Page 38 of Moonstruck at Midnight
“All done,” Lily said, setting the flower crown on my head.
William kept staring at me, at the flower crown, at my dress. It made me feel uneasy, so I pretended not to acknowledge his stare and turned to Lily to thank her instead. “The flowers are beautiful,” I told her.
William stood beside me and sipped on his beer—his eyes still focused on me.
“That’s a very nice dress, Billie,” Tobias said out of nowhere. “Can I get you something to drink?” I turned to look at him and accepted, but William was gone when I looked the other way.
Where did he go?
And why should I care?
Tobias gestured anafter youhand wave, and we slowly moved toward the table that served as a bar. “What would you like?” he asked.
“What do you usually drink on these occasions?”
“Lots of aquavit … and beer.” He smiled naughtily. I’d never heard of aquavit before, but whatever it was it sounded like I wouldn’t be able to stomach more than a couple, and I didn’t like beer at all.
“Is this the aquavit?” I asked, grabbing one of the bottles from the ice bucket. Tobias nodded. “I’ve never tasted it before. Do you do shots with it, or how do you drink this?”
I was curious.
“Shots, spritzers, straight out of the bottle. You name it.” He laughed. “Let me fix you a spritzer. Girls usually like them.”
“I’m not twenty-one yet,” I confessed. This new alcoholic beverage made me doubt if I should drink or not. I’d only drunk wine before.
“Well, I won’t tell a soul,” Tobias whispered in my ear. He grabbed a glass for me and poured ice into it. He looked so elegant and handsome too.
“I’ve got it,” William uttered behind me, casually shoving Tobias away. He started preparing the cocktail before I could even say yes. I wondered how many drinks he’d fixed to girls before and how that was absolutely none of my business. Tobias walked around William and stepped beside me. He wasn’t intimidated by his older brother.
“That looks really good,” I said as William smashed different berries with a wooden muddler.
“Here you go.” He offered the finished cocktail to me. I took a sip—mmm—it was delicious.
“So, what’s the verdict?” Tobias asked.
“This is different. Fresh. I like it.” I was about to thank William for my drink, but he was gone…again. He was chatting with his father on the far end of the rooftop.
Tobias and I walked back to the table, and I took a seat next to Lily.
“Why do I feel like I’ve seen you before?” I asked Lily.
“Um, maybe we’ve bumped into each other in the lobby?” she replied nonchalantly.
“She’s a supermodel, that’s why.” Eric chuckled. “She’s trying to be humble about it, but her face is everywhere.”
Of course. Guys that looked likethesecould easily get away with dating supermodels. And there’s a ton to pick and choose from in New York City. But still, I’d seen her before, and I thought I remembered where. “Did you, by any chance, attend the Michael Kors event at the Ambassador’s Residence in Paris last March? During fashion week? I feel like I saw you there,” I told her.
“Yes! I did, actually. Were you there too?”
“Yes, I was.”
“Are you a model?”
She must be joking. I’m not even tall enough. “No, no, no. I’m actually a photographer, well, I’m studying photography. My father hosted the event, so I was—a guest, too.”
“So, your father’s the United States Ambassador of France,” Joel affirmed. Not a question. Everyone turned to look at me.
“Was, for the past four years.” Thank God Caleb wasn’t here. I’m sure he would kill me if he listened to me talking about this matter. But I couldn’t live in hiding. The conversation unfolded naturally, and I didn’t see any harm in that.
