Sweet Deceit

  “So did you?” Ariana asked.

  Lexa’s brow knit. “What?”

  “Smile,” Ariana said.

  Lexa paused in front of the bathroom door near the end of the hall. “Of course,” she said. Like the question of whether or not she was going to help keep up her parents’ ruse wasn’t even a question at all. “Hang on. I need to make a gloss stop,” she said, shoving open the bathroom door.

  As Ariana entered the bathroom, Lexa bent down to check under the doors of the two stalls, making sure they were alone. Ariana’s heart started to pound. This was it. Lexa was going to ask her about Palmer. The elephant pressed its massive foot down on her chest, making it impossible to breathe.

  “I have a question for you,” Lexa said, dropping her bag on the counter next to one of the sinks. Ariana braced herself. “About Lillian.”

  Ariana blinked but didn’t relax. Instead, her pulse started racing in a completely different direction. Lexa dug through the outside pocket of her bag and came out with a tube of berry-colored gloss.

  “Okay,” Ariana said warily. She joined Lexa at the sinks, leaning her hip against the counter.

  “Does she ever say anything about her family?” Lexa asked, dabbing some gloss on her lower lip. “Any brothers or sisters? Anything about going home for the holidays?”

  Ariana swallowed hard. “Not really.”

  “Huh. It’s odd, isn’t it?” Lexa said, taking out her eyeliner. “I mean, she’s so friendly and talkative most of the time. You’d think she’d be one of those people who never shut up about their friends and family.”

  “Well, we’re not really that close,” Ariana replied.

  Lexa blinked. “But she told you all those stories about her old school. About pranking that girl and everything. Do you know where she used to go?”

  Ariana turned to the sink and turned it on full blast. Son of a bitch. Of course that story made it sound like she and Kaitlynn were best friends, up all night talking and bonding and reminiscing.

  “No. I don’t think she ever mentioned the name of the school,” she said, reaching for the soap.

  “Weird,” Lexa said, capping the eyeliner. “We checked with admissions, and even they don’t have a copy of her most recent transcripts. How did she even get in here?”

  “I don’t know, but they must have reviewed her file,” Ariana said, scrubbing her hands hard to mask the fact that they were trembling.

  “This school’s next to impossible to get into. They don’t take just anyone, right?”

  “True,” Lexa said. She looked at her reflection and smoothed the hem of her long shirt over her hips.

  “Maybe there’s a reason it all needs to be kept a secret,” Ariana suggested. “Maybe she’s in the witness protection program or something.”

  Lexa paused in her grooming, arching one eyebrow. “Huh. Interesting.”

  Ariana shut the water off and turned to grab a paper towel, her nerves quivering. She had to change the subject and she had to do it fast. She decided it was time to bite the bullet. If Lexa wasn’t going to mention the elephant, she would. Maybe it would stop her from feeling so tense, give her the power in this conversation, if she showed Lexa that she wasn’t going to be cowed by her games.

  “I have a question for you, too,” Ariana said. “About the tasks.”

  Was it her imagination, or had Lexa just flinched? Was talking about the tasks outside the Tombs verboten?

  “Okay,” Lexa said, crossing her arms over her chest.

  “Well, what if the task is kind of subjective?” Ariana asked, turning to face Lexa again. “Like my last one—I was supposed to make a spectacle of myself, but I wasn’t sure how big of a spectacle was required.”

  This was true. When Ariana had first received her task she had been clueless as to what to do and therefore terrified of getting it wrong. But in the end, she had been pretty proud of herself for her performance. She had walked into the dining hall right in the middle of a meal, climbed up on a table, and performed a song and dance for everyone to see. She still smiled every time she thought about the resulting standing ovation.

  Lexa laughed and lifted her bag strap over her head again. “Well, you executed that one perfectly. I’m sure you’ll do fine.”

  Ariana eyed Lexa. She had assumed that the task was her friend’s way of punishing Ariana and Palmer for getting together. But there was no teasing lilt in Lexa’s expression as they stood together in the bathroom. No knowing glances. So maybe Ariana was just being paranoid. Maybe it was April and Conrad’s job to come up with the tasks. Could one of them suspect Palmer and Ariana? Was Conrad trying to get revenge on his new girlfriend’s ex?

  Thinking about it all made Ariana’s head hurt.

  “Well, I’m glad you think so,” Ariana said.

  “Whatever you do, just make sure you get it done by the deadline,” Lexa advised curtly.

  “Of course,” Ariana replied, stung.

  “I’m just trying to help.” Lexa crossed her arms over her chest. “You don’t want to know what’ll happen if you fail. Believe me.”

  Ariana felt as if she’d just been slapped. Where did Lexa get off talking down to her like that? She’d never copped an attitude with Ariana before. Did she think that it was okay to do so now that Ariana knew Lexa had power over her? All this time Ariana had been tiptoeing around the girl, keeping her relationship with Palmer on the back burner just to spare Lexa’s feelings. And to keep herself in the running for Stone and Grave as well, but still. It had started out as an attempt to spare Lexa’s feelings. But clearly, Lexa didn’t care quite as much about sparing Ariana’s.

  “Come on. We’re gonna be late for English,” Lexa said, brushing past Ariana and yanking open the door.

  “I’m right behind you,” Ariana said.

  The second the door swung shut behind Lexa, Ariana whipped out her cell phone and sent Palmer a text.

  RE: YOUR INVITE. I’M IN.

  CHEESY

  “I have to confess, when you said you wanted to take me out on a real date, I thought there would probably be a restaurant involved,” Ariana said as she tucked her coat underneath her legs and settled down on the cool marble steps in front of the Lincoln Memorial. All around them, tourists paused to take pictures and security guards strolled back and forth along the foot of the stairs. A group of laughing schoolchildren chased each other up the steps, shouting to each other in a foreign language.

  “Well, this is my favorite spot in the city,” Palmer confided, dropping down next to her. “I mean, check out this view,” he said, lifting a hand toward the Washington Monument and the Reflecting Pool in front of it. He wore a gray wool coat over his black turtleneck, and his black hair fell over his forehead. He was so handsome, Ariana felt warm just looking at him.

  Ariana took a deep breath of the crisp fall air and tore her gaze reluctantly from Palmer. The sun was just starting to dip behind the monument, and the beautiful colors of the sunset were reflected in the water of the long, rectangular pool.

  “Okay. I’ll give it to you,” Ariana said. “It is beautiful here.”

  “Besides, I packed a picnic basket,” Palmer pointed out, lifting an old-school wicker basket onto the step between them. “That’s kinda romantic, right?”

  “Depends on what you’ve got in there,” Ariana joked, angling her chin to try to see inside.

  Palmer extracted two linen napkins, one of which he flicked open and lay across Ariana’s lap. Then he did the same with his own. He reached into the basket again and came out with two covered bowls and two spoons.

  “It’s a famous family recipe and one of my favorite things to eat in the fall,” he said, handing her a bowl and spoon. “Veal stew.”

  Ariana peeled the lid off her bowl, and steam wafted from the scrumptious-smelling dish. She could see bits of peeled potato and carrot and onion nestled in among the morsels of meat.

  “How did you make this?” she asked. “Does Alpha tower have a gourmet kitch
en I don’t know about?”

  “I didn’t actually make it myself,” Palmer confessed sheepishly. He took out two water bottles, popped their tops, and handed one to her. “I called home and had my mom’s cook whip it up and drive it over. But if I had a kitchen at my disposal, I absolutely would have cooked it myself. I’m an excellent chef.”

  “Really?” Ariana asked with a smile.

  “You should try my peanut butter and jelly and Eggo waffle sandwiches,” Palmer said seriously. “I’ve had several restaurateurs offer to buy the recipe from me, but I refuse to sell out.”

  Ariana laughed and took a bite of her stew. The meat practically melted in her mouth.

  “Palmer, this is amazing,” she said as he placed a basket of crusty bread down on the step behind them. “Thank you so much for sharing your secret family dish with me.”

  “Of course,” Palmer said with a grin. He stirred his stew with a spoon, blushing and smiling as he looked down into the bowl. “There are a lot of things I want to share with you, Ana.”

  Ariana’s heart flipped and she glanced over at him. He met her eye and laughed.

  “That was insanely cheesy, wasn’t it?” he asked.

  “Kind of,” she said, scrunching her nose. Then she laughed as well and reached over the basket to touch his arm as his blush deepened. “No! I’m just kidding! It was sweet.”

  “I’m just saying. . . .” Palmer shrugged and turned his knees toward hers on the steps. “I want to do more stuff like this with you. Sometimes I spend whole class periods just thinking about all the places we can go together and all the things we can do.”

  “Really? Which class periods?” Ariana asked with a grin.

  “Chemistry, mostly. God, I hate chemistry,” Palmer said.

  “Me too,” Ariana replied.

  “ To hating chemistry, then,” Palmer said, lifting his plastic water bottle.

  “Except ours,” Ariana replied, clicking her bottle’s neck against his.

  Palmer looked at her, his bottle frozen halfway to his mouth. “Now that was cheesy.”

  Ariana giggled. “I guess we just bring it out in each other.”

  Palmer smiled a smile that sent Ariana’s heart fluttering around like a butterfly. “Yeah. I guess we do.”

  Leaning slightly into his side, Ariana sighed contentedly. She was glad she had said yes to Palmer’s invitation. If Lexa’s plan had been to drive her and Palmer apart, it clearly wasn’t working. In fact, it had the exact opposite effect. She half-wished Lexa would walk by so Ariana could wave and say something coy like, “Hey, Lexa. Have you met my boyfriend, Palmer?” just to show her how her little task was not getting to her.

  But for now, this was enough. Because for the moment, Ariana felt more in control of the situation than ever. Which was just the way she liked it.

  NO NOELLE

  “So, Landon’s at the library cramming for some English exam with his study group,” Palmer said, squeezing Ariana’s hand as they walked through the hushed lobby of Privilege House after their date. Ariana could hear a few of the cardio machines humming in the gym and the TV playing at a low volume in the lounge, but otherwise the place was quiet. “Want to come up?”

  Ariana felt his invitation in every inch of her body. There was nothing she wanted more than to come up. But ever-so-suddenly her skin stopped tingling. Because she immediately thought of the camera she’d put in her purse before the date and started to wonder whether she could position it in such a way that it could record what was happening between them. Started pondering how she could hide it from Palmer and get the best angle. Realized that by tonight, her Stone and Grave task could be complete—if only she was willing to sully the perfect evening she and Palmer had spent together.

  And then she started to feel nauseated.

  “Ana?” he asked, raising his eyebrows.

  “Actually, I don’t think that’s the best idea,” she said.

  The boys’ elevator pinged and a couple of sophomore guys walked out, gabbing about their high scores on some video game. Palmer automatically dropped Ariana’s hand, but the guys didn’t even seem to notice them there. She expected him to reach for her fingers again once they were gone, but he only stepped further away.

  “Not the best idea, huh?” he asked, shoving his hands into the pockets of his wool coat. “Did I do something? Or is this about Lexa again?”

  Ariana swallowed a lump that had formed in her throat.

  “No. It’s not about Lexa, I swear,” she said, stepping toward him. “Honestly, I just . . . I think I probably shouldn’t have had that ice cream on top of the stew.”

  Palmer’s handsome face instantly creased with concern. He reached up and touched her cheek, tucking a stray lock of auburn hair behind her ear. “I’m sorry. You don’t feel well? You should have said something.”

  “And make my new boyfriend aware of my weak stomach?” Ariana joked, tears stinging her eyes over the ruined romance of the night. Two seconds ago Palmer had been thinking about kissing her. Now he was probably thinking about watching her throw up. “Not likely.”

  Palmer gave her a small smile. “Do you want me to walk you back to your room?”

  “No, thanks. I’ll be okay,” Ariana said.

  “Okay. Well, text me if you need anything.”

  He reached over and hit the up button on the girls’ elevator, then leaned down and kissed her forehead. Great. Thanks to the specter of her stupid Stone and Grave task hanging over her head, she wasn’t even going to get a proper kiss good night. A perfectly romantic first date had just been ruined by some Stone and Graver’s idea of a joke. When one day she found out who actually did write the tasks, she was going to smack that person upside the head.

  The elevator pinged and the doors slipped open. Ariana stepped inside and gave Palmer an awkward wave. The second the doors closed again, she rested her forehead against the cold metal surface in front of her and groaned in frustration.

  How was she ever going to complete the task of catching Palmer in a compromising position? She cared about the guy. Not only that, she didn’t want to cheapen their new relationship by recording their time alone together. It made the very idea of kissing him, of being with him, feel sleazy. What kind of task was this? Ariana wished she could find out what directives the other taps had been saddled with. Were all the tasks this awful? This personal?

  She shoved open the door to her dorm room and Kaitlynn instantly popped up from her bed, dropped the book she was reading, and plucked out her ear buds. She was wearing pink striped pajama pants with a matching cropped tank top and had her short hair pushed back from her face with a white headband.

  “You went out on a date with Palmer Liriano!” she hissed, shoving an accusing finger toward Ariana’s face. “I knew it! I knew something was going on with you two!”

  Ariana’s heart sank as she shrugged off her coat. “What’d you do? Follow me?”

  “Only to the door. I saw him pick you up and you both looked very giddy,” Kaitlynn said, crossing her arms over her chest. “Was that his car, by the way? Because . . . suh-weet!” she sang.

  Ariana rolled her eyes. Yes, the Audi convertible Palmer kept in the garage on campus was rather lush, but it was pretty much the last thing on her mind at the moment.

  “Fine. Forget the car. Why didn’t you tell me?” Kaitlynn deman ded.

  “I’m trying to keep it a secret,” Ariana replied, turning to hang her coat in her closet. “I don’t want anyone to know yet.”

  “You mean you don’t want Lexa to know,” Kaitlynn said, lifting one eyebrow. “Because if your BFF found out you were dating her ex-bf she might try to keep you out of Stone and Grave. Which she could definitely do considering she’s the president.”

  Got it in one.

  “Is this where you threaten to tell her?” Ariana asked, sinking down onto her bed, suddenly exhausted. “Because I’m kind of exhausted, so if we could save that part for the morning . . .”

  “No
,” Kaitlynn said. “Why would I do that? I thought we were supposed to be friends.”

  Ariana perked up slightly. No threats? Really? “True,” she said.

  “So, friend,” Kaitlynn said, bouncing down onto the bed next to Ariana and slinging her arm over her shoulders. “Tell me all about your date! Where did he take you? What did you do? Did you two hook up or what?”

  Ariana took a deep breath, knowing that she was going to have to spill. But suddenly she felt melancholy and nostalgic. Nostalgic for Noelle Lange, her former roommate and best friend at Easton Academy. If Noelle were here, Ariana would tell her all about the awkward way in which the date had ended. Would ask for her advice about what to do next. How to make it all go away. And Noelle would know what to do. She always knew.

  “Well, he took me to his favorite place in DC,” Ariana began, folding her legs under her story-style and turning to face Kaitlynn on the bed. “The steps of the Lincoln Memorial.”

  Kaitlynn’s face fell. “Really? Connected millionaire boy took you to a free tourist attraction?”

  Ariana tried not to grimace. Leave it to Kaitlynn to disparage the best part of the night. “No! It was romantic, really.”

  Then she sat back in her hands and gushed all about the picnic and the sunset and the conversation, feeling dirty all the while. These were the kind of details that should have been saved for a real best friend, not wasted on Kaitlynn Nottingham.

  But it was all for the greater good. Every moment with Kaitlynn had its purpose. And sooner or later, even this would prove to be worth it.

  I NEVER

  “The whole point of the I Never task is for you to get to know each other better,” Conrad said, placing a full bottle of vodka on the floor in front of each of the taps. “So be creative.”

  Ariana looked around the circle at the other four taps on Wednesday night. They were once again wearing their itchy burlap robes, and they were seated on the cold concrete floor of the Tombs, their thighs bare against the hard, frigid surface. Ariana eyed the bottle of vodka with apprehension and revulsion. Losing control had never been her favorite thing, so she’d never been a big drinker. Back at Easton, when her friends had gotten together the occasional game of I Never, she had almost always cheated and lied, claiming not to have done things she had, in fact, done. Like the time Taylor Bell had said she’d never broken into a faculty member’s room, and Ariana hadn’t taken a drink, even though she had done that before—with Thomas Pearson. But she couldn’t share that story with her friends. They had never even known that she and Thomas were friendly, let alone breaking -and-entering-together friendly.