Various States of Undress: Virginia (25 page)

“This is Ariel. She's my sister, and I have no clue why she would kiss him,” Dex interrupted. “Although I would like to know what she's doing here.”

Ariel let out a laugh. “My goodness. So many questions.” She set her purse down on a nearby table and linked her arm through Dorian's. “I'll try to explain. Dorian invited me tonight as his date. There. Explanation over.”

Silence took hold for a beat and then Stacey gasped. “What? Why would you do that?” She stared at Dorian, hurt in her eyes. “I'm here. You knew I would be here.”

Dorian's asshole expression shifted slightly, and he actually looked uncomfortable. “Ariel, we had decided on Saturday. Not Friday.”

“Oh!” Ariel put her hands to her face. “I'm so embarrassed.”

No, she wasn't. She was a terrible actress, but she wasn't the least bit embarrassed. And she wasn't here on accident, either. Virginia glanced from Ariel to Stacey, who was busy taking another long pull from her drink. Gently, Virginia wrestled it away and set it on a table. “Maybe you and I should go to the ladies room.” Stacey nodded, but before they could leave, Dex spoke up.

“Ariel, there was no need to go to all the trouble to spy on me, you know. The photos from this event will be online before the night is through.”

“Why would I spy on you, Brother?” Ariel responded. “Dorian and I go way back. Sometimes we're on. Sometimes we're off.” She smiled up at Dorian, who smiled back. “Right now? We're on.”

Dorian chuckled. “We started dating again when she called to ask for advice about buying property in London. As you all might have heard, there's going to be another Flash opening in the UK. Isn't that exciting?”

Nobody said anything. Finally, Dex sighed wearily. “He's using you, Ariel.”

Ariel stared at him, her face turning red. “Excuse me? You're the one infatuated with the president's daughter, which, if you think about it, is beyond ridiculous, considering that you can barely string two words together. Don't talk to me about being
used
.” She laughed, but she might has well have slapped Dex in the face. He stood there, frozen, his fists clenched, not saying a word.

Virginia ached for him because she knew why he didn't speak. He was too pissed off. Ariel knew that too, didn't she? She was smirking. God, Dex truly had a horrible family. Virginia had thought it before, but she knew it now in her heart—he deserved kindness because he was kind. He deserved support because he tried so hard. And most of all, he deserved love.

“Are you going to take that?” Stacey asked. Virginia glanced at her and was relieved to see the mischievous spark coming to life in her friend's eyes.

“Oh hell no,” Virginia answered. She turned to Dex. “Have a seat.” He barely acknowledged her request, but sat down, woodenly, in a chair nearby. She climbed onto his lap and took his face in her hands. She gazed at him for a long moment and then bent forward to kiss him with everything in her heart. It wasn't a desperate kiss—but it was more passionate than any kiss they'd shared before. When it was over, she leaned her forehead against his. “I'm obsessed with you,” she mouthed and was rewarded with one of his lopsided grins that made her toes curl.

There was the sound of a camera clicking, and Virginia glanced up to see Stacey holding a phone upright. She grinned at Virginia and then turned to Ariel, whose ire was written all over her face. “That's right, you beeyatch. You saw that with your own eyes. And in case you didn't, I have proof right here. If my friend Ginny is using Dex, then it's for a hell of lot more than a job at Lilah's.”

Dex didn't say anything. He didn't have to—his grin said it for him. “What do you say we grab Stacey and go mingle?” he asked. “We paid for three hours of time here.”

“And then we're never coming back?” She looked at him hopefully.

“Fuck no.”

She laughed and stood up, glancing at Stacey. “Let's go party.”

“Woot!” Stacey picked her drink up off the table, held it up, and advanced on Dorian, who flinched. “Oh, for God's sake, I'm not going to throw my drink in your face. It's too tasty to waste. I just wanted to let you get a good look at me because after tonight you'll never see me again.” She smiled at Ariel. “Enjoy.” Then she flounced over to the stairs and clip-clopped down the steps in her stilettos.

Dex turned toward Ariel and motioned her forward. She narrowed her eyes but walked toward him. “What?”

“Ariel, a tool like Dorian isn't interested in anything but what he can get from you. London isn't worth sacrificing your self-respect.”

She stiffened. “You're just trying to throw me off my game, which isn't going to happen. He has inside information on some hot real estate in London, which I'm sure Granddad would be happy to know about. You don't know Dorian.”

“I'm happy about that. But I do know that backstabbing, bitter people tend to gravitate toward each other. And when one of them is desperate—” He cocked his head to the side and looked at her. “Well, that person usually ends up getting burned.” He gave her a sad smile and then turned back to Virginia. “You ready?”

Virginia nodded and headed for the stairs, a thrill spreading through her at the feel of Dex's hand—on the small of her back.

Chapter Thirteen

T
HURSDAY MORNING
, V
IRGINIA
woke up to the singsong cadence of her sister's voice. Georgia was in the extra bedroom, cooing to Junior Mint, as she had done every morning since she'd been visiting. It was nice for Virginia not to have the cat planted on
her
chest, but it was painful listening to Georgia. All the same, Virginia lay there for a moment and listened, shaking her head against the pillow.

“Who's a good boy? Who's a sweet kitty? Who's the fattest piece of shit in the world? Yeah. It's you, Junior Mint. Aww.” Georgia chuckled, and then a second later, she gasped. “Ow. Ow. Get your claws off my face.”

“I keep telling you, you can't try to pick him up. He'll just dig in more, Georgia.” Virginia called. “Move his paws, roll him over, and dump him on the ground.”

“That's mean,” Georgia called back. “Ow!” She gasped again. “Okay.” A few seconds later, there was a loud thump, followed by a feline grunt. Virginia chuckled and sat up. “How did you sleep?”

Georgia walked into her room and sat on the edge of the bed. “Great. I keep thinking I won't because we're in the city, but this place is quiet. She sighed. “It's a nice change from the past few days, though, and I almost wish we weren't going back out this morning. We're going to have trouble getting away from the paparazzi at your photo shoot, won't we?”

“I hope not.”

“But I know you'll be glad to see Dex.” Georgia gave Virginia a light shove. “I, for one, can't wait to watch you make a fool of yourself over him.”

“Well, keep your eyeballs in your head, little sister.” Virginia had missed Dex, though. She'd crazy-missed him. She hadn't seen him in five days, and she hadn't wanted to bother him because, with her gone, he was picking up her slack at Lilah's. A few phone calls and texts were the only communication they'd had, and most of those were about lingerie—not what she was wearing but what would be stocked at Lilah's. She frowned and glanced at her sister.

Georgia blinked her long lashes. “I see that look in your eyes, Virginia. I keep telling you to ditch me and go see your boyfriend, so why won't you?”

“I want to, but he's busy,” she answered evasively. The truth was, during the time apart from him, worrying about the future had clouded every moment. Both she and Dex had great things in store, but they weren't the
same
things—they weren't even on the same continent. And with the launch of Lilah's quickly approaching, there was barely time to catch her breath. Plus, any period of time she had with Dex, she selfishly wanted all to herself. No little sisters along for the ride. Virginia knew that Georgia, Miss Intuition, would realize immediately that she was a third wheel, and Virginia didn't want her to feel that way. Her sister worked her ass off at school and deserved a fun spring break. Virginia had done her best to provide that. They'd gone to the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, and, at Georgia's urging, several obscure museums and odd historic sites. It had been exhausting traipsing all over, but there had been plenty of wholesome photo ops, many of which were all-too-eagerly recorded by the media. The
Post
had even done a two-page spread titled “Georgia Attacks New York: Virginia Joins the Conquest.” So lame. Like nobody had ever attempted a witty play on their names before. But still—it was nice having positive publicity for once.

“Tell me what you're really thinking,” Georgia said in a dry tone. She pulled the elastic band from the end of her braid and began separating sections, smoothing her hair as she went. It bounced back up, the waves turning into curls. “Dammit. Nothing I do with my hair works.”

Virginia smiled. Her sister hated her curly hair, as well as the sweet little freckles scattered across her nose, and her curvaceous figure. She even took issue with her large brown eyes, which she called freaky alien orbs. Someday, a wonderful guy would make her think otherwise about all of it, but Virginia knew that right now, Georgia was uncomfortable in her own skin. Just as uncomfortable as Virginia was in her own head, and she was well aware of the
real
reason she had avoided seeking out Dex. She was terribly afraid that she was falling in love with him. And Georgia knew, didn't she? She was so smart—so intuitive. She was also staring at Virginia with wonder in her eyes. “Oh my God, you're really serious about Dex, aren't you?” Georgia asked.

“I—yeah.” Virginia sighed. “But I don't know if he feels the same way. And if he doesn't, it would really suck because we're so far into this project together. It would be awkward if . . .” She shook her head, not wanting to spill her worry about him going to London. “I'm not saying a word to him yet.”

“Are you going to be involved with Lilah's when the project is over?”

“Dex and I haven't discussed it.” She looked at Georgia. “And to be honest, I haven't allowed myself to think about it. So thanks for bringing it to my attention, Curious Georgia.” She smacked Georgia's shoulder.

“Ow.” Georgia pouted and rubbed her shoulder. “Jeez, Virginia. First I'm mauled half to death by the stupid cat and now you hit me?”

“Oh, give me a break. You love that cat, and guess what?”

“What?”

“I texted Mom and found out that the house you're living in allows pets, so I'm thinking that Junior Mint needs to take a permanent vacation from Manhattan.”

“Really?” Georgia grinned. “Okay, I guess, but he's not a very bright animal.”

“Then you'll balance him out with your massive IQ.” Virginia stood up and stretched. “I'm going to take a shower. And then we'll grab a bite on the way to Lilah's.”

“Great. I can't wait to meet Dex.” Georgia paused. “Oh, and see your modeling shoot, of course.”

“Mm-hm. You're about as interested in fashion merchandising as I am in technical writing—or whatever it is you're majoring in.”

“Investigative journalism. And don't pretend you're dense, Virginia, because we both know better than that. There's nothing wrong with modeling. If I had the body, I might be interested.”

“No, you wouldn't, and there's nothing wrong with your body. But to be honest, neither one of us would find it very easy maintaining the type of body needed for modeling. Fashion merchandising is . . .” She smiled. “I love it. The fabrics, the new designer lines every season, and choosing what ends up in the stores is really fun.”

Georgia frowned a little. “Is that what you'd be doing with Perry Ellis?”

“Well, not really.” Virginia hadn't told her sister a lot about the opportunity. It still gave her a thrill every time it crossed her mind, but that thrill morphed into a sense of anxiety almost immediately. It meant taking a path that led her away from Dex, which her gut said was the wrong move. But her sense of pride made her want to grab hold of Perry Ellis and not let go. She'd felt like shit when she dumped Owlton. She didn't want to feel that way again.

“So what would you be doing?” Georgia pressed.

“I told you, they want to design a line around me. I'd be promoting it.”

Georgia didn't look very convinced. “So your job would be . . . being the celebrity you.”

“Something like that. Look, we need to go soon. Go text Muscles, Silent, and your guys—what are their names?”

“Um, you call them Bugs and Daffy.”

“Yeah, them. Tell them we'll be ready in an hour.”

Georgia rolled her eyes but left the room, scooping up Junior Mint as she went. Virginia hopped into the shower, her mind immediately straying to Dex. It stayed focused on him as she toweled off, dried her hair, and got dressed. As she sipped a cup of coffee, waiting for Georgia to shower, she conjured up Dex's sexy face and stared across the living room, unable to stop smiling. When Georgia finally emerged from the extra bedroom, dressed and ready to go, Virginia let out a long sigh to combat the butterflies in her stomach.

“Oh my God. All you need is a balcony and a Renaissance dress,” Georgia commented. “Grab your purse and let's go see Romeo before you expire from pining away.”

“Shut up!”

Georgia giggled as she walked to the front door, and when she opened it, four agents stood waiting in the hallway. “Good morning, guys.”

“Hi, Georgia. Virginia.” Muscles looked serious. “Listen, we need to discuss what's going to happen today since this photo shoot is taking place outdoors. We're going to need you two to be very careful about following our direction, and if we have to shut the shoot down because of the crowds, that's what we'll have to do. Okay?”