
About the Author
Leila James has one goal: keeping you up past your bedtime turning the pages of her books. She writes emotional, angsty, and swoon-worthy young adult and new adult romances with lots of unique characters and plot twists.
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Leila's family will tell you she's as big a reader as she is a writer. And ... she's completely obsessed with both. She resides in Virginia with her husband and two children.
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