The competition was over.
A shocked Danielle was Miss Spring Break!
“I can’t believe it!” Danielle said when she got off the stage and was surrounded by Ava and Lindsey, who instantly hugged her. She was wearing a sash that said MISS SPRING BREAK, and a plastic tiara had been slipped onto her head. In her arms was a bouquet of red roses.
“I knew you were going to win!” Lindsey gushed. “I just knew it!”
“I didn’t!” Danielle laughed. “Thanks for the applause.”
“Don’t thank just us,” Lindsey said, pointing over her shoulder. “You had a little help from a friend.”
Danielle turned around with a smile, expecting to see Ethan.
Instead, she saw Rory.
“Hey, gorgeous!” he said. “Congrats!”
“Thanks,” she said, surprised to see him.
“You didn’t think I was going to miss this, did you?” he asked. “Didn’t I say you were a shoo-in?”
Danielle felt herself blushing. “Yes, you were the one who told me to enter the contest,” she admitted.
“And you didn’t want to! See, I was right.”
“You were right,” Danielle agreed. “I owe my tiara to you.”
“It looks good on you.”
“It makes me feel special. I’m going to wear it until I get back home. That way everyone at North Ridge High can see that I was voted Miss Spring Break!”
“You should,” Rory said.
“Where were you? I didn’t see you.”
“I was busy working up the crowd,” he explained. “I’ve got a lot of friends. And they’ve got friends.”
“You made them applaud for me?”
“I didn’t make them do anything,” Rory said. “If they applauded for you, it was because they liked what they saw. Just like I do.”
Danielle blushed again. Before she could say anything, Jade came running backstage. “Li’l sis! You won! You won!” Jade wrapped her arms around Danielle in a huge hug, squeezing tight. “I’m so proud of you!”
“Me, too!” Crystal said, joining in with a hug of her own.
“I can’t breathe!” Danielle laughed.
Jade broke the hug first. “This calls for a celebration!”
“What kind of a celebration?” Danielle asked.
“A party!”
“Where?”
Crystal’s eyes lit up. “Back at the house!”
“Is Sharla going to be okay with that?” Ava asked.
“Aunt Sharla’s going to be out late tonight,” Crystal said. “Very late. She’s got some sort of charity benefit. She’s not going to be home until three o’clock in the morning.”
Jade snapped her fingers in the air and bumped her hip against Crystal’s. “Which means that we can par-tay!”
Crystal checked the time on her cell phone and then turned to Jade. “Come on! We need to go shopping. We’ve got tons to do!”
“Ava and I will help,” Lindsey offered, hurrying after Crystal and Jade.
“Can you get back to the house okay?” Ava asked Danielle.
“I’ll give her a ride,” Rory offered.
“Thanks, but I’ll be giving her a ride home,” Ethan said as he walked up to Danielle’s side and gave her a hug. “Congratulations.”
At the sight of Ethan, Danielle’s face lit up with a smile. “Hey! Where have you been?”
“Trying to make my way through the crowd. You’ve got a lot of admirers out there.”
Not to mention the two back here, Danielle thought, picking up on the tension between Ethan and Rory. Why did guys have to be this way? Why couldn’t they play nice?
“I have to pose for some pictures for the local paper,” Danielle told Ethan. “Are you sure you don’t mind hanging around?”
“Take all the time you need,” Ethan said. “I’m not going anywhere.”
Danielle noted that Ethan’s last comment was aimed directly at Rory.
“So you’re having a party tonight,” Rory said. “Mind if I come?”
“You have to come!” Danielle exclaimed, ignoring the scowl that suddenly appeared on Ethan’s face. How could she not invite Rory? “If it wasn’t for you, we wouldn’t be having a party,” she said, hoping Ethan was listening to her words. “I wouldn’t even be Miss Spring Break if you hadn’t made me fill out an entry form. You have to be there.”
“Then I’ll be there,” Rory promised. “Is it okay if I bring some friends?”
Danielle turned away from the mirror where she was checking her tiara, making sure it sat just right on her head. “Why not?” What were a couple more people? It was a party. “The more, the merrier!”
Chapter Twenty-Two
The party was out of control.
It had started out small and then it had kept growing.
And growing.
And growing.
Every room of the beach house was filled. Danielle had never seen so many people before. Everywhere she looked, there were guys and girls. In the bedrooms, the living room, the dining room and kitchen. They were also in the bathrooms, sitting on the stairs leading to the second floor, and lining the front porch. Music was blaring, couples were dancing, and everyone was having a good time.
Everyone except Danielle, Ava, and Lindsey.
“Where’s everyone coming from?” a panicked Danielle asked Ava as another two cars parked in front of the house and more couples spilled out.
“I don’t know, but it’s not letting up!” Ava exclaimed, turning away from the living room window.
“What are we going to do?” a worried Lindsey asked. “Even if everyone leaves by midnight, this place is going to be a mess. There’s no way we’ll get it all cleaned up by the time Sharla gets home. We’re going to be in big trouble.”
“Jade and Crystal are going to be in big trouble,” Ava pointed out. “They’re the ones who kept inviting everyone they crossed paths with at the supermarket! And those people probably invited their friends, who did the same thing!”
“This is my big sister we’re talking about!” Danielle reminded them. “When have you ever known her not to drag me into things when she gets into trouble?”
“We should try to find them,” Lindsey said, darting her head around the crowd.
“And then what?” Ava asked.
“Have them tell everyone that the party is over!” Lindsey stated.
“It just started!” Ava shot back. “No one’s going to leave.”
“Well, we have to do something!”
“Come on,” Danielle said. “Let’s see if they’re in the kitchen.”
It took them a while to make their way through the crowd, but they finally reached the kitchen. There they found Jade and Crystal opening bags of chips and jars of salsa, pouring them into bowls.
“Isn’t this party a blast!” Jade howled when she caught sight of Danielle.
“There are soooo many cute guys out there,” Crystal giggled.
“There are too many people!” Danielle exclaimed. “This house isn’t big enough for everyone.”
Jade waved a hand dismissively. “It’s a spring break party! It’s supposed to be big!”
“Massive!” Crystal added.
“You’re not back at North Ridge High!” Jade added. “This is how the big kids party!”
“But when everyone leaves, the house is going to be a mess,” Danielle said. “Sharla is going to flip out!”
“Don’t worry about Aunt Sharla,” Crystal said. “I know how to handle her.”
“I hope so,” Danielle worriedly stated.
Jade shoved bowls of chips and salsa at Danielle. “Here, take these into the dining room. Then relax. Have a good time! You’re Miss Spring Break!”
“Maybe she’s right,” Lindsey said as she and Ava followed Danielle out of the kitchen. “Maybe we should just have a good time.”
“I guess,” Danielle murmured. “Things can’t get any worse, right?”
An hour later, thin
gs had gotten worse.
Danielle was walking out of the dining room when Rory stepped in front of her.
“There you are!” he exclaimed, giving her a smile. “I’ve been looking all over for you. From the size of this crowd, it wasn’t easy.”
“The party’s gotten a little bit out of control.”
“But it’s a blast!”
“I’m glad you’re having fun.” Danielle wished she could say the same thing, but she was too busy cleaning up spilled drinks, tossing out paper plates and plastic cups, and trying to make sure the house stayed in one piece. She and Ava and Lindsey had already collected all of Sharla’s fragile belongings and hidden them away in closets so they wouldn’t break.
“I see you’re still wearing your tiara,” Rory said.
“Of course I’m still wearing it! I told you, I’m not taking it off until I get back home.”
“I never got a chance to congratulate you today,” Rory said.
“Yes, you did.”
“I mean really congratulate you. In a personal way.”
“Personal way?” Danielle asked, confused.
Rory nodded, giving Danielle a smile. “I’ve been wanting to do this all week. Since the first time I saw you.”
“Do what?”
“This!”
And then Rory caught Danielle off guard, pressing her against the wall and giving her a kiss.
Danielle wasn’t going to lie to herself. She had wondered what it would be like to kiss Rory and now she was finding out.
His kiss was nice.
He definitely knew what to do with his lips.
But it wasn’t anything special.
His kiss wasn’t like Ethan’s.
Ethan!
Oh, no!
NO!
Luckily, Rory’s kiss ended and Danielle frantically searched the party crowd, but she didn’t see Ethan anywhere. In fact, she hadn’t seen him all night. Maybe he hadn’t arrived yet. Could she be that lucky?
She desperately hoped so.
She knew when it came to Rory that Ethan was jealous.
She didn’t want to imagine what might happen if he saw Rory kissing her.
Ethan couldn’t believe what he was seeing.
He had just walked through the front door and was making his way to the dining room for a soda when he saw Rory kissing Danielle.
Ethan didn’t even think of what he was going to do next. Instinctively, he stormed his way through the party crowd and grabbed Rory by the arm, pulling him off Danielle just as he was getting ready to give her a second kiss.
Rory stared at Ethan’s hand on his arm. “Let go,” he said, his voice a steely whisper.
“What are you going to do if I don’t?”
“This!” Rory shouted, throwing a punch.
Within seconds, Rory and Ethan were punching and shoving each other while the partygoers surrounding them started cheering them on, chanting, “Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!”
“Stop it!” a horrified Danielle cried. “Stop it!”
But Ethan and Rory wouldn’t listen. They kept fighting until Danielle tossed the contents of an ice bucket over their heads. As soon as they were splashed with water, the fighting stopped.
“What did you do that for?” Rory asked, wiping his face with the bottom of his T-shirt.
“I had to do something to break things up!” Danielle shouted.
“He started it!” Ethan accused.
“No, you started it!” Rory threw back.
“Who said you could kiss Danielle?”
“Hey, I might have made the first move, but Danielle didn’t push me away from her. You’ve got two eyes. You saw what was going on. She let me kiss her!”
Listening to Rory’s words, Ethan replayed the scene he had walked in on. It was true. Rory might have been kissing Danielle, but Danielle hadn’t been doing anything to stop him. Suddenly, he felt like an idiot.
“I’m out of here,” Rory told Danielle. “I don’t have time for these games.”
Danielle didn’t say anything to Rory as he walked away. Instead, she turned to Ethan. “Let me look at your face,” she offered, reaching out to gently touch a bruised cheek.
Ethan pushed her hand away. “Leave me alone!” he snarled.
Danielle stared at him in shock. “Ethan! I know you’re mad, but I didn’t ask him to kiss me!”
“Maybe you didn’t ask him,” Ethan accused, “but he’s not solely to blame. You’ve been flirting with him all week. Admit it, Danielle! You wanted him to kiss you!”
Danielle didn’t say anything, which for Ethan was all the answer he needed.
“I thought so,” he whispered.
“Ethan! Wait!” Danielle pleaded. “Let me explain!”
Ethan didn’t want to hear Danielle’s explanation. Instead, he said exactly the same thing as Rory. “I’m out of here.”
Then he turned his back on Danielle and left the party.
Mindy loved arriving late to parties. It meant she could make an entrance. Why show up early when no one was there? If no one was there, they couldn’t see how fabulous you looked.
And tonight Mindy looked fabulous!
She was wearing a ruffled silk chiffon halter dress in purple with strappy sandals and dangling gold earrings.
Across the room, Vivienne waved at her. Mindy knew she and Lacey had come to the party on their own, while Wanda had been picked up earlier in the evening by Rick, who had taken her out to dinner.
“Love the outfit!” Vivienne raved, seeing it for the first time.
Mindy wished she could say the same about what Vivienne was wearing. It was a navy-and-white-zigzag minidress that made Mindy dizzy just looking at it. Lacey’s outfit was just as bad. She was in a silver strapless bustier minidress that made it look like she was wearing aluminum foil! Both dresses had been chosen by Wanda during a shopping spree that afternoon. When Ava had texted Mindy to invite them to the party, Wanda had insisted they all buy new outfits. But once they’d gotten to the mall, instead of letting everyone buy what they wanted, Wanda had weighed in with her own opinion and strongly urged everyone to buy the dresses she suggested.
Everyone had.
But that didn’t mean they had to wear them.
At least Mindy hadn’t.
The lime green ruched rayon jersey dress Wanda had chosen for Mindy was back in her closet. And hidden waaaay in the back! Originally, she was going to wear the dress—because that was what Wanda wanted—but she hated everything about it. The color, the fit, the fabric.
That night, before leaving for the party, she had been wearing the dress and studying herself in her bedroom mirror when Carmela walked by the open doorway. When she saw Mindy in the dress, she did a double take, rubbing her eyes.
“That is one ugly dress!” she exclaimed. “Have you suddenly gone blind?”
“It’s not that bad,” Mindy said, turning away from her image.
“It’s bad!”
“At the store, Wanda said it looked good on me.”
Carmela raised an eyebrow. “And you believed her?”
“Why would she lie?”
Carmela walked over to Mindy and had her face the mirror, pointing to her image. “That’s why! You’re a pretty girl. Much prettier than she is! She doesn’t want you to outshine her.”
“But if I don’t wear the dress, she’ll get mad.”
“Do you want Damian to see you in this dress?”
“No!” Mindy instantly answered although she hadn’t heard from Damian all day. Not that she was surprised. He’d collected his kiss (as well as a second one!) so all interest in her was probably gone. Still, that didn’t mean she couldn’t look hot. Let him see what he’d be missing!
Carmela walked over to Mindy’s closet and slid the door back. “You’ve got a ton of gorgeous dresses in there. Pick one that you like that’s going to make Damian notice you.”
“You really think I should?”
Carmela shook her head. “I’m
not going to tell you what to do, Mindy. But there’s a time when you realize you have to stand up for yourself. Sure, you can do what Wanda says and she’ll probably let you into her group. But is that what you really want? Is that what’s really going to make you happy? Think about it.”
After Carmela left, Mindy turned back to her image in the mirror. Blech! She was a huge Fashion Don’t! She couldn’t wear this! She turned away from the mirror and reached back into her closet, pulling out another dress. The purple chiffon had been a recent purchase and she was dying to wear it. That afternoon, after they’d come home from shopping, she’d been going through her closet when Lacey had walked into her bedroom and seen it.
“Fierce!” she had declared. “I bet you wish you were wearing that tonight! You’d look sensational in it!”
“You think?”
“Without a doubt!”
In the end, Mindy decided to wear the dress that she wanted. After all, how could she not look sensational? Wanda might get pissed off at her, but it was a small price to pay. Besides, she had done everything else Wanda wanted this week. She’d definitely paid her dues.
“So you decided to wear that dress,” Lacey said as she sipped from a red plastic cup. “I didn’t know you were such a rebel. Wanda’s not going to be too happy.”
“Stop scaring her!” Vivienne said.
“I’m not scaring her! I’m telling her the truth.” Lacey lifted her cup, pointing it at herself and Vivienne. “The only reason Wanda picked these hideous dresses for us is because she doesn’t want us to look better than she does.”
“They’re not that bad,” Vivienne said.
“It’s why she picked that lime green dress for you,” Lacey told Mindy. “But you’re not wearing it. And when Wanda finds out, she’s going to be pissed.”
“Where is Wanda?” Vivienne asked. “I haven’t seen her all night.”
“Stick around,” Lacey said. “She’s going to flip out big-time when she sees what Mindy is wearing.”
Mindy found herself getting nervous. “She’s not going to be that mad, is she?”
Lacey shrugged, giving Mindy the same secret smile as the other day. “Wait and see.”
Spring Fling Page 19
