Rich Girls

by Victoria Ashton

  “I’m not playing,” Adrienne said, slipping out from under his arm. He stumbled, but caught himself before he spilled his champagne. That would be perfect, Adrienne thought. Graydon splashing this hundred-thousand-dollar dress with booze! She stepped farther away from him.

  Liz clutched Adrienne’s arm. “I have an idea,” she whispered. “They can get us back there!”

  “What?” Adrienne asked.

  “They can pretend to be our escorts,” Liz explained. “The woman at the door is sure to know them and will let them in.”

  She’s right, Adrienne realized. She turned to Graydon. As much as she hated to do it, she had to ask him for the favor. “Can you take Liz and me back to see Cam?”

  “We want to wish her luck,” Liz added.

  “What’s in it for me?” Graydon asked, leering at Adrienne.

  “I’ll dance with you,” Adrienne replied.

  He laughed. “Not good enough,” he said, swigging his champagne. “I want a date.”

  A DATE? Just thinking about it made her skin crawl. “No way,” Adrienne said.

  “Hang on a sec,” Liz said to Graydon. She dragged Adrienne a few feet away from the guys. “It’s just one date!” she begged.

  Adrienne stared at her. “Liz, he’s a complete and total pig!” she said. “You don’t know what you’re asking.”

  “It’s our only shot at getting in,” Liz pleaded. “How bad could one date be?”

  Adrienne looked at Liz’s pleading expression and sighed. One date, she thought. I can live through that. Probably.

  “Okay,” she said. “But don’t leave me alone with him tonight. And you owe me big.”

  “Thank you,” Liz said, relief flooding her face. She hadn’t come this far to be stopped by her lack of an escort.

  Adrienne, Graydon, Albright, and Liz headed to the Baroque Room. Another woman with a clipboard stood outside the door. “And you are?” she asked, gazing at Adrienne and Liz and then back down at her notes.

  “Mrs. Smithon!” Graydon greeted the gray-haired woman. “We missed you in Palm Beach!”

  “Why, Graydon, darling,” the woman gushed, holding her powdered cheek toward Graydon, who obligingly kissed it. “I hadn’t realized you were one of the escorts this evening.”

  “What’s a Manhattan Cotillion without a few surprises?” Gradyon said, his expression completely sweet while he slid his hand toward Adrienne’s rear.

  She stepped forward quickly and out of his reach. “We don’t want to be late!” she said, and charged through the door. Liz followed right behind her.

  “We made it in,” Liz whispered to Adrienne. She gazed around the gold and white room. Seven beautifully dressed girls and their escorts frantically checked mirrors, powdered their noses, and whispered nervously. She noticed Mimi’s escort, but no Mimi—or Parker.

  As Liz and Adrienne moved deeper into the room, Adrienne noticed that all the girls and several of their escorts were staring at her. Do they know we’re crashing the party? she wondered. Some of them had seen her at Cameron’s tea and probably knew she was the nanny.

  “Why are they staring?” she asked Liz anxiously.

  “Oh, I don’t know, Adrienne,” Liz replied, laughing. “Like, maybe it is the TENS OF THOUSANDS of dollars’ worth of pearls sewn to your dress and around your neck?”

  “Oh, right,” Adrienne said, glancing down at her dress. “I forgot.”

  A slim, older woman with ash-blond hair clapped her hands. “Ladies, ladies. And gentlemen, of course,” she added with a smile. “I’m Mrs. Heusen and I going to put you in order and go over your introduction cards. Then I’ll give your cards to our host, who will make your announcements.” She glanced down at her cards and looked around the room. “We seem to missing some of our debutantes.”

  “Maybe we should try to make ourselves invisible,” Liz whispered to Adrienne, slinking behind Graydon and Albright. “We don’t want to get thrown out before we see Brian and Parker.”

  Just then, Cameron, Mimi, and Isabelle breezed in. Cameron’s eyes landed on Adrienne. Her gray eyes traveled up and down the peach Valentino dress and then narrowed.

  “Uh-oh,” Adrienne said, ducking behind Albright to stand beside Liz. “Cam just spotted me.”

  “So what?” Liz said, scanning the room for Parker.

  “So this is officially war, Liz,” Adrienne said. “I hope you know what you are doing.”

  Liz hoped she did too.

  “Okay, let’s go through your introduction cards,” Mrs. Heusen said. “Please stand with your escorts.”

  “Showtime!” Cameron said as Parker and Brian came in through the door.

  Liz’s heart clutched a little when she spotted Parker. She ducked behind Adrienne, suddenly not wanting him to see her. Now that she was here, she was less certain about what she should do.

  The debs and their escorts paired up, and Mrs. Heusen circulated through the room, reading the cards and putting everyone in order.

  “We’re just here to give our support,” Graydon told the woman as she flipped through the cards, trying to find his name. “As you know, Cameron Warner is my half sister.”

  “Oh, yes, of course,” Mrs. Heusen said. “You really shouldn’t be back here, but since your stepmother is the ball chairwoman, I’ll make an exception. Now, speaking of Miss Cameron?”

  Cameron stepped forward, pulling Brian with her. Mrs. Heusen looked down at Cameron’s card. “Is this correct?” she asked, sounding puzzled. “All it says here for your escort’s introduction is ‘Brian Grady.’”

  “That’s my name,” Brian said.

  “Yes, darling, and a very nice one it is, too, but there’s nothing here about your progenitors, your family.”

  “Like what?” Brian asked.

  Now the woman looked even more confused. “The usual: titles, family origins, genealogy…”

  Cameron’s forehead wrinkled. The questions were obviously making her even more uncomfortable than they were making Brian. “Uh, Brian’s family prefers to stay out of the limelight. Discretion, and all that. You know…” she trailed off.

  “Well, all right,” Mrs. Heusen said uncertainly. She moved on to Mimi and her archduke. “Mimi, could you just read this through and make sure I haven’t left out any of the royal or imperial titles belonging to you or your charming escort?”

  Once Mimi had given Mrs. Heusen her nod of approval, the woman dashed out to the stage with the cards. Suddenly, the waltz that had been playing stopped, and Mrs. Warner’s voice rang out over the sound system.

  “Thank you, everyone. Thank you so, so, so much for coming,” Mrs. Warner said, adjusting the microphone with a minimum of feedback.

  “I would like to introduce you to the man who has covered New York society for so many years for the New York Times, Mr. John Addison, who will announce this year’s class of debutantes at the Manhattan Cotillion.”

  “Girls!” Mrs. Heusen said. “Quickly, we’re starting. Mimi, you’re first!”

  Now Mr. Addison’s voice could be heard over the loudspeaker.

  “Get out of my way!” said Mimi, pushing past her friends. “He’s calling my name!”

  “Her Serene Highness, Princess Maria Augusta Victoria Ludmila Gertrude von Fallschirm, with her escort, His Royal and Imperial Highness Archduke Rudolph-Heinz von Habsburg, Prince of Hungary, of Teplitz…”

  Adrienne tuned out the announcement and focused on Cameron. With every title of Mimi’s or Rudolph’s the reporter announced, the more miserable Cameron looked.

  “I should have listened to my stepmother,” Cameron said to Brian. “This is horrible. A reporter from the Times is here, and I’m with you! Mimi has an archduke, Isabelle has Parker, and I have you. A nobody!”

  “Cam, that’s so rude!” Isabelle said, shocked.

  “Now, Isabelle and Parker,” Mrs. Heusen ordered. “Go!”

  Isabelle squealed and rushed to the doorway. “Parker, come on!” she said.

  Liz glanced
to the back of the room and saw Parker on his cell. I guess he takes calls when he’s with Isabelle, too, she thought.

  Parker clicked off and headed toward Isabelle, who was standing near the door.

  I’m so confused about him, Liz thought, watching him approach. Why does he have to be so cute?

  As he passed Liz, he suddenly caught sight of her. His mouth dropped open, and then he smiled at her. “You look beautiful,” he said.

  “Parker!” Isabelle whined. “Hurry up.”

  “I’ve missed you,” he told Liz. “See you out there, okay?” He joined Isabelle at the door, and Mr. Addison announced them—and all of their family connections—as they stepped onto the stage. The crowd burst into applause as Isabelle dropped into her curtsy.

  Liz turned to Adrienne. “I’m going out to the ballroom. I’m going to grab Parker when he comes off the stage with Isabelle,” she said. She thought it was a really good sign that he had stopped to speak to her in front of everybody while Isabelle stood and waited for him.

  “Go get him!” Adrienne said. “I need to stay here.” She glanced over at Brian, who looked miserable. Cameron didn’t look so happy herself.

  “Good luck,” Liz said, and then vanished.

  Debi LaDeux pushed her way in. “Cameron?” she called, peering anxiously around the room. “Ah, there you are!” She rushed to Cameron’s side. “I just wanted to give you a few little reminders before you went out there! After all, as your consultant, your performance reflects on me.”

  Mr. Addision announced another couple with a long list of impressive titles.

  “Do you hear those announcements?” Cameron said. She gestured toward Brian. “All his card has on it is his stupid name!”

  “Cameron!” Debi scolded. “They might hear you out in the ballroom!”

  “But—” Brian said.

  Cameron put her gloved hands on her hips. “Debi, I’m Cameron Warner,” she whispered, “and I am not going out there with a nobody!”

  “It’s a little late to come to your senses now, de-ah,” Debi clucked.

  Now Brian stared at Debi. “But—” he began.

  Cameron and Debi both continued to ignore him. Cam gazed around the room, completely panicked. She spotted Albright N. Smiley III. “You!” she called to him. “You’re a friend of Graydon’s?”

  “Since our boarding school years,” Albright said.

  “Albright is even richer than we are,” Graydon added, laughing.

  “That’s more than you can say,” Cameron tossed at Brian.

  Brian looked startled, then down at his feet.

  She is unbelievable! Adrienne thought, her whole body growing warm with anger. She glanced at Brian. Why won’t he stand up to her?

  “You want to rescue me from making a huge mistake?” Cameron asked Albright, tipping her head toward Brian.

  That’s it! “Hey, Cameron,” Adrienne said, stepping forward. “Brian wouldn’t go out on that stage with you if you were the last deb on Earth.” She took his hand. “Right, Bri?”

  Brian stared at her. “What? Oh, right.”

  “Whatever, Nanny,” Cameron said. “Take him. He’s no good to me here.” She turned to Albright. “What’s your last name again?”

  “Smiley,” he said, grinning.

  “Doesn’t your family own Mediacorp International?”

  “That’s us,” he said.

  “Isn’t your mom sort of a royal?” she asked.

  Albright nodded.

  “Good enough for me. Come on!” she said. She grabbed his hand. “Debi!” she ordered. “Change that card!”

  Debi raced to Mrs. Heusen, grabbed the woman’s pen, and scribbled the notes Albright dictated. Mr. Addison was still announcing the other debs and their escorts. Debi shoved the card into Mrs. Heusen’s hand and pushed the startled woman onstage.

  “And now for our final debutante,” Mr. Addison said over the sound system. “May I present Miss Cameron Warner and her escort, Albright N. Smiley the third, son of Albright N. Smiley junior, of the Denver Smileys, and his wife, Anabelle, the former Lady Browne-Fowlkes of London.”

  “There is a God,” Debi murmured, listening to the applause.

  Brian squeezed Adrienne’s hand. “It was great of you to stick up for me,” he said. “You were totally right. I never should have been with Cameron. You’re the only girl for me.” He leaned toward her and kissed her.

  As Adrienne felt his lips on hers she realized something strange. No familiar tingle. No weak knees. No wishing to pull him closer, to melt into him.

  She didn’t want him anymore.

  “Adrienne,” Brain said, pulling away to look at her. “What’s wrong? I thought you wanted us to get back together.”

  Adrienne studied his face. If Brian had chosen her over Cameron, she might have felt differently. Instead, Cam had dumped him, and only now was he turning to her. And, she had seen him cave to Cameron twice. She shook her head.

  “You know what, Brian?” Adrienne said. “I care about you, and I couldn’t stand there and watch Cameron treat you like dirt. But I didn’t deserve to be treated the way you treated me, either. I think you were right: We do need a break from each other.”

  Adrienne went out to the ornate ballroom, feeling better than she had for a long time.

  Liz stared around the ballroom, barely able to take it all in. The high, gilded ceilings had huge glimmering chandeliers, and were filled with pale silver balloons dangling long golden ribbons that stretched almost to the large polished dance floor. The room was full of men with white tie and tails, and women wearing long ball gowns dripping with expensive jewels. The linen-draped tables were covered with tall bouquets of white roses, giving one the impression of being lost in an forest of flowers. It was like stepping into a fantasy.

  She suddenly felt a tap on her shoulder. It was Parker.

  “I didn’t know you were coming,” he said with a dazzling smile.

  “Neither did I,” she admitted. She took a deep breath. This is what she had come for, after all. “Okay, just tell it to me straight: Are you going out with Isabelle?”

  Parker looked surprised. “No way! Liz, look at Isabelle!” He pointed to a corner, where Liz saw Isabelle making out with Mimi’s archduke! Mouth open in shock, Liz turned back to Parker.

  “Is Isabelle the reason you’ve been so weird?” Parker asked.

  “Me?” Liz said.

  “Yeah. I’ve barely heard from you since I got back.”

  “But—but,” Liz sputtered.

  “Liz, I really like you,” Parker said, touching her cheek.

  “You do?” Liz responded, feeling her heart flutter.

  “Of course, I do,” Parker said.

  “Oh,” Liz said, her voice soft. This was going way better than she had hoped! Before she completely fell under the Parker spell, she shook her head to clear it. “But all those calls,” she said. “You’re always on that cell. It makes me wonder if—”

  Parker cut her off. “It’s rude. I know.” He shrugged. “What can I say? I’m too popular for my own good. It’s a burden I try to live with.”

  Liz giggled and smacked his arm. “Shut up.”

  Parker laughed too, and pretended to protect himself from further attack. “Okay, so sometimes I can be a jerk—but at least I know it!”

  “Can you try to know it in advance?” Liz said. “And then do a preemptive strike to avoid the jerkiness?”

  “I’ll do the best I can,” Parker said, and grinned. “But no guarantees. I mean, you’re asking me to change lifelong habits!”

  He put on such a pathetic look, Liz burst out laughing.

  He took her hand in his. “Come on, let’s get out of here and get a slice of pizza.”

  “Dressed like this?”

  “Of course!” Parker said. “After all the gourmet food shoved down my throat during the holidays, pizza is a real special occasion!”

  He put his arm around Liz, and she leaned against him. It was definite
ly worth coming here, she thought. The rumors are just rumors, and Parker really does like me. I can feel it.

  Adrienne looked around the ballroom, searching for Liz. The first person she saw, though, was Mrs. Warner.

  “Oh, Adriana!” the woman gushed. She placed her hands on Adrienne’s shoulders and kissed her on both cheeks. “You are genius! Absolute genius!”

  “I—what?” Adrienne asked.

  “I don’t know how you did it, but I never should have doubted you! You kept Cameron from making a complete and utter fool of herself with that Byron boy. And Albright Smiley the third! What a perfect escort!”

  “Oh, right,” Adrienne said. “Well, glad to have been of help.”

  “You are an angel. And don’t you worry, that bonus is yours! It will be waiting for you back at the apartment. We Warners don’t forget those who help us.

  “Oh, they need me onstage,” Mrs. Warner said, practically giddy. “Ta-ta, dear!” She disappeared into the elegant crowd.

  “Ladies and gentlemen,” Mr. Addison announced from the stage. “As you all know, every year we pick the debutante who exhibits the most perfect combination of birth, breeding, and beauty as Debutante of the Year. The competition was very close, but we are pleased to announce that the Debutante of the Year is…Princess Mimi von Fallschirm!”

  This party just gets better, Adrienne thought with a grin.

  As the crowd burst into applause, Cameron appeared beside her.

  “That dress looks great on you, Adrienne,” Cameron commented.

  “What do you want, Cameron?” Adrienne said.

  “Hey, no hard feelings,” Cameron said. “You have Brian back.”

  “Don’t want him anymore,” Adrienne said. “And I have nothing to say to you.”

  “Don’t be silly, Adrienne,” Cameron said, moving closer. “I have a little proposal for you. And I know you won’t be able to say no.”

  Adrienne faced Cameron. A slow, confident smile spread across Adrienne’s face. “Trust me, Cameron. I can say no to you.”

  “No, you can’t,” Cameron said, her eyes glittering. “I was supposed to be Deb of the Year, Adrienne, and I’m going to get even with Mimi for this.”