Raw Deal (Beauty for Ashes: Book One) (40 page)

He loaded both our cars with my stuff and then followed me home in his car.

My mom was home, wonder of all wonders. I thought maybe she’d stayed home because I told her I was coming, but when I saw her laptop and stacks of paperwork spread out on the kitchen table, I knew she was just working from home. She told me that she’d started up her own beauty consultancy called
Flawless
. Wow! No wonder my bank balance had been looking so good.

Dan and my mom clicked instantly. I gritted my teeth when she said he could come and stay over for a few days if he wanted to during the vacation. “He’s not my boyfriend,” I ground out. I went to my room to wait for him to leave. A few minutes later, he followed me up, under the guise of helping me bring my stuff up.

“Where do you want these?” he asked.

I glared at him.

He dropped the bags on the floor. “Why did you dump me?”

I couldn’t believe he was just asking that after all this time. “Why? You didn’t care before.”

“I did, but I know how you treat guys who care about you.”

“What does that mean?”

Dan leaned against my table. “I saw how you made Carl follow you around begging.”

“Go home, Dan.”

“No, I want to know. I’ll leave as soon as you tell me.”

“I saw you with someone else.”

“While we were together?” Dan shook his head in defense. “I swear I didn’t see anyone else while I was with you.”

I knew what I saw, but I wasn’t about to argue this out. It was over anyway. There was no point trying to do a post mortem now.

“Are you sure you saw me with someone else? Because I can honestly swear, Lexi, I didn’t play you. I swear on my life.”

“I saw you Dan. But it doesn’t matter now anyway.”

“Where and when did you see me?”

“On the day I dumped you.”

Dan frowned. “Was that after I caught you with Carl?”

“You didn’t catch me with Carl. I told you nothing happened.”

“Well, I didn’t believe you.”

I rolled my eyes. “So now you’re gonna say you did it because you thought I was doing it.”

“Well, weren’t you?”

“No!” I could tell Dan didn’t believe me.

“Carl was trying to get back with you, and you weren’t giving him much resistance.”

“Carl just wanted us to stay friends.”

“We both know that’s not true.”

“Okay, whatever. It’s over anyway.”

Dan stepped forward and shut my room door. “It doesn’t have to be. Maybe if we’d talked rather than ignoring our anger, we’d still be together.”

“If anyone had any anger and ignored it, it was you. I tried to talk to you, but you wouldn’t listen.”

Dan was quiet for a moment. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be.”

“No, I really am.” Dan crossed the room and took my hand. “Is it too late to ask for another chance?”

I was sick of being caught between two guys. “It’s too late. I’m back with Carl.”

Dan’s hand dropped away. “Already.”

It had been a few weeks, so it wasn’t ‘already.’

“Well, I’ve still got our booking for Hawaii. Do you want to come?”

“No.”

Chapter 49

The lead up to Christmas was horrendous—almost as horrendous as last year. I couldn’t believe how upset I was that my dad wasn’t around. Christmas seemed to really bring out my blues.

My mom was never available. Even if she was home, she was in her own world on her laptop, and we barely spoke more than a paragraph to each other each day. To say that I was lonely was a huge understatement.

Dan hounded me about Hawaii. I knew I couldn’t go, but it was tempting. I could get away for a week, lie on a beach, and forget all my sorrows.

Carl was caught up with meeting high school friends who were back for the holiday. I should have been too, but I didn’t care to see anyone. I texted Monica, but she wasn’t coming back until Christmas Eve.

On Christmas Eve, she came to my house straight from the airport with Sandy. My mom opened the door and promptly snatched the bottle of wine that Sandy was holding.

“Go back to the kitchen, Mom, please,” I said rolling my eyes. “Merry Christmas, you guys.”

“Merry Christmas,” Monica and Sandy squealed.

We went to my room to catch up. I couldn’t believe they’d come straight from the airport.

Sandy filled me in about New York and college and all the mischief she’d gotten into in her first semester. I giggled all the way through. She was still dating Kevin, but she’d met another guy called Andrew. Apparently, he was super hot.

“So has anything happened with you and Andrew?” I asked.

Sandy grinned and then looked at Monica. “I’d tell you, but miss Virgin Mary is here.” She rolled her eyes.

Monica sighed. “Go ahead. I won’t say anything.”

“Well,” Sandy began. “Andy doesn’t live on campus, which is great. I can just go and hide out at his place for a couple nights and not get worried that Kevin’ll catch me.”

“But I thought you were crazy about Kevin?” I asked.

“I am.”

“So why are you cheating on him.”

Sandy looked incredulous. “Why not? I bet he’s doing it too.”

“Kevin isn’t cheating on you, and you know it,” Monica said.

“He’s a guy,” Sandy said. “Guys cheat all the time. You both know that.”

“Not all guys,” Monica said. “Liam never cheated on me.”

“How do you know?”

“I just know.”

Sandy smiled mirthlessly. “I’ve had enough of dating guys and thinking they actually care about me, only to discover that they’ve been playing me. And you know what? They all do it. I don’t care what anyone says. They can’t keep their pants up.”

“That doesn’t mean you should start cheating too,” Monica said. “And deep down you must know that Kevin wouldn’t cheat on you.”

“Monica, I don’t care,” Sandy said in exasperation. “I’ve dated plenty guys that I never cheated on, but they cheated on me. That’s life.”

“You can’t take that out on Kevin.”

Sandy glared at Monica, and she raised her hands. “Sorry.”

Sandy looked at me. “Back to what I was saying, I don’t see Andy all the time, just every now and then.”

“Well, shut up and listen to my story then,” I said tossing my hair. “I started dating Carl when we got back to college, but there’s this guy that lives by me called Dan.”

Sandy giggled. “And?”

“He is the hottest thing you ever saw.”

Monica switched on my TV, obviously not interested.

“You might know who he is because his dad owns the Diamond Parlor.”

“Dan Black?” Sandy asked.

“Yeah.”

Her mouth dropped. “You’re kidding.”

“I’m not.”

“He is hot!”

“I know.”

Sandy elbowed Monica. “Didn’t you have a thing for him one time?”

Monica nodded. “That was ages ago. Jace had a hotel function, and he was there. I don’t think he even noticed me though.”

“Yeah, Monica was talking about him for weeks saying he was a black girls’ white boy,” Sandy said giggling.

“Well, he’s been cooking me stir fry rice and trying to get with me.”

“Right, start from the beginning,” Sandy ordered.

I told them everything that had happened. Sandy booed when I said I’d gotten back with Carl and turned down Dan’s Hawaii invitation. “Girl, go to Hawaii,” she said.

“I can’t.”

“Why not?”

“It’s not right, and Carl might find out.”

“And he might not.”

“I know, but I’d feel guilty.”

Monica found a religious channel and turned the volume up. She’d tuned out of our discussion.

“The way I see it,” Sandy said, “is that Dan is loaded, and he wants to take you to Hawaii. No girl would turn that down. Even Carl wouldn’t turn down an offer like that if someone like Jamie Price asked him.”

That was probably true. “But if I go, Dan is going to expect me to put out.”

“And you don’t want to?”

I giggled at Sandy’s expression. “You are nuts.”

Monica glanced at me. “Don’t go, Lexi.”

“Why not?” Sandy asked.

“Can’t you two see how empty it all is?” she asked. “What’s the point of a relationship if there’s no trust? What’s the point of just messing about? Don’t you just feel empty after it all?”

Sandy smiled. “No.”

Monica stood up. “I’ll go help your mom in the kitchen. Whatever she’s cooking smells good.”

Sandy gave me a bored expression when Monica left the room. “Ever since that girl got religion, she’s turned into such a bore.”

That evening after they left, I was wrapping presents in my room, and my mom came to check on me. “Is that mine?” she asked.

“No, Aunt Milly’s.”

“Did you get something for your grandmother?”

“Yep.” I decided to broach the Hawaii subject with her. “You know Dan, who helped me bring my stuff home?”

“Yes?”

“We’re going to Hawaii.”

Her expression changed. “When?”

“Boxing Day.”

“I thought he wasn’t your boyfriend?”

“Well, it’s complicated.”

“Have you been sleeping with him?”

I looked at my mom uncomfortably. “Why?”

“Because that’s what you’ll be doing with him in Hawaii, in case you didn’t know.”

“Well, Mom, that’s my personal business. I think I’m old enough to handle my stuff.”

My mom looked displeased. “Well, you’re a college student. What did I expect?” she muttered. “I have a good mind to tell your grandmother about it.”

And?
I said internally.

“Well, I guess you’re only young once,” she continued. “If you’re going to lose your head over some guy, I guess I’d rather it was a good-looking one like Dan. Just look after yourself.”

I grinned. “I will.”

***

Hawaii was hot and humid. Dan and I spent three full days joining in with the local festivities, relaxing on the beach, and dining in Honolulu’s finest restaurants each evening.

I had tried to get Dan to agree that we were vacationing as friends and nothing more. He hadn’t agreed to it, but I had promised myself that nothing was going to happen.

I’d kind of given Carl the impression that I was going to England to spend time with my relatives out there. I did feel guilty, but I’d decided that once I got back to LA I was going end things with Dan once and for all and concentrate on Carl.

Throughout our stay, Dan spent money. He showered me with jewelry, bought lots of flowers, booked me into a spa for a full luxury package, and generally ensured that I cost him a bomb. If I just wanted a glass of water, he ordered one that cost ten dollars. If I wanted to go soak in the bathtub before bedtime, he rang reception and got them to evacuate the fitness center and fill the Jacuzzi with rose petals and perfumed water for me.

It was all so over the top and elaborate, and I loved every second of it. The only thing that put a damper on my mood was the fact that it couldn’t last. I couldn’t date Dan.

***

“How was it?” my mom asked when I got back. She looked at me with a disapproved frown, and I grinned at her.

“It was great.”

My mom helped me carry my bag up to my room. I gave her the presents and souvenirs I’d bought her, and she eased up with her annoyance.

“Carl came by today to see if you were back yet. You didn’t tell me you’re dating Carl again.”

“What did you say to him?”

“Just that you weren’t back and that who knew, maybe you were planning to spend another day or two over in England with your cousins.” My mom’s tone dripped heavily with sarcasm, and her disapproving frown returned.

“Well, I’ve told Dan that it’s over now. I’m sticking with Carl, and I’m not two-timing anymore.”

My mom looked at me like she didn’t know me anymore. “I can’t believe what I’m hearing.”

I flopped onto my bed and ran a hand through my hair. I’d had my roots done in Hawaii, and the hairdresser had put in some highlights. I was probably going to stay blond for a while.

“Jace was here yesterday too,” my mom said.

“What did he want?”

“He was on his way to the airport to go back to New York, and he wanted to drop off a Christmas present for you.”

“Where is it?”

“On your table.”

I opened it when she left the room. It was a diamond encrusted watch from the Diamond Parlor that I would never have been able to afford in a zillion years.

I smiled as I slipped it onto my wrist. My ex-boyfriend was still buying me things from my other ex-boyfriend’s shop. Twisted!