And one of the reasons she would try to copy me in everything I did.
“Carter Pembleton.” Daisy’s voice turned knowing. Calculated. “He shakes up Operation Dr. Pembleton a bit, but could work in your favor if you charm him. Ask him to introduce you, and flatter them all.”
That’d been the path I’d been considering. “I’m sure Lydia’s already tried.”
“You are not Lydia.” Daisy finished Jamie’s tie off and smoothed her hand down his chest, flattening it to his shirt. Her eyes were confident on me. “You’re better at the game of it all.”
I looked at my best friend, feeling her surety wash over me. I was not Lydia. I did not move impulsively. I was better.B-E-T-T-E-R.
I played it all through in my head. It’d be too obvious to walk in and straight up to Carter Pembleton, wouldn’t it? I couldn’t seem like every other girl who’d been vying for his attention. No, I needed a way that was subtle, more like fate than anything else. I bit down on my lower lip, envisioning it, playing out the scenarios, and seeing which one worked best.
“I’ll go in and get a drink,” I told Daisy, forming the plan. “You’ll point out which one Carter is. I’ll make myrounds before we go on stage, run into him, nearly spill on him?—”
“And use that as your way to introduce yourself,” Daisy finished for me, nodding eagerly. “That’s perfect.”
Jamie frowned. “Oh, sure, but when Lydia did it, it was dumb?”
“She was trying to embarrass someone else,” I told him. “The only person I would be embarrassing is myself. Because I’llalmostspill on him, and Iwillspill on myself.”
That was the difference. Lydia would never embarrass herself for the bigger picture of things. I looked down at my green dress, at the way it flowed over my hips, dipped down near my chest. It was expensive. I could see it play out in my head, finding no flaw.
Unless, of course, Carter was an absolute jerk of a human. Possible. Around here, likely. But I could always twist that in my favor once his father found out his son was rude to David Brighton’s daughter.
Moves and countermoves.
“What about Mr. ASMR?” Daisy asked. “If we see someone random coming up to you, should we intercept? Who’s more important here?”
Mr. ASMR was another variable. I’d been planning on quickly saying hello to him before attempting to knock the socks off Dr. Pembleton, but we’d run late, and now Carter had entered the equation. Too many men to juggle. “Intercept anyone unfamiliar,” I decided. “I’ll send him a DM later that I was too busy to talk.”
It was for the best. I could meet him another time. Tonight was too important.
“He won’t be disappointed?” Daisy asked.
While I was interested to meet Mr. ASMR, I wasn’t excited about it on a romantic level. Nothing about our DM conversations seemed anything beyond platonic either. In fact, if we both weren’t attending this event, I doubted we’d ever have planned to meet in person. “It’ll be fine.”
Our heels clicked on the marble floors, with Jamie’s softer footsteps trailing behind us.T-H-R-I-V-E. I would.P-E-R-F-E-C-T. I was. With my best friend on my arm and my brother behind me, it was easy to forget the uneasy feelings; to forget the invisible baggage that hung from my shoulders. Tonight was Phase One in my beautiful future, and I’d be able to check it off.
The double doors that led into the ballroom were swung wide as we turned down the hallway, and the closer we got, the louder the string music became. I pictured what I looked like, running over the details, even down to the eyeshadow. I hadn’t rubbed my eye on the car ride over, had I? I looked down at my hands. Even though the skin was clean, I wasn’t sure.
“Wait.” I pulled Daisy to a sharp stop. “I’m—I’m going to go check my makeup one last time.”
“It looks fine,” Jamie muttered.
“It looksgreat.” Daisy patted my hand, dropping her arm. “But go ahead if you need to check. Jamie and I will scout around and get an eye on Carter.”
Jamie grumbled again as Daisy hooked her arm through his, thoughawkwardly, given their height difference. He let her pull him away, though, and into the ballroom.
I hooked a left down the hallway to where the bathrooms were and ducked inside, pleased no one else was crowding around the sinks. My lipstick had faded a bit on the car ride over, so I quickly pulled the tube from my clutch and reapplied. I frantically combed my fingers through my hair, taming the baby hairs out of place. My eyeshadow hadn’t smudged.
“P-E-R-F-E-C-T,” I spelled, the letters swimming around me.
I’d expertly capture Carter Pembleton’s attention.
He’d introduce me to his father.
His father would mentally put me down on his list.David Brighton’s daughter, he’d think with a nod of approval.She’s going places, just like her father. I’ll be sure of it.
P-E-R-F-E-C-T.
