22
Adair
The Past
The sun is really, really bright. I scooch up on my elbows and stare around me. Pink walls and a room my mom decorated to feel like the Beverly Hills Hotel greet me. I have no memory of making it back to the pool house last night, but there’s a pretty obvious clue snoring on the floor next to the bed. How the hell did I wind up back here with Sterling Ford sleeping at my feet?
My last memory—Sterling picking me up—is where the night ends in my memory. It’s as fixed as the period at the end of a sentence. But why him? Moving the sheets as quietly as possible, I creep out of the room, tiptoeing to the door so I don’t wake him up. I stop in the bathroom long enough to dig out a toiletry kit— my mother took the whole hotel vibe as far as possible— and brush my teeth. A quick glance in the mirror reveals yesterday’s makeup fared about as well as I did. I scrub it off until my skin glows pink, hoping to jar some memories free. No luck. There’s just Sterling’s worried face swimming in front of me, and then nothing. Full-stop. The end.
Down the hall, I hear someone moving around the kitchen. Another person is singing. Apparently, Sterling didn’t bring me here alone. I head down and discover Poppy buttering slices of toast.
“Good morning, darling,” she says, dancing over to peck my cheek. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I was run over by a truck,” I say, rubbing my temples. “I wasn’t, was I?”
For all I know, I might have been.
Kai and Poppy share a look before he returns to the eggs he’s frying on the stovetop.
“What did I do?” I demand.
“You did nothing,” Poppy says slowly. “You passed out.”
“I didn’t have that much to drink.” In fact, I can only remember taking one drink pre-Sterling.
“That’s exactly it,” she says. “Sterling thinks someone drugged you.”
“For real?” That explains the construction crew hammering in my head. Drugs aren’t uncommon at Valmont house parties. Some people want something stronger than alcohol. Some people have too much money. It’s a terrible combination. “I’m going to kill Sterling Ford.”
He’s the last person I remember. Why had I let myself be alone with him? How could Poppy have let him sleep in the same room as me?
“I don’t think you should be mad at Sterling.”
“He’s the last person I was with, and—”
“He found you and then he found me,” Poppy cuts in, officially stopping me in my tracks. “He helped us get you here. He even drove your car home. He stayed with you all night like a guard dog.”
I didn’t expect that. It’s not difficult to imagine the hot and cold egomaniac doing something heartless. It’s a lot harder to imagine him doing something selfless—and he’d done something selfless twice now. He’d been a dick about it the whole time, but, still, why did he care? Sure, it’s the decent thing to do, and if our situations had been reversed, I would have helped him. The trouble is that I didn’t expect that of him, which means I’m either completely wrong about who he is, or I’m actually the bitch in this scenario. Neither thought is comforting.
“Also,” she adds, “he’s really nice.”
“Nice?” I repeat. “That hasn’t been my experience.”
“Maybe you two got off on the wrong foot.”
I want to crawl into a hole until my head stops pounding and I can sort through this mess inside it, but before I can Poppy holds out a plate.
“I made you breakfast,” she says brightly.
Kai clears his throat. He’s been quiet during this whole exchange until now. “You did what?”
Poppy gives a sheepish smile. “Okay, I made toast and Kai tried to show me how to make scrambled eggs.”
“How did that go?” I ask, the weight on my chest easing enough that I laugh.
“Thank God, she’s an heiress,” Kai says as he scoops eggs onto a plate. Poppy drops two slices of toast next to it.
“At least they’re edible,” she says.
I eat slowly, my stomach still churning with anxiety. If they hadn’t been there, what would have happened? It’s not like someone drugged my drink by accident. I try to remember who gave me the cup, but I’d never seen him before in my life. I’ll have to ask Ava if she knew the guy. It’s a long shot, since half the people there were probably new students at Valmont.
“I can’t believe someone would do that,” Poppy says.
I snort. Even now her glass is half-full. Mine is feeling pretty empty, at the moment. “I can.”
“Thanks for letting us crash here last night,” Kai says.
“We were thinking of going for a swim. Care to join us?”
“You don’t have any suits,” I remind her.
“That’s the joy of a GBFF,” Kai says, clarifying when I give him a puzzled look. “Gay best friend forever. I’ve decided that’s what I am for you two. You don’t have to worry about me seeing you naked, because I’m not interested and I think all bodies are fabulous.”
“You might have to worry about half of the garden staff seeing you, though,” I say dryly.
“We’ll leave our underwear on,” Poppy promises.
“I’m not sure what to make of that,” A gruff voice says from the hallway. Sterling stands there, rubbing sleep from his eyes. His dark hair is tousled on top of his head and there’s a hint of stubble on his jawline. He must have to shave every day. I try to peel my eyes away from him and fail. It’s clear he’s only half-awake, because the minute he blinks he seems to realize he’s shirtless. He tugs it over his head quickly, his usual scowl pulling down his lips. “Bathroom?”
“Let me show you.” I hop up from the stool, instantly regretting my decision when my head reminds me that I’m still hungover from last
