Last Christmas (Private 0.60)

The girl smiled condescendingly. "I'm not your waitress, Ariana," she said. "But if I had to guess what your

boyfriend wants, I'd say it'd probably be a girlfriend who doesn't cheat on him the second he turns his back."

"What?" Ariana's blood ran cold. Okay, there was no way she'd just heard the girl correctly. The diner was

loud and crowded, and the girl must have somehow mistaken her for someone else. That was the only

explanation. But how had she known Ariana's name?

"What? You don't agree?" the girl said blithely. Her voice was gravelly. Distinctive.

Ariana opened her mouth to speak, but the only sound that escaped was a sort of dry, strangled cough. She

pressed her palms against her seat to steady herself. But her hands were slick with sweat, and they slid from

the vinyl surface.

The girl lowered herself into Daniel's seat. "He's going to hurt you," she said simply.

Her words sliced through Ariana like a sharpened blade. She studied the girl's face: the gray eyes, the smooth,

pale skin, the glossy brown hair that tumbled around her shoulders. Despite her pretty face, the girl had a

harder edge than most Easton students. She wore a leather bomber jacket and an old wool cap. A threadbare

navy scarf peeked out from under her collar.

Ariana steeled herself, faking nonchalance. Pretending that the very sight of this girl, the sound of her voice,

didn't send chills down her spine. They both knew better.

226

"I can handle myself with Daniel," Ariana said.

"I'm not talking about Daniel. I'm talking about Thomas." The girl laced her fingers together on the table and

leaned forward. A red, angry cut ran the length of her right hand. "I'm starting to think you're not as smart as

everyone says."

"Thomas?" The room started to spin around her. She'd heard that voice before, but where? She tried

desperately to place it. But her mind had gone blank with fear.

"He's not who you think he is," the girl said quietly. "Even if he did make you pancakes or light candles to

keep you warm at night." She was staring right through Ariana with those glassy gray eyes. "Even if he

promises to keep your secrets."

Ariana's mouth was completely dry, as if someone had filled it with sawdust. She tried to swallow but

couldn't. What did this girl know? And how did she know it? Ariana raised her hand to the subway token

again

"Of course, I never made that promise." The girl chuckled to herself, flicking her hair over one shoulder.