Diamond in the Rough (11 page)

Zoe eyed Gemma with a look of suppressed laughter as Emilia continued to ignore them. 

“Thank you, it’s nice meeting you too,” Tyler smiled politely, scooting over in the booth as Emilia plopped down next to him.  He glanced towards Harper, as if asking for some help.

“How have you been, Em?” Harper reluctantly asked.

“Good,” Emilia answered brightly.  “But not as good as you, Harpie, if you’re hanging out with Tyler Chase.”  She turned to Tyler, touching his shoulder.  “You are so sweet to hang out with a little wannabe model!”

Harper clenched her jaw.  “I don’t model anymore.”

“You don’t
try
to anymore,” Emilia corrected.

Zoe cocked her head.  “
Who
are you again?”

“Oops, how rude of me! Emilia.”  Emilia offered her hand to Zoe.  She retracted it with a smirk when Zoe didn’t shake.  “I went to The Cabot School with Harper, before she moved away to,” she put on a voice of mock wonderment.  “
Escape her world
.”

Harper downed the rest of her drink and slammed her glass on the table.  Zoe took it as a cue.

“This booth is getting a little cramped,” she said, looking at Emilia.  “You should probably leave.”

Emilia blinked with feigned surprise.  “Me? Harper’s got at least fifteen pounds on me.”

Gemma couldn’t help but roll her eyes at the girl.  She signaled to Andro, who immediately stepped into the booth.

“I’m going,” Emilia surrendered, putting her hands up with a giggle.  Before leaving, she looked at Tyler, nodding towards the other side of the room.  “I’m over there.  Come get me for a dance.”  She winked.  The booth watched her saunter to her own table before breaking the silence.

“The hell was that?” Zoe asked.

“Old friend,” Harper said.  “Before I moved to L.A.  She’s an asshole now.”

“No kidding,” Gemma murmured.  There was another silence before Tyler broke it with a nervous laugh.

“Can I just say how awkward that was for me?” he asked.  The girls burst into laughter.

“Poor thing,” Gemma pouted.  Tyler eyed her with a smile.

“You’re mean,” he said quietly.  “Not letting me kiss you when you pout like that.”

Gemma bit her lips back, her cheeks heating up.

“Gross, lovebirds, snap out of it,” Zoe said. 

“Speaking of gross,” Harper muttered.  “Look at Emilia just
star
ing at us with her friends.”

“Total stalker,” Zoe sang.  “Forget her, Harper! Come dance with me.”

“Ugh, she’s just going to watch me,” Harper grumbled, staring at her chipped manicure.  “And laugh,” she added in a barely audible mutter.  Gemma wasn’t sure if Tyler or Zoe had heard.  Despite herself, she sympathized. 

“Why don’t you dance with Tyler?” she asked, surprising everyone at the table, including herself.  Harper blinked.  “Make her jealous.”  Gemma eyed Tyler, whose quizzical look faded when she smiled gratefully at him. 

“Would you like to dance?” He stretched a hand out to Harper.  “Particularly close to Emilia’s table?”

Harper’s face crumbled into the smile of a little girl.  “Definitely.  Thank you, Ty.”

Gemma and Zoe watched as Tyler and Harper went out to the dance floor.  When they were out of sight, Zoe reached across the table and pinched Gemma’s cheek.

“You’re sweet,” she said. 

About ten minutes later, Tyler and Harper reappeared at the booth in fits of laughter.  Gemma and Zoe grinned in anticipation of a good story.

“You should have
seen
Emilia’s face,” Harper squealed, squeezing Zoe’s hands.  “She was like, squinting like she wasn’t sure it was Tyler, so we started dancing closer and when she realized Tyler wasn’t there to ask her to dance, she just got
pissed
and ran to the bathroom.  I was
dy
ing, Z!”

Gemma laughed with Zoe, though it felt a bit awkward to considering Harper had yet to speak to her.  It wasn’t as if she expected a thank you – she didn’t
own
Tyler and reserve the right to give him away for dances.  It had just seemed like a good opportunity for Harper to shed her cold attitude and give Gemma a chance. 
Guess not
, Gemma thought, reaching for her glass.  She opted for one of her go-to actions during awkward moments – taking a drink. 

“Chug it!” Zoe whooped.  Gemma did just that, knocking back her martini in a matter of seconds.  “Are you drunk yet?” Zoe asked with a grin.   

Gemma ignored her.  “Dance with me, Tyler,” she practically demanded.  Tyler raised his eyebrows.

“Since you asked so nicely,” he smiled, offering her his hand. 

Zoe watched as the two headed for the dance floor.  “Yup, totally drunk,” she concluded.

Gemma pulled Tyler into the middle of the crowd, ignoring the eyes that followed them.  Andro was only a few yards away, but it was far enough for her.  She turned her back to Tyler, backing against him as she began to dance.  His mouth opened, but it took awhile for words to come out.

“So mean,” he finally said, shaking his head and laughing.

“What?” Gemma asked innocently, leaning her head back against his shoulder.  She looked up at him from under her eyelashes, more than aware of what her backside was pressed against. 

“You know what,” he murmured, moving with her to the music. 

Gemma shook her head, wrapping his arms around her waist.  “I don’t,” she said, playing coy.  Her body buzzed as his hands slid up from her waist to her ribcage, his fingers lingering below her bust. 

“I want to kiss you.”

“You can’t.”

“I know,” Tyler said.  He groaned.  “What am I supposed to do, Bee? You’re killing me.”

Gemma giggled.  “Do what we did last time,” she said.  As dangerous as she knew it was to bring up their last time together, she couldn’t stop herself.  A part of her wanted to go as far as she possibly could without doing anything truly unchaste.

Tyler paused.  “What
was
it that we did last time?” he asked.  She could hear his smile.

“I don’t know.  But you liked it,” she said.  His silence made her nervous as she waited for his response.  It came in the warmth of his breath on the back of her neck.

“Mm-hm,” he rumbled deeply.  Gemma closed her eyes, reveling in the touch of his lips on her skin.  She put her hands over his, pushing them up on her body by just a few inches.  It was enough to make him exhale in a way that quite clearly expressed his desire.  Gemma knew that he had never wanted to be alone with anyone more than he did with her at that very moment. 

It wasn’t until she opened her eyes that she gasped, pulling away just slightly.  The eyes of the club hadn’t stopped watching them.  “
Shit
, Tyler,” she hissed, turning to face him.  “They’re watching us.  Everybody.”

“I don’t care, everyone knows I want you.  What do I have to hide?” he asked.  When she didn’t respond, he frowned.  “What do you have to hide?”

Lucas
.  Instead of answering, Gemma buried her face in his chest.  She looked up into his impossibly sweet brown eyes.  “I want you,” she whispered, her hands on his neck.  “But I can’t.”

“I know,” he said gently, removing her hands and holding them in his. 

They headed back to the booth in silence.  There was a fury in Gemma’s heart that she couldn’t explain.  She played the blame game with herself.  It was Mira’s fault for giving her two identities.  How was she expected to have feelings for just one boy? Her body still hummed with excitement, but it was an angry one now, and she had no one to direct it at.

Or so she thought.  When they reached the booth, Gemma and Tyler saw Emilia standing and arguing before their security.  Zoe knelt on the booth, blocking Harper from Emilia with every inch of her body.

“What’s going on?” Tyler asked.

“She needs to leave,” Andro said, placing a strong hand on Emilia’s shoulder.

“Don’t
touch
me,” Emilia snapped. 

“She’s not with you guys, right?” Andro questioned.

Gemma eyed the girl with disgust.  “No.  Get her away from here.”

“Oh,
fuck you
,” Emilia spat, taking a swig from her champagne before pointing a finger in Gemma’s face.  “What is this? Like a little threesome you have going on with him? A foursome? Bunch of
sluts
.”

Harper broke free from Zoe’s hold, bursting between Andro and Tyler’s bodyguard.  “Do you even know Zoe? Do you even know
Bee
? You have no idea what the fuck you’re talking about, so why don’t you shut your desperate little mouth?”

Emilia didn’t take her eyes off of Gemma despite Harper’s words.  It was clear whom her wrath had shifted to.  “I’m not even surprised that you would hang out with trash.  You’ve got to be hideous under all that makeup.”

“You need to watch what you’re saying,” Tyler said warningly.  Emilia persisted despite him.

“What do you have to say,
Queen
Bee? Are you such a loser in real life that you can’t let anyone know what you’re really like?”

Gemma simply stared at the girl.  She hated that she could only think of Mira’s disappointment if she decided to hit someone.  Her instinct to smack Emilia stayed bottled inside her, alongside her lust for Tyler.  Gemma cursed her body’s capacity to contain emotion.  All she could do was stare.

“Oh my God,” Emilia breathed.  “You’re a freak.  You really don’t know how to speak without your team whispering in your ear, do you?”

It was at that point that Gemma would have said something, but all she could do was stumble back as both Harper and Zoe thrashed forward.  Andro moved to control them but stopped when he caught Gemma’s eye.

“Tell me something,” Harper hissed at Emilia.  “What do you do that makes you think you can talk to her like that? Who
are
you?” Her laugh dripped with disdain and condescension.  “Do you know why she won’t speak to you? Because you’re not even a blip on her fucking radar, you pathetic little girl.”

 “Where are
your
friends, by the way?” Zoe asked, backing Emilia against the table.  Gemma was grateful for the combined six hundred pounds of security, which created a decent wall to block the crowd from observing too closely. 

“Why aren’t they here to help you? Do you embarrass them?” Harper smirked.  Zoe deliberately stepped on Emilia’s toes, causing her to fall backwards against the booth.  She returned to her feet quickly.  She opened her mouth to speak, but instead threw her champagne in Harper’s face.

Gemma leaped forward in a flash, but just as quickly, Andro pulled her back.  “
Stop it
,” he said firmly in her ear.  He would allow her friends to misbehave to some degree, but she was out of the question.  While still in his grip, Gemma looked up to see Tyler holding Harper back, his own bodyguard controlling Zoe.  The crowd snapped as many pictures as they could before club security pushed them back.  Just as the situation seemed under control, Emilia reached forward and slapped a restrained Harper across the face.

Tyler let go of her.  Harper charged at Emilia, who backed up in a near comical way.  Andro released Gemma and stormed after Emilia, catching her within a few paces of his long legs and pulling her away from an enraged Harper. 

“Get rid of her,” he said, carefully handing Emilia over to the Green Room staff.  He then clapped his hands, shooing at the crowd.  “Alright, everyone.  The show is over.”

EMILIA PLATT: QUEEN BEE HIT ME!

Pop Dinner

August 6

Socialite Emilia Platt is threatening legal action after a nightclub scuffle involving singer Queen Bee and celeb friends Zoe Mercury and Harper Gunn.  The 18-year-old Platt sustained bruises to the cheek and jaw where she alleges Bee, 17, struck her.  Additionally, Platt claims to have sustained injuries to her arms and shoulders due to Bee’s “rough” and “abusive” security staff.

“We are appalled by the actions of Queen Bee and her staff, and we intend to pursue legal action against this reckless and abhorrent behavior,” said Charles Mercer, lawyer to the Platt family.  Platt claims to have also obtained pictures of the incident through a friend’s Blackberry and aims to use the images as proof of her case.

Management for Queen Bee, Zoe Mercury, Harper Gunn and Tyler Chase – who was present during the fracas – have all spoken out in defense of Bee.

WAIT A SECOND.  QUEEN BEE SMACKED A BITCH? DO I LIKE HER NOW?

8/6 9:22AM

Posted by Tara C
.

Her Royal Secrecy

Nope.

I am actually not happy with this Pandora bitch for unleashing the crazy of Harper Gunn and whatever other elements onto my pure Tyler Chase.  All I can do is thank the media for keeping Tyler’s flawless name out of this mess, because God knows that he is innocent of all wrongdoing (except making my loins ache for him on a nightly basis and then leaving me high and dry).

Don’t worry, there is good to come of this.  We now know that the adorable-but-ever-unstable Zoe Mercury and borderline psychotic Harper Gunn are really besties with QB.  Isn’t it a luxury for us investigators to have these unpredictable and chemically imbalanced freaks constantly around Bitchass Bee? Who knows what they’ll pick up from her and possibly leak for the right amount of
cocaine
publicity?

Take a little vacation, my Chasers.  Let’s just allow Zoe to do the work for us.  If not Zoe, then definitely Harper, because that girl is messier than a pint of Ben & Jerry’s in the Sahara Desert.

If there was anything to be thankful for, it was that Emilia Platt’s claim had overshadowed any stories of the indecency that Gemma and Tyler displayed on The Green Room dance floor.  That was about it though.  Upon hearing that interviewers could not promise questions unrelated to the lawsuit, Mira canceled all of Gemma’s performances and interviews for the day.