Perfect Mistake (Privilege 3)

Soomie opened a compact mirror and handed it to Lexa. She ran her fingers over her eyeliner and brushed a tear from her chin. Then she slapped the mirror closed, took a deep breath, and shook her hair back.

"How do I look?" she asked, standing.

"Perfect," Ariana replied.

"Good. Let's go meet the guys for breakfast."

Ariana's heart sank. That was why Lexa looked so good. She knew she was going to see Palmer and she wanted to show him what he was missing. Ariana should have known. She had been looking forward to seeing Palmer herself, but now, not so much. Not if he was going to be gazing longingly at Lexa. Brigit pulled Maria up from Kaitlynn's mattress and they all started to gather their things.

"Lissa! No ... no ... I don't care how hungover you are, don't you dare hang up on me!" Tahira shouted from behind her closed door.

43

"You sent me peanuts!? Was this some kind of sadistic joke, or are you just that stupid!?"

"Wow. She's a little bit crazy, isn't she?" Ariana said, shouldering her bag.

"Oh, yeah," Soomie replied, "Craziest girl at APH."

Ariana glanced over at Kaitlynn's bed.

Not quite the craziest.

44

DISTRACTION

"Thanks for coming with. I just need one more shot and I'll be good," Maria said over her shoulder as she and Ariana walked into the Hill after breakfast. The dining hall waiter had cut Maria off after her third espresso, so she was in search of someone else to feed her habit."No problem," Ariana replied.

The junior/senior lounge was mostly deserted--everyone was rushing to get to their first classes of the year--but there were a couple of stragglers in line at the coffee counter. Ariana was about to follow Maria there when she spotted Palmer out of the corner of her eye, lounging on a brocaded couch, texting on his phone while sipping an iced tea. So this was where he'd been hiding. Everyone had felt his absence at the breakfast table, especially Lexa. But here he was, just a couple of doors away. Ariana loved that he was so laid--back about the first day that he was still chilling at the Hill five minutes before class

45

was to start. He looked ridiculously handsome in his white oxford shirt, blue and gold striped tie, and blue blazer. Vivid memories from last night s encounter in the bathroom rushed in on her in full force. As if he could sense her presence, Palmer looked up, pocketed his phone, and approached. Ariana looked warily at Maria, but the girl was so intent on getting her espresso fix, she didn't even glance back to see where Ariana had gone.

"Good morning, lovely," Palmer said with a grin.

Ariana's insides shivered with pleasure. As nicknames went, that wasn't bad. "We missed you at breakfast."

"I ate in here," he said, leaning so close she could smell the fresh scent of his shampoo. He extracted the baseball he always kept in his pocket, tossed it up, and caught it. "I didn't feel like dealing with the drama this morning."

"Ah," Ariana said.

"So, I was thinking, want to have lunch together later?" he asked, his smile so inviting it was hardly possible to resist.

"I don't know, Palmer," Ariana said, keeping one eye on Maria, who was paying for her drink. "I think it's too soon."

Palmer took a sip of his iced tea and nodded. "Okay, but don't keep me waiting too long," he said with a leading grin. Then he lifted his eyebrows and walked out of the room backward. Ariana shook her head at him but couldn't help smiling. The second she did, he turned and jogged off. At that exact moment, Maria finished her transaction and turned around to look for Ariana. The timing couldn't have been more perfect. She hadn't seen a thing.

46

"What happened to you?" Maria asked.

"Nothing. Just figured I'd wait by the door," Ariana said as they started out the door. "So listen, I'm kind of worried about Lexa."

"I know," Maria said, taking a sip of her coffee. "I've never seen her like this. We were up all night going over and over and over it. I didn't tell her this, but it sounds to me like Palmer's just being boy--fickle. He's done. He's moved on. End of story. But she cannot stop analyzing every word he's ever said to her."

This did not sound promising.