AllFreeNovel
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I stop listening. Eliza is in Quincy. Why would she come here? This isn’t her hometown. She’s never even been outside of LA.
* * *
It’s prettyeasy for me to escape The Warehouse unseen. Thank God that Steve has his friend there to keep him entertained.
The moment I leave, I take off in my parents’ car. They let me borrow it for the evening since I’m supposed to be the designated driver for Blair.
I’m not exactly sure where Eliza could be right now, but Quincy is a small town. And seeing how Eliza has relatively expensive taste, the number of hotel options that would be suitable for her are extremely limited.
Not really knowing if I’m doing the right thing, I drive to the Renegade Hotel, Quincy’s version of a Four Seasons. Then I park my parents’ car and dash inside the lobby.
I don’t see Eliza anywhere, but why was I expecting to?
I am being crazy,I tell myself as I walk over to one of the plush armchairs and take a seat.
If Eliza had meant to see me, she would have called me to let me know.
I pull my phone out of my small clutch to check for notifications, just in case I somehow missed a message from her. My phone screen remains blank. And the time reads nearly midnight. It’s almost New Years, and I am about to ring it in alone in a hotel lobby.
When I look up, I see that even the hotel staff is gathering around behind the reception desk with champagne flutes full of probably cider.
I can’t believe what a huge loser I’m being.If anyone on Instagram could see me now, I joke to myself.
I watch my phone screen, and the time reads two minutes before midnight.
I sigh and stand up. I don’t know if being in the hotel lobby or in my parents’ car is a worse way to ring in the new year, but at least if I go to the car, no one will see me cry.
I just want to see Eliza again so badly that it hurts.
“Giselle?”
I snap my head up, and there Eliza is, walking in through the hotel lobby doors. She has on a giant, white fur coat, a glossy white beret, and black leather gloves. Her cheeks are rosy, and the tip of her nose is red from the cold.
She looks absolutely breathtaking.
“Oh my gosh,” I breathe.
Eliza approaches me. Thankfully, she is smiling. “What on earth are you doing here?”
“I was looking for you.”
“Me? How did you even know…?”
“Steve isn’t really my boyfriend,” I admit without thinking. I just can’t hold it in anymore. I don’t want to start the new year with lies.
She purses her lips and draws her eyebrows together. “What do you mean?”
“Eliza, I have to tell you the truth.” My heart is pounding, and my throat feels dry.
She stands there and waits for me.
“Steve saw us in the stairwell that day,” I admit. “He watched us kiss. And he took a photograph of it. Ever since that day, he’s been blackmailing me.”
It’s difficult for me to gauge her expression. “Oh…”
I take both of her hands. “It has nothing to do with you—Steve loves you. This is allmyfault. He has feelings for me, and I didn’t return them, so this was his way of getting back at me. I’m so sorry.”
She looks deep into my eyes. “So, you’re not with him?” she asks.
