Beautiful Disaster (Privilege 2)

friends' backs were turned, Ariana slipped a stack of bills out of the cash box and quickly shoved it into her bag at her feet. She'd been doing this all night whenever no one was looking, but every time she did it, she held her breath, which was starting to make her feel lightheaded. Still, by the time Brigit and Lexa turned around again, she was sitting up straight, taking another twenty-five dollars from a young girl with pigtails, and stamping the girl's hand with a big purple L.

"There you go!" Ariana said brightly. "Just show that stamp to the guy at the front of the line so he knows you've paid for your photo op!"

"Do you really go to school with him?" the girl asked, her eyes wide as she clutched a Seventeen magazine with Landon on the cover.

"Yeah," Ariana said with a nod. "I really do."

"You are soooo lucky," the girl behind her said. "I would kill to go to school with him."

And I would kill to get to stay at that school, Ariana thought, placing her foot atop the bag that held every cent she had collected for Kaitlynn so far. Inside her suede hobo was a collapsible duffel, and inside that was the money she had earned by pawning off all the things she had stolen--something she hadn't heard about again since that one time in the dining hall, thank the universe for small favors. Every time she felt even the slightest bit of hesitation over what she had to do tonight, she reminded herself of all the risks she had taken already, just to get the piddling amount of money that was in her bag. If she didn't see her plan through, all that would have been for nothing. Besides, after tonight, the money would be out of her hands, and there would219

be zero evidence that she was the culprit. She just had to get through the event.

"Thanks!" Brigit said to another paying customer. "Grab his butt! He likes that!" she joked.

Ariana and Lexa laughed as Brigit pulled the metal cash box toward her. She checked inside and grinned. "We are so going to win."

"1 know. We have taken in an obscene amount of cash," Lexa replied.

Suddenly, Adam slid in behind the table and lifted a hand in greeting. "Hey," he said, breathless. "Need me to run anything to the bank room?"

He already had a cash box tucked under one arm and his face was red from the exertion of fighting through the crowd for the millionth time that night. The kid was working harder than anyone else in the museum.

"Yeah. This one's full," Brigit said, slapping the metal box closed and handing it over. "Actually, I think I'll come with you and check on Rudolpho."

"Okay," Adam said with a smile. "You can protect me from the crazies."

"Protect you?" Brigit said, turning to look at him. "Is that a crack at my weight?"

Adam's eyes went wide. "No! No! I swear. It's a crack at my total weaklingness," he replied awkwardly.

"Weaklingness, huh?" Brigit narrowed her eyes, but then smiled. "Okay, then. I'll protect you."

220

The two of them took off together, sidestepping a group of chattering girls. "The bank room" was their nickname for the coatroom area, where Brigit's bodyguard, Rudolpho, had been posted to collect all the money from the various stations and the bar throughout the night and pool it all together into larger bags. Adam had been making runs to the various stations and bringing the cash back to Rudolpho, who didn't seem all that psyched about his reassignment. Brigit had explained that on normal days, inside the protective walls at Atherton-Pryce, she didn't need someone watching over her, but whenever she went out for a big public event like this one, the king and queen insisted she take along a guard. But she had Rudolpho wrapped around her pinky finger, so she was able to convince him not to breathe down her neck all night, and to do a much more important job instead--guard the money with his life.

While the very thought of the many security guards hired by the museum made Ariana sweat in a very unappealing way, the fact that Brigit's own detail was watching the money was actually a boon for Ariana. She had a feeling it was going to make her plan easier to execute rather than harder. If she could just get all the pawns to line up as she'd planned.

Unlike Brigit, Tahira had gone for a full security detail--probably because it made her look important. As she circulated the room, she was flanked by two burly bodyguards and turned heads wherever she went as those not-in-the-know wondered who she was and whether she was famous. Ariana had heard more than a few jealous little girls wonder whether Tahira might be Landon's girlfriend, and if he might have hired the bodyguards to take care of her.

221

Across the room, Ariana saw Tahira pause to talk to some parents, making sure their drinks from the cash bar were full and encouraging them to spend on their daughters. Girl really knew how to glean every last dollar out of these people.

"They'd make a cute couple, wouldn't they?" Lexa mused.

"Who?" Ariana asked, her thoughts still dawdling on Ta

hira and Landon.

"Brigit and Adam," Lexa said, opening a new cash box and making change for a pair of twin girls. "The princess and the pauper? It's a classic."

Ariana smirked. She didn't bother to point out that The Prince and the Pauper was not about a romantic couple, but about two guys. "I guess I could see it. They're both so ... innocent."

"I know, right? Maybe we should hook that up," Lexa said, her eyes bright with possibility.

Ariana's heart fluttered at the very idea of being included in a matchmaking scheme with Lexa. It felt so best-friendy. "Yeah. We definitely should."