The girl looked seriously chic. Mara was wearing Sugar's white Versace dress with a pair of flat-heeled Imitation of Christ gladiator
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sandals, and she was holding a slick little art deco cigarette case for a purse. Eliza was wearing her mother's decades-old Alai'a halter dress. The dress was a metallic, thigh-high mock turtleneck with a racer back. It was so tight it hugged Eliza's every curve, and she'd worn it to remind Jeremy what he'd been missing all summer. When she'd gotten dressed that evening, Eliza had felt pretty good about herself, but now she just felt average.
"Hey, cool dress," Sugar said, catching up with Eliza in the coed restroom, a shiny stainless steel room with an industrial trough for a sink.
"Thanks, it's vintage," Eliza said, feeling gratified. Although she hated to admit it, she had missed Sugar's attention. Sugar could be a real bitch when she wanted to--Eliza still remembered how nasty she had been when she'd found out Eliza was working for the Perrys--but she could also turn on the charm when she wanted to. And for some reason, she was doing it now.
"Groovy," Sugar nodded, rinsing her hands. "Congrats, by the way."
"Thanks," Eliza sighed. She was happy she'd won--she could certainly use the money, and she loved being in the spotlight-but it bothered her that it was already one in the morning and Jeremy still hadn't shown up like he'd promised.
"What's wrong, doll?" Sugar asked, powdering her nose out of a T. LeClerc compact.
"Nothing," Eliza shrugged. "I just . . . There was a guy I was supposed to meet here tonight."
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"Our old gardener?" Sugar asked, not unkindly.
"Yeah," Eliza nodded, frowning at her reflection in the mirror.
"I thought you were with Ryan," Sugar said.
"Who told you that?" Eliza asked, startled. They'd only hooked up once earlier in the summer, and neither of them was planning to do it again.
Sugar smiled mysteriously. "He is my brother, you know. And there was that whole thing with you guys down in PB."
Eliza looked crestfallen. She'd forgotten the twins knew about that. "It's nothing. We're not together."
"Why not?" Sugar asked, leaning against the sink and folding her arms across her chest. "He's not good enough for you?"
"No, it's not that. Of course not."
"Then you guys should just be together," Sugar decided, as if she'd resolved a complicated matter.
"But what about Mara?" Eliza asked anxiously.
Sugar rolled her eyes. "You think Mara doesn't know about you guys?"
"Mara knows?" Eliza asked, a little taken aback. Why hadn't she said anything to Eliza then? Because she was mad? Or because she honestly didn't care anymore?
"It's so not a big deal. She's wit
h Garrett now," Sugar declared, pecking Eliza on the cheek. "See ya."
Much later that night, after all the celebrities had departed and Sugar's entourage--including Mara--had left Seventh Circle for
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a party at Jet East, Eliza saw that she had a message from Jeremy. She went outside to listen to it. Apparently, he'd been stuck at a benefit with his boss that he'd thought he'd be able to get out of. Blah, blah, blah. Eliza heard glasses clinking and girls laughing in the background. He said he was really sorry. Sure he was. Eliza erased the message, too angry and disappointed to care anymore. She walked inside to the VIP room, where she saw Ryan Perry, who was sitting by himself at a corner table. She sat down next to him, noticing the bouquet of flowers he'd tried to give her earlier. This time, she would remember to accept them.
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they shoot models, don't they?
"WHAT'S SO FUNNY?" MARA ASKED, ARRIVING LATE TO