Page 25 of Dirty Liars
“Well, I’ll let you get back to work,” I say awkwardly. I push my desk away and pretend to keep organizing my books until the bell rings and I can get the hell out of here.
I’m nearly halfway down the hall when I hear him call after me. I turn to look back and he waves at me before disappearing into the steady stream of people coursing through the hallways.
Now Iknowsomething’s up with the holy trinity. First Astor asks me about whether or not I have a boyfriend, and in a decent way without being his usual horrible self, and then Wills is actually nice to me. Tender, even. It’s as far out of character for both of them as can be. It only leaves me even more suspicious when Wills stops to help me undo a tangle of knots during sailing class. He doesn’t say anything, just unknots something that would have taken me the whole hour and then saunters off without a word.
I’m almost looking forward to seeing Blair in my next two classes, just so I can get a taste of his normal, flirty self … but he’s conspicuously absent again.
I make it through the rest of my day and with so little friction that I forget to look for Dana before I find a place to sit at dinner. I’m about to set down my tray in the dining hall when Astor suddenly comes up behind me and pulls my chair out for me.
I look up at him in surprise and he just gives me a look. It’s not a smile, but it isn’t a scowl either. I think this must be some kind of prank, so I watch him like a hawk and sit down ever so slowly. But he doesn’t yank the chair out from under me at the last minute, just gives me a gentle yet firm push under the table. He doesn’t even sit beside me, just turns and walks away. Once again, I’m floored.
Victoria appears like a vision and slams her tray of food down beside mine. She plants her hand on her hip and gives me an evil glare.
“What’s up, Victoria?” I ask, wondering how much of that she just saw.
“What was that little stunt just now?” she snaps at me.
I frown in confusion. “I’m sorry … stunt? What are you talking about?”
She flings both of her hands up into the air angrily. “That little thing you just pulled with Astor! What in the hell is going on between you two? I thought you hated him!”
She’s seriously fuming.
“Hey, as far as I know, Astordoeshate me, and I feel pretty much the same about him.” That’s the truth. I glance at his still-retreating back. “He’s just playing some kind of game.”
She narrows her eyes into razor blade slits and leans down close to me, face to face. “You listen to me, Sadie White, and you listen good. I took you under my wing when you got here. You owe me! I’m a damn saint for doing all that I did to help you when you got here, and now this is how you repay me?”
I stare at her, wondering what the hell she is going off about. First of all … the only thing she’s ‘done for me’ is use me to get closer to Astor. That and help haze me. It takes everything in me to hold my tongue as the rampage continues.
She doesn’t even stop to take a breath. “You know I like Astor! He’s mine! You got that? That boy is mine!”
I’ve seen this sort of thing before, but it’s never been aimed at me.
I hold up my hands as a gesture of surrender. “And you can have him. Please.”
I tilt my body to face slightly away from her and start peeling back a yogurt lid. She doesn’t get the point. Victoria just slides across to the other side of the table and leans in again, her eyes bright and dangerous.
“Now I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing at here, but you better knock it off now! Got it?”
Can I just eat the damn pudding cup in peace?I feel the fight rising in me and I struggle to control it and remember to be Sadie, and not Teddy.
I give her a stern look, and I speak with an unrelenting voice.
“Listen here, Victoria,” I begin, trying to keep my cool as much as I can, “I didn’t go after him! I am not seeking him out. So back off, okay? You want Astor? Have him. He’s all yours.”
She blinks in surprise. I can see clearly that she wasn’t expecting that kind of a response from me at all. I’ve been careful with her so far, and I’m guessing she isn’t used to people telling her how it is. It’s all fine once … but I shouldn’t make a habit of it. She doesn’t strike me as the type to put up with it for long.
“Fine,” she snaps once more, and then she grabs her tray and turns on her heel to leave. I watch her go and begin to wonder if everyone in the school has lost their mind. Astor, then Wills, and now Victoria thinks I’m after Astor? They’re all out of their minds.
Victoria is almost as obsessed with Astor as Dana is obsessed with Victoria. I really can’t see what any of them see in each other.
Well, maybe that isn’tentirelytrue.
I do have to admit, as I take a bite and chew thoughtfully, that Astor is incredibly beautiful. More than beautiful, he’s hot. If he wasn’t such a complete jerk then Victoria might well have a bit of competition on her hands. But he is, and she doesn’t.
And I don’t see that changing any time soon.
CHAPTER11
