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day. His body gave off the enticing aroma of citrusy cologne
mixed with something salty-sweet and completely delicious.
 Why is that? Phoebe asked nervously.
He swallowed the mouthful of caviar and toast, and
grabbed another off the tray.  Well, you re much too pretty to
be standing here all by yourself.
Phoebe smiled, biting her bottom lip to keep from collap-
sing into a pile of nervous giggles. The cutest guy she d ever
seen was totally flirting with her and she didn t have the
faintest idea of what to do or say next. Life was totally unfair.
Phoebe got almost as much male attention as Madison, but the
difference was that Phoebe seemed to always end up blowing it
by laughing or saying something stupid at the most crucial
moment . . .
 Are you a friend of Drew s? Phoebe asked, looking away
from the intensity of his gaze.
 Sort of, he said, popping the toast point into his mouth.
 Actually, he s more my sister s friend than mine. If she
could ve had a direct conversation with God, she would ve
asked him to create this guy. He was practically redefining the
definition of hot with every passing moment.
 So why are you here then? Phoebe asked, reaching over
and grabbing a glass of champagne to play with. At least she d
have something in her hands to distract her from the fact that
she wanted to kiss this guy whoever he was more than she d
ever wanted to kiss anyone in her entire life.
 For the free gourmet snacks, of course. He shoved his
hands in his front pockets, grinning widely.  And the pretty
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girls, he added, looking her slowly up and down. Okay,
Phoebe thought, inhaling deeply, this guy is definitely trouble.
He probably consumed girls like her the way he ate toast
points daily. Wait, check that maybe hourly. She was in
completely over her head and way out of her league. Looking
into his eyes the blue of the Caribbean she thought, inex-
plicably, about her mother. If the adrenaline rush she was feel-
ing right now was anything like what her mother experienced
each time she met her  friend  or whatever he was Phoebe
was beginning to see why deviating from the sanctity of mar-
riage might be more than just a little compelling, not to men-
tion dangerous.
 You don t remember me, do you? the boy said, a smile
curling up at the edges of his all-too-kissable lips, and then
under his breath, almost to himself, he mumbled,  and maybe
that s a good thing . . .
 Where would I remember you from? I don t know you, do
I? Pheobe said, hoping that she wasn t in the midst of some
massive faux pas that would result in her losing any chance at
even five minutes with this guy in an extremely dark room. But
how on earth could she possibly forget someone like him?  Do
I know your sister or something?
The guy s seemingly unbreakable cool cracked just slightly
at her question, a cloud passing quickly over his eyes, his hands
grabbing at another toast point to jam into his maw in an
attempt to cover his uneasiness. Phoebe was thrown off by this
complete one-eighty. Had she done something wrong? Said
something wrong? I didn t even move, she thought, again feel-
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ing perplexed, wondering how she could salvage a conversa-
tion that was proving to be more confusing than an episode of
Lost. He looks exactly how I feel, Phoebe thought, wondering just
what the hell was going on.
 Um, you ve probably seen her around, you know . . . I
mean, everyone kind of knows everyone up here, right?
 Well, what s her name? she asked, wanting more than
ever to get to the bottom of this. The guy shifted his weight
from right foot to left, his face coloring deeply as he looked
at her, unable or unwilling to speak.
 There you are! Sophie proclaimed as she broke the awk-
ward silence between them and walked up to Phoebe,
regarding the guy who Phoebe had silently nicknamed Total
Hotness with obvious disdain.  What are you doing here?
she asked, her tone radiating utter dislike.  Isn t it bad enough
I have to live with you without you showing up here and
molesting my friends, too?
Sophie turned to Phoebe, a fierce expression taking over
her usually placid features.  Was he bothering you? she de-
manded, her hands on her hips. Phoebe opened her mouth to
protest, but just as she was about to speak, Sophie waved her
hand dismissively, cutting her off.  Don t answer that, she
added, the diamond studs in her ears glinting in the candle-
light.  Of course he s bothering you he s my brother, he can t
help it.
 Oh, so now I m your brother? the guy asked with a mis-
chievous smile. Phoebe felt like her brain had been washed in
battery acid. This gorgeous guy was Sophie s brother? The
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last time she d seen Jared was two Christmases ago when he d
organized some ridiculous lacrosse game in the St. John fam-
ily room with a bunch of sweaty boys in boxers and plaid knee
socks and she d been decidedly unimpressed.
 Okay, okay, he said, smiling sheepishly.  I guess the cat s
out of the bag.
 What are you talking about? Sophie asked irritably.
 I m Jared, the guy formerly known as Total Hotness said,
holding out his hand. Phoebe grabbed on in a state of shock,
moving her wrist up and down in a daze.  Sophie s brother.
 Ugh, you are not my brother, so just get over it, Sophie
snapped, rolling her eyes.
 Whoa chill out, bra, Jared said soothingly, placing one
hand on his sister s shoulder a hand that Sophie shrugged off
immediately.
 Stop calling me bra! Sophie grabbed a glass of cham-
pagne and downed it in one long swallow.  I don t even know
what that means. And why are you introducing yourself to
Phoebe anyway. I ve only known her since I was two.
 I didn t recognize him, Phoebe said in what she hoped
was a placating voice. She felt like she was walking on
eggshells or land mines. She d never seen Sophie this cranky.
She d never even seen her angry. Sophie generally had the
ecstatically happy, slightly crazed disposition of a game show
host.  He s been gone for a long time, Soph.
 Not long enough, Sophie snorted, grabbing another
glass of champagne, sipping more slowly this time. Sophie
grabbed Phoebe by the hand and pulled her toward the terrace
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before she could say good-bye, before she could even speak. As
they reached the large French doors, Sophie turned around
to face Phoebe, a strange expression on her face.
 You don t . . . like him or anything, do you, Pheebs?
There was almost a pleading note in Sophie s voice, and all at
once Phoebe felt terrible, like she d been flirting with someone
else s boyfriend or brother.
 What do you mean? Phoebe asked nervously, playing [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]