Page 70 of Ask No Questions

He looked disappointed. “Sorry, I ruined your night with him. I didn’t know.”

I sighed and shook my head. “It’s not that. I don’t mind you being with us. I just wasn’t ready for it.”

“Because of what happened?”

Why else would I be acting like a freak? “Yeah.”

“I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, Aubrey. I want you to know that I...”

“You guys ready to go?” Brandon interrupted, and I wanted to kill him. I looked back at Carter, hoping he would finish, but he just shook his head.

“Yeah, I’ll see you guys later.” He walked away, not bothering to look back once.

“Aubrey, ready?” Brandon stood in front of his car waiting for me. I silently got in and buckled up. What was Carter going to say? What did he want me to know? That he regrets ever talking to me? That he wishes he could take the kiss back? Or could he have possibly have wanted to tell me that he felt something, too?

We all agreed to meet at Talia’s in the morning to start getting ready together. We were going to do our hair and makeup at one house then go home to change into our dresses so our parents, or brother, could take pictures of us and our dates before we met up again for dinner.

I walked into Talia’s room and was overwhelmed with the smell of hair products. I saw a spread of makeup any girl would envy, and there were four sets of pictures to show how each of our hair and makeup should look. Apparently, she had been busy.

“You guys really go all out!”

Talia and Alexis turned and laughed at my expression. Alexis stood and guided me through the plans. “Talia put together the ideas based on what would look best for each of our dresses. We’ll take turns helping each other, but Mckayla is the hair master, and I’m the makeup girl. Talia just likes being pampered.” She winked and handed me my pictures.

“Since you have a one shoulder dress, she has you with loose curls pinned back so they fall over one shoulder, very old Hollywood. And we’re keeping your makeup light with a nude lip, so your emerald dress is the focus.”

“Wow, that sounds great. Thanks, you guys.”

“Of course! This is what we all love to do. Mckayla should be back soon. She just went to get us some Frappuccinos.”

Over the next several hours, we each took turns doing each other’s make-up and hair. I laughed more than I had in weeks. Spending time with just my girlfriends was exactly what I needed after such a dramatic week.

We had taken a little too long getting ready together, so I had to rush home to get dressed. Hopefully Luke wouldn’t mind waiting for a few minutes. I ran past Carter and Brandon sitting in the living room and yelled hello.

Once I was in my bathroom, I took a deep breath to calm my nerves. I walked into my closet and unzipped the garment bag that held my dress. I smiled as I lifted it out and saw the brilliant emerald color again. I removed my tank top and shorts and slipped into the gown. After I zipped it up and slipped on my nude pumps, I looked at the mirror and smiled. I looked like an Old Hollywood movie star, just like Alexis said. I felt so glamorous as I turned and studied every angle.

I heard the doorbell ring then the soft murmur of the guys talking. I called out to tell them I was ready and opened the bathroom door into my room. I grabbed my nude-colored clutch and was ready to meet the guys when I stopped cold.

There was something sitting on my bed I swear wasn’t there when I walked in to get dressed.

There was a little white envelope centered on my bed. It looked harmless enough, but my heart was racing. My breath was coming in rapid and shallow gasps. I don’t know how long I was standing there staring at the envelope; it could have been seconds or hours.

I shook off the feeling of dread and took a tentative step forward. I felt like at any moment someone was going to jump out and scream telling me this was some kind of sick joke. The closer I got, the more I realized this was real.

I finally reached the side of my bed and extended my arm to take the envelope. In small, neat writing my name was spelled out across the front. I turned it over and broke the seal, suddenly wanting this to all be over.

I pulled out the white card inside and screamed.

When I opened my eyes Carter, Luke, and Brandon were surrounding me. I realized I was lying on the ground and struggled to push myself up to sit. Brandon helped me, never taking his eyes off mine.

“What happened, Aubrey?”

I looked from him to Carter hoping one of them would read my mind, so I didn’t have to say anything in front of Luke. No luck. They all sat there staring back at me wide-eyed and waiting.

“There’s a note.”

Brandon put both hands on my face, forcing me to look at him.

“What note? Where is it?”

I pointed to the bed without looking away from him. Carter stood and grabbed it off the bed before sitting down again, this time closer to me.

“What does it say, Carter?” The panic in Brandon’s voice matched what I was feeling.

Carter sat there studying the note before looking to Brandon then right at me.

He held my gaze before he whispered. “It says, ‘You can’t run, Aubrey. You’re still mine’.”