Beautiful Mess (22 page)

After
Layla did her makeup, Bri pulled her hair to the side in a loose fishtail
braid, leaving a few curls framing her face.  She then slipped into her
white, shimmery, iridescent dress.  It fell from one shoulder, and hugged
her curves all the way down, before flaring slightly at her knees.  The
light color set off Bri’s hair and eyes, and the red heels she slipped on
completed the outfit perfectly.  She had bought the dress for Cole, and
couldn’t wait for him to see it.

She
still felt a little guilty about going with Nick.  Not that she’d done
anything to make him think she was interested in being anything more than
friends.  But she still felt she was leading him on somehow by going with
him.  And to make matters worse, for the past two weeks Layla had been
giving Bri subtle, and not so subtle hints, on how to snag Nick, which of
course Bri ignored.  She was going to be glad when tonight was over, and
Layla could move on.

The
rest of the girls finished, and they all gathered in front of the full length
mirror to inspect their work.  Bri had to admit, they made a gorgeous
group.  Layla was stunning in a long, sleeveless emerald green gown, her
dark hair swept up in a beautiful up do.  Jess was rocking a short, red strappy
number that ended mid-thigh, and made her look more like a rock star than a
high school student with her short, spiky hair.  And Maddie looked amazing
in a knee length, gold halter, her light hair loose around her shoulders. 
The tradition for the Winter Formal was to wear Christmas/winter colors, and
the girls had all agreed not to wear the same color.  The result of their
diligent shopping was stunning.

The
doorbell rang, and the girls walked, en masse, down the stairs to a group of
awe struck boys.  Bri found Nick’s eyes drinking her in, and she couldn’t
help blushing.  He looked pretty darn good, himself.  His normally
shaggy, light brown hair was swept back and expertly styled.  He was
wearing a white tux with a red tie.  The look was so contrary to his
typical surfer look that Bri was taken aback.  She’d be lying if she said
he wasn’t attractive.  Nick had that cute, boy next door quality that made
plenty of girls at SMH swoon.  Unfortunately for him though, he didn’t
compare to Cole.  Bri felt another pang of guilt, but quickly squashed
it.  It wasn’t like Cole wasn’t going with someone else.  No, Bri was
determined to have a good time tonight, and she was going to make sure Nick did
too. 

“Wow! 
You look amazing!” he gushed.

“Thank
you,” Bri smiled.  “You look pretty good yourself.”

“Thanks! 
I do know how to rock a tux!” he smiled, making Bri laugh.

Layla’s
mom came in and took about a million pictures, and then they were ready to go.

“Shall
we?”  Nick offered Bri his arm and led her outside, where the couples
separated into two groups.  Jess, Ethan, Maddie, and Corbin went to
Ethan’s dad’s Mercedes.  Bri, Nick, Layla, and Devon walked over to the
black BMW M5 parked in the driveway.

“No
way!” Bri was stunned.  “Who’s dad was crazy enough, and awesome enough,
to let them borrow this?”  She stood gawking at the car.  The M5 had
always been on her dream car list, and it was even more amazing up close.

“That
would be my crazy, awesome dad,” Nick beamed and opened the door for her. 
“I’m glad you like it!”

Devon
and Layla climbed in the backseat and they took off.  They arrived at an
expensive looking restaurant in LA, and Nick valet parked the car.  The
group walked in and was shown to their reserved table.

“Wow,
this place is really nice,” Bri observed as Nick helped her into her
chair.  She began to feel a bit uneasy.  She picked up her menu and
her jaw dropped at the prices.  This was way too expensive for a first
date with someone she didn’t plan on going out with again.  Her unease
grew into full blown panic.

Nick
leaned in closer to her.  “The restaurant was Devon and Ethan’s
idea.  I tried to convince them it might be a little overwhelming, but I
obviously got shot down,” he smiled.  “Don’t worry about anything,
though.  Order whatever you like.  I hear the filet mignon is really
good.”  He picked up his own menu.

“Thanks
Nick,” she smiled, feeling a little better.  He didn’t seem like he was
expecting anything from her in return for such an expensive dinner.  But,
just to be safe, Bri began perusing the less expensive salad selections.

“Alright
everyone,” Devon’s voice got the table’s attention.  He held up a black
plastic card.  “My dad gave me his credit card, so dinner is on me
tonight!  And Layla has just informed me that it is Bri’s birthday today. 
So dessert will also be on me, in honor of the Birthday Girl!” he grinned at
Bri, and she blushed, embarrassed.

“Thanks
a lot, Lay,” she shot Layla a good natured glare.  Layla just winked at
her conspiratorially.

As
the rest of the table turned their attention to their menus and each other,
Bri’s fears and reservations evaporated.  She decided she just might try
that filet after all.

Dinner
was fun and delicious.  They all joked and laughed and told stories. 
Nick was attentive, funny, and nice, and Bri began to really enjoy
herself.   After sharing a crave-worthy coconut cream pie, and a
chorus of “Happy Birthday” from the table, Devon paid for dinner, and they
headed off to the dance.

The
school gym had been transformed.  There were twinkle and icicle lights
hanging on the walls, and lit up Christmas trees were scattered around the
perimeter of the room.  All of this was lost on Bri, though, as the minute
they walked in her eyes immediately began scanning the crowd for Cole. 
She was suddenly desperate to find him.  It didn’t take her eyes long to
find his.

He
was standing off to the side of the dance floor with some of his friends,
including his date and Serena.  It was obvious from the expression on his
face that he had seen Bri come in.  He looked completely stunned, like
he’d never seen anything more beautiful.  Bri felt her cheeks blush as he
took her in slowly, head to toe.  She took a moment to devour Cole with
her own eyes, and they weren’t disappointed.  He looked incredible in his
black, fitted suit, and his silver dress shirt, that he wore open, without a
tie.  His black hair hung in his eyes, just the way she loved it.

She
met his eyes, and a wave of heat raced between them.  Bri even took a step
towards him, before she remembered that they were in a huge room full of
people, and she was there with Nick.  Disappointment tainted her smile,
and she saw the same reaction in Cole. 

Nick
drew her attention back to him as he took her arm and led her over to a group
of his friends from the football team.  Layla and the others in their
group had dispersed to the dance floor, or to greet friends, and Bri was left
alone with Nick. 

Nick
introduced Bri around and then started chatting with a couple of the
guys.  She didn’t really know any of the other girls, and was quickly
getting restless, when a familiar voice broke into the group.

“Hey
guys, what’s up?  I had to come make sure I wasn’t missing anything over
here!”

“Cole!” 
One of the guys shouted.  “Good to see you, man!” 

Bri
turned to find Cole standing beside her, looking at her.  She smiled, then
quickly turned her attention back to the rest of the group, who had immediately
surrounded Cole like he was a celebrity or something.

Cole
received a round of welcomes and pat on the back.  He introduced his date,
a cheerleader named Alli, and the group quickly fell into guy and football
talk.  Bri didn’t pay much attention.  She was all too conscious of
Cole standing next to her.  She felt the soft brush of his fingers against
hers as he shifted his weight from one foot to the other.  After a few
minutes, a slow song started and Cole excused himself, leading Alli out to the
dance floor.  Nick quickly followed suit and led Bri out.

While
they danced, Bri took the opportunity to size up Cole’s date.  Alli was short,
blond, and wearing a low cut, super short black dress that left little to the
imagination.  Alli wound her arms up around Cole’s neck and began playing
with his hair.  Bri had to suppress the urge to storm over there and slap
the girl.  Before she ended up doing something drastic, she turned her
eyes away from the skank fondling her man, and was blinded by a flash of red.

Serena
and Trey, whom Bri assumed was Serena’s date, were dancing next to Cole and
Alli.  Serena looked ready to walk down the red carpet in a long, crimson,
gown.  The body hugging dress dipped almost to her butt in the back, and
plunged almost as low in the front.  Bri gaped at the copious amount of
skin Serena was flaunting.  It was more than cleavage, and Bri wondered
how on earth Serena kept from falling out of that dress.

As
she watched, Serena and Trey moved in closer to Cole and Alli.  Serena
leaned in to say something to Cole, and gave him an eyeful of her breasts in
the process.  She then cut a killing glare at Alli, and said something to
her that made Alli blanch.  She turned back to Trey, but kept an evil eye
on Alli for the rest of the song.  Bri was immensely grateful when the
song finally ended, and she quickly dragged Nick off the dance floor to the
table where her friends were sitting.

She
spent the next little while trying
not
to stalk Cole with her
eyes.  The possessive gleam in Serena’s eyes, and the not so subtle
advances from Alli had Bri’s stomach churning.  She danced with Nick a
couple more times, chatted with Layla, Jess, and Maddie, and even visited with
some of the other girls from the Dance Team, anything to try and distract
herself.  But, no matter how hard she tried, her eyes wouldn’t leave Cole
alone.  Unfortunately, that meant that she saw more than she wanted of
Alli trying to accost him.  And, since Serena was following Cole around
like a puppy, Bri also saw more of Serena’s breasts than she ever wanted. 
She and Layla even had a bet on how long it would be before one of Serena’s
nipples made a debut.  Watching Cole from afar was driving her
crazy.  Her only consolation was that Cole’s eyes followed her everywhere,
too.

As
the night wore on, Bri noticed that Alli was becoming more and more distressed
and uncomfortable, until it looked like she was on the verge of tears. 
One look at the smug grin on Serena’s face told Bri exactly why Alli looked
like she was about to have an emotional breakdown.  Bri was
surprised.  Alli was a fellow cheerleader, and one of Serena’s loyal
followers.  If Serena was willing to torment one of her own to the point
of tears for dating Cole, what wouldn’t she do to Bri?  Bri suddenly
understood exactly what it was Cole was trying to protect her from.  And
while she still didn’t like having to keep their relationship a secret, she
decided to stop giving Cole such a hard time about it.  At least for a
little while.

Sometime
later, Bri found herself sitting alone at the table.  Nick had gone off to
talk to some friends, and she hadn’t had the energy to follow him.  She was
watching Layla and Devon dancing, when a warm voice whispered in her ear.

“You
promised you’d save me a dance,” Cole’s breath tickled her neck.

“Won’t
that get us in trouble?” she replied, not looking back at him.

“Serena
and the girls took a trip to the bathroom.  We have plenty of time.”

“In
that case,” Bri turned to look at him, “Cole, would you like to dance?”

He
smiled and held out his hand, helping her up.  Keeping his hand in hers,
he led her into the throngs of dancing couples.

“Won’t
your date mind you dancing with another guy?”  Cole smirked.

“Not
as much as yours will,” she smirked back.  “Or as much as your psycho ex
will mind.”

They
found a spot on the outskirts and Cole pulled her into his arms.  His hand
found the small of her back and pressed her to him.  Bri pressed her cheek
against his and leaned into him.  She let her eyes close and inhaled a
deep breath, taking in Cole’s delicious scent. 

“Happy
Birthday, Ambria,” Cole murmured.

Surprised,
Bri turned to look at him.

“Thank
you.  I thought you’d forgot.”

“I
would never forget your birthday,” he replied tenderly.  Heat bloomed in
Bri’s stomach.  The intensity in his gray eyes was overwhelming as he
gazed at her.  Unable to handle it, she dropped her eyes and returned her
cheek to his.

As
they danced, Cole’s arms tightened around her, into more of a hug, and his head
dropped into the crook of her neck.  Bri’s arms clung to his shoulders in
response, like she was hanging on for dear life.  For the first time all
night, Bri felt completely at peace.  This was where she had longed to be
all night.  It was perfect, being held in Cole’s arms as they swayed to
the music. 

Bri’s
eyes snapped opened as realization crashed down on her.  She hadn’t felt
like she fit in anywhere since her mom died.  She’d always felt lost and
out of place.  But here, with Cole, she had finally found the place where
she belonged, where she would always belong.  She was finally home. 
Her epiphany both thrilled and terrified her. 

“I
wish this didn’t have to end,” Cole sighed into her shoulder.  “I wish we
could stay like this all night.”