my own skin.
And that was before she said anything.
“Jessica said you’re looking for her,” she said, and her voice was exactly as low and sultry as I would have expected.
Wait a minute. Had Jessica heard my plea? Or just finally turned on her messenger?
“Where is she?” I asked.
“Who are you?” Derek demanded. He took a step forward, as if to protect me.
She didn’t even look at him. “Are you coming?” she asked me.
“Where is she?” Meagan asked, since the girl hadn’t answered me.
The girl just started to turn away, glancing back over her shoulder at me with a question in those dark eyes.
Again, I was supposed to accept an invitation on trust.
It would have been smart to decline, but I really wanted to know that Jessica was safe.
As long as Meagan and I would be safe with this girl.
I took a deep breath and sensed feline. The girl met my gaze and smiled ever so slightly. There was something in that expression that reminded me of the way Jessica smiled—a secretive feminine allure, maybe—and I decided to follow my instinct.
It couldn’t steer me wrong twice in one day, right?
“Okay, we’ll come,” I said. Meagan and I stepped forward, Derek right behind us, but the girl gave Derek a hostile glance.
“Not you,” she said, the words low and hot.
Oh, this was not good.
Derek glared at her. “Why not?”
The girl smiled, then took Meagan and me by the hand,leading us out of the school. I glanced back, but Derek had already disappeared.
Was he following us?
I didn’t think that would be a good idea.
On the other hand, after what I’d already faced today, additional backup was probably a good idea.
There wasn’t much I could do about his choice, anyway. The girl had a strong grip on my wrist and was practically dragging me behind her. Meagan and I exchanged a glance, and Meagan shrugged. We were going to see Jessica, wherever she was.
Black Velvet was on a mission.
B LACK V ELVET TOOK US TO
a fancy apartment building downtown. I was kind of surprised. I knew that Jessica lived close to us—after all, she went to our school—but I’d thought her parents were tight for cash. Meagan had told me that they’d come from Argentina to improve Jessica’s chances of getting into an Ivy League school, but that her dad wasn’t able to use his license as a doctor here. He was driving a cab, which didn’t lead me to believe that they were living in such fancy real estate.
Was Jessica sick?
Or in some kind of trouble? You know I was worried about her shadow.
Black Velvet wasn’t answering any questions, so we stopped asking after a while.
The lobby of the building was magnificent. All Art Deco brass and dark marble, with a doorman in livery guarding the entry. His expression was stern, as if his face were carved of stone. I was a bit daunted by him, but he clearly knew Black Velvet. He just gave her a nod and summoned the elevator. He even knew where she was going, apparently.
Was she the one who lived here? She certainly looked like she belonged.
Yes, I did feel scruffy.
Just in case you were wondering.
The inside of the elevator was all mirrored, a bit of a dizzying effect, as there were hundreds of us extending to infinity in every direction. No missing the frayed hems of my jeans or the fact that my fave black boots could have used a buff.
Come to think of it, I needed a haircut.
Fortunately, my eyeliner was perfect.
A girl needs some constants.
Given that I’d nearly been a sacrificial victim today, I thought I was holding it together reasonably well.
Meagan flashed her killer smile at the doorman when we were on the elevator, just before the doors shut, and to my astonishment, he smiled back.
But Meagan is really pretty. I couldn’t help noticing that she seemed more at ease than I felt, maybe because she’d been to this kind of apartment before. With her dad being a concert pianist, the Jamesons did dip their toes into some different social circles than my
And that was before she said anything.
“Jessica said you’re looking for her,” she said, and her voice was exactly as low and sultry as I would have expected.
Wait a minute. Had Jessica heard my plea? Or just finally turned on her messenger?
“Where is she?” I asked.
“Who are you?” Derek demanded. He took a step forward, as if to protect me.
She didn’t even look at him. “Are you coming?” she asked me.
“Where is she?” Meagan asked, since the girl hadn’t answered me.
The girl just started to turn away, glancing back over her shoulder at me with a question in those dark eyes.
Again, I was supposed to accept an invitation on trust.
It would have been smart to decline, but I really wanted to know that Jessica was safe.
As long as Meagan and I would be safe with this girl.
I took a deep breath and sensed feline. The girl met my gaze and smiled ever so slightly. There was something in that expression that reminded me of the way Jessica smiled—a secretive feminine allure, maybe—and I decided to follow my instinct.
It couldn’t steer me wrong twice in one day, right?
“Okay, we’ll come,” I said. Meagan and I stepped forward, Derek right behind us, but the girl gave Derek a hostile glance.
“Not you,” she said, the words low and hot.
Oh, this was not good.
Derek glared at her. “Why not?”
The girl smiled, then took Meagan and me by the hand,leading us out of the school. I glanced back, but Derek had already disappeared.
Was he following us?
I didn’t think that would be a good idea.
On the other hand, after what I’d already faced today, additional backup was probably a good idea.
There wasn’t much I could do about his choice, anyway. The girl had a strong grip on my wrist and was practically dragging me behind her. Meagan and I exchanged a glance, and Meagan shrugged. We were going to see Jessica, wherever she was.
Black Velvet was on a mission.
B LACK V ELVET TOOK US TO
a fancy apartment building downtown. I was kind of surprised. I knew that Jessica lived close to us—after all, she went to our school—but I’d thought her parents were tight for cash. Meagan had told me that they’d come from Argentina to improve Jessica’s chances of getting into an Ivy League school, but that her dad wasn’t able to use his license as a doctor here. He was driving a cab, which didn’t lead me to believe that they were living in such fancy real estate.
Was Jessica sick?
Or in some kind of trouble? You know I was worried about her shadow.
Black Velvet wasn’t answering any questions, so we stopped asking after a while.
The lobby of the building was magnificent. All Art Deco brass and dark marble, with a doorman in livery guarding the entry. His expression was stern, as if his face were carved of stone. I was a bit daunted by him, but he clearly knew Black Velvet. He just gave her a nod and summoned the elevator. He even knew where she was going, apparently.
Was she the one who lived here? She certainly looked like she belonged.
Yes, I did feel scruffy.
Just in case you were wondering.
The inside of the elevator was all mirrored, a bit of a dizzying effect, as there were hundreds of us extending to infinity in every direction. No missing the frayed hems of my jeans or the fact that my fave black boots could have used a buff.
Come to think of it, I needed a haircut.
Fortunately, my eyeliner was perfect.
A girl needs some constants.
Given that I’d nearly been a sacrificial victim today, I thought I was holding it together reasonably well.
Meagan flashed her killer smile at the doorman when we were on the elevator, just before the doors shut, and to my astonishment, he smiled back.
But Meagan is really pretty. I couldn’t help noticing that she seemed more at ease than I felt, maybe because she’d been to this kind of apartment before. With her dad being a concert pianist, the Jamesons did dip their toes into some different social circles than my
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