Dating Mr. Arrogant

chapter 28 - what a surprise to see you here

ELLE

"I'll make your wedding dress when you two get married," Jade beams, her fingers brushing across a golden collection of necklaces and earrings and bracelets.

I cross my arms, fighting back an eye roll. "Okay, now that's too far of a jump. Let me finish college first."

It was just a kiss. A mind-blowing good kiss, one that left me breathless and wanting more, but it was still just a kiss. We didn't even talk about feelings afterward, just went back into our usual banter as if nothing happened. It was like scratching an itch that had been driving me crazy—a moment of pure, unadulterated satisfaction. At least I know we find each other attractive.

"I can sense a match made in heaven when I see it," she insists. "If fashion design doesn't work out, I'm totally becoming a matchmaker."

"All we did was kiss."

A part of me can't help but wonder if it meant more to him. Was that kiss was just as mind-blowing for him as it was for me? Am I terrified of finding out the truth? Maybe he feels guilty about how he treated me before and wants to do the right thing by protecting me from Cassie. The thought of him being that 'playboy prince' everyone gossips about horrifies me. Does he like flirting with me just for the thrill of the chase? I shouldn't think of him like that, but there's not much I know about him.

"Correction," Jade smirks. "You guys had a full make out session based on how you explained it."

"You beat it out of me with my own pillow!" I whisper-shout, shooting her a look. Poor Daryl. "It's kind of hard talking about things like that when he's your brother. And you keep telling him stuff."

"For both your benefits." She mumbles something about both of us having too much pride. "I don't care if you tell me all the juicy details, like doing the naughty with him... okay, maybe not everything but I'm always here to listen to your love life."

"Doing the what with him?" I look at her, stunned. Jade starts to sound out the actual word until I cut her off, flustered, "Stop! We're not even actually dating."

"So talk to him again, it worked the other night. It would make sense if you guys started dating for real since everyone thinks you already are." Jade unhooks a pair of dainty butterfly earrings. "These are so cute."

"You have like a dozen pairs of butterfly earrings," I remind her. The girl is obsessed with butterflies when it comes in accessory form, earrings and hair clips and even sunglasses.

"You're right," Jade puts them back on the display with a slight pout.

She might also be right about dating Ace making sense. But the thing is, I'm not sure if I'm ready for the potential fallout. More negative attention, more girls like Cassie. This whole PR thing was supposed to only last maybe a few months, with no feelings involved. I've been able to handle everything thrown at us so far, but who's to say I won't get caught in a seriously twisted media narrative or attacked by some crazy fan girl with an 'I love Ace' sign? I physically try to shake the thoughts out of my head.

I pick up a dangling star hairpin made of crystals, making me think of a meteor shower.

"That would look so good with your dress!" Jade voices my exact thoughts.

The dress—the one I'm wearing to the soiree. It's the one I told Jade I wanted but refused to buy because of the outrageous price. To my surprise, Ace, that sly devil, bought it for me, telling me it would be easy for him to match. I argued with him for what felt like hours, but he reminded me how rich he was and how he was paying me back for what I spent on the keychain. Yeah, right. Like a silly keychain comes close to the price of a designer dress.