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Stunned, I lift the phone to my ear. "Um..."
"Who was that?"
A shiver runs down my spine at Hayden's icy jealousy. When I don't respond, his tone turns deathly calm. "I'm not going to ask you again, Juliana. If you don't tell me where you are, I'll—"
Click.
I swivel around to Mei. "Good riddance."
She shakes her head. "Girl, you're gonna regret that tomorrow."
"Answering his call? Yeah, you're probably right," I admit, suddenly feeling too sober. "Whatever. Let's just keep the party going. I need another round."
Her eyes twinkle with delight. "Now you're speaking my language."
One more cup of jungle juice did the trick—or was it two? Who knows, but I feel electric as I let the music take ahold of me. Its beat pulses through my body, shocking my veins with erratic energy, while the disco lights seep through my closed eyelids, intensifying every sensation.
As the night wears on, the basement only grows more crowded, time waning, slipping away with promises of dancing forever. Until something bumps my shoulder, causing my eyes to open to a flock of four-or-so guys darting toward the stairs.
"Come on, come on!" they shout, patting each other's backs, earning more followers. Locking with Mei's gaze, it's obvious she's curious, too. So, she follows them upstairs with me in tow, stumbling with each step. "Did you see?" I overhear a girl talking with her friend but don't catch the rest.
"Is thishhh normal?" I ask Mei, leaning on a wall for support, watching as a group rushes toward the front door. "Do ya kno' what'sh goin' on?"
A fraternity brother passing by answers for her. "Some guy pulled up in a crazy car."
I roll my eyes. All this fuss over a car?
"Let's go look!" Mei tugs my arm, dragging me through the foyer, so aggressively I trip on the way out the front door. Stumbling across the porch, I grasp a pillar protruding from the white railing before I nearly fall flat on my ass, barely registering Mei's breathless words.
"Oh my god..."
Swaying with disoriented vision, I dust off my hands, staring at the teak planks beneath my feet.
"It's straight out of a movie..."
What's she going off about?
"Huh?" I look up.
For all the blood to drain from my face.
Just there, parked along the sidewalk, is the sleekest, meanest yet most beautiful car I—or any of the gawking college students scattered across the lawn—have ever seen with my two eyes.
Sleek and impossibly low to the pavement, metallic blue streaks across the length, mingling with glossy white paint that reflects off an overhanging streetlamp like shimmering diamonds. Boasting a distinctive grille, its headlights pierce through the night, illuminating those who circle the coupe and snap photos, leaving ample room for the mysterious man leaning against the passenger side, who folds his arms across his chest.
And stares right at me.
Fire rages behind Hayden's crystal-blue eyes, projecting heat that simmers down my middle. A challenge brews in them when I don't budge, and only burns brighter as he opens the passenger side door, unveiling the car's all-white interior, bathed in a gentle glow. He holds it open, his gaze unwavering in the still air, so quiet I hear faint whispers.
"Is that a Bugatti Veyron...?"
"Who is that guy...?"
"Do you know him...?"
"I think I've seen him somewhere..."
Curse the butterflies buzzing in my stomach—I'm not moving. I don't care how frantically they flap, when those on the lawn follow the line of his stare and land on me, their lips parting on gasps as they bounce between us.
