even.
âNah, weâre just really good friends,â she heard Lauren say. âHeâs an awesome guy. But Iâm not his girlfriend. Is that what people are saying? How funny!â
Ashley breathed a sigh of relief. She jerked A. A. back toward the other end of the room with a smile.
âWhat the eff?â A. A. complained, coming out of her daze. âAnd why do you look so happy all of a sudden?â
âI just realized I have a gift card I still havenât spent at Saks,â Ashley lied. âNow dip me.â There was absolutely no chance in hell any of them would ever make use of anything they learned in class today at the dance. Unless you could waltz to gangsta rap. But it was still fun to practice.
Maybe Lili was right after all. Lili often was. Maybe Lauren wasnât such a zero as she had originally thought. Especially not if she was friends with Billy Reddy. Maybe she should give her a chance. After all, like Miss Charm said, etiquette was all about kindness. Ashley saw herself as a kind soul. She would let Lauren be her friend. Really, it was the least she could do for the poor girl.
17
THE PRIVATE JET SET
THE SAN RAFAEL AIRPORT WAS so small it didnât even seem like it could technically be called an airport, consisting as it did of just two airstrip lanes and a minuscule terminal that housed the passenger waiting area. Flying private was certainly a different experience, Lili thought. There was no need to fight crowds, or to make sure all your liquids fit into three-ounce containers, or have to walk barefoot on a public floor through a metal detector. The atmosphere in the captainâs lounge was clubby and relaxed, in stark contrast to the usual harried chaos at SFO. Private was definitely the only way to travel.
That morning a shiny black stretch limousine hadpicked her up first thing, and at the wheel was the slick, gorgeous guy sheâd seen driving Lauren on the first day of school, who introduced himself as âBond, Dex Bond.â
When she climbed inside the car, Ashley and A. A. were already ensconced in the comfy backseat, drinking mocktails out of champagne flutes. They were dressed as she was, in oversize Christian Dior sunglasses with big, gold-plated D s on each side and black Couture Couture fur-lined trench coatsâsuitably warm for another freezing San Francisco day. The three of them agreed that the limo ride that took them across the Golden Gate Bridge to Marin County was a generous and extravagant gesture on Laurenâs part, although Ashley had pronounced her virgin appletini âtoo sweet.â
Last week Ashley had invited Lauren to join their table at lunch out of the blue, which had effectively turned the Ashleys into a foursome. Later Lili discovered that word had it Lauren was a âvery close friendâ of Billy Reddyâs, which explained why Ashley had suddenly stopped playa-hating.
Lili had no idea how Lauren managed that âas far as Lili knew, Billy Reddy didnât waste his time on seventh graders. But whether or not it was true, it wasa brilliant move on Laurenâs part. It looked as if the girl was finally taking Liliâs advice. Lauren promised to take them all to Billy Reddyâs next lacrosse game, and the Ashleys couldnât wait. To seal the deal, Lauren told them she thought Billy was cute, for sure, but she didnât like him like him. Fair enough, since Billy was meant to be Liliâs one true love, anyone could see that.
So Lauren was one of them . . . for the time being. And Lili had been right about more than one thing: Having Lauren around had made life a little more interesting. She could certainly think of worse things in the world than taking a limo to a private jet bound for Los Angeles for a day of shopping and then back to San Francisco for a sleepover afterward.
Now she and her friends were at the airport, crowded around a circular bar in front of a picture window with
âNah, weâre just really good friends,â she heard Lauren say. âHeâs an awesome guy. But Iâm not his girlfriend. Is that what people are saying? How funny!â
Ashley breathed a sigh of relief. She jerked A. A. back toward the other end of the room with a smile.
âWhat the eff?â A. A. complained, coming out of her daze. âAnd why do you look so happy all of a sudden?â
âI just realized I have a gift card I still havenât spent at Saks,â Ashley lied. âNow dip me.â There was absolutely no chance in hell any of them would ever make use of anything they learned in class today at the dance. Unless you could waltz to gangsta rap. But it was still fun to practice.
Maybe Lili was right after all. Lili often was. Maybe Lauren wasnât such a zero as she had originally thought. Especially not if she was friends with Billy Reddy. Maybe she should give her a chance. After all, like Miss Charm said, etiquette was all about kindness. Ashley saw herself as a kind soul. She would let Lauren be her friend. Really, it was the least she could do for the poor girl.
17
THE PRIVATE JET SET
THE SAN RAFAEL AIRPORT WAS so small it didnât even seem like it could technically be called an airport, consisting as it did of just two airstrip lanes and a minuscule terminal that housed the passenger waiting area. Flying private was certainly a different experience, Lili thought. There was no need to fight crowds, or to make sure all your liquids fit into three-ounce containers, or have to walk barefoot on a public floor through a metal detector. The atmosphere in the captainâs lounge was clubby and relaxed, in stark contrast to the usual harried chaos at SFO. Private was definitely the only way to travel.
That morning a shiny black stretch limousine hadpicked her up first thing, and at the wheel was the slick, gorgeous guy sheâd seen driving Lauren on the first day of school, who introduced himself as âBond, Dex Bond.â
When she climbed inside the car, Ashley and A. A. were already ensconced in the comfy backseat, drinking mocktails out of champagne flutes. They were dressed as she was, in oversize Christian Dior sunglasses with big, gold-plated D s on each side and black Couture Couture fur-lined trench coatsâsuitably warm for another freezing San Francisco day. The three of them agreed that the limo ride that took them across the Golden Gate Bridge to Marin County was a generous and extravagant gesture on Laurenâs part, although Ashley had pronounced her virgin appletini âtoo sweet.â
Last week Ashley had invited Lauren to join their table at lunch out of the blue, which had effectively turned the Ashleys into a foursome. Later Lili discovered that word had it Lauren was a âvery close friendâ of Billy Reddyâs, which explained why Ashley had suddenly stopped playa-hating.
Lili had no idea how Lauren managed that âas far as Lili knew, Billy Reddy didnât waste his time on seventh graders. But whether or not it was true, it wasa brilliant move on Laurenâs part. It looked as if the girl was finally taking Liliâs advice. Lauren promised to take them all to Billy Reddyâs next lacrosse game, and the Ashleys couldnât wait. To seal the deal, Lauren told them she thought Billy was cute, for sure, but she didnât like him like him. Fair enough, since Billy was meant to be Liliâs one true love, anyone could see that.
So Lauren was one of them . . . for the time being. And Lili had been right about more than one thing: Having Lauren around had made life a little more interesting. She could certainly think of worse things in the world than taking a limo to a private jet bound for Los Angeles for a day of shopping and then back to San Francisco for a sleepover afterward.
Now she and her friends were at the airport, crowded around a circular bar in front of a picture window with
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