Forever Yours

Surprises [41]

41. Surprises

Maureen

I almost expected to find the room transformed or the seating arrangements different- something. I wasn't stupid and Cara was hiding something, I could tell. So I guessed in that split moment, between her opening the doors and me looking around, to see something different or amiss.

Surprisingly, everything was the same.

Or was it?

The room seemed fuller, and I realized that everyone who had been wandering around the halls had returned to the ballroom. The bright lights had been muted somewhat so that most of the light now centered on the low stage on the far side of the room where the orchestra had been playing when I left the room. Now, to my surprise, there were only a few cellists and violinist still sitting, while the rest of the musicians, along with all the chairs and instruments, had been cleared out. In the place of the conductor was a beautiful grand piano, in front of which was a low bench. Off to the side was a drum-set, a keyboard, and a few guitars. Huh? I thought, barely noticing Cara texting frantically on her phone, or the way she kept an iron grip on my arm.

"Um, Cara..." I started, my gaze fixed on the stage. She had started to pull me farther into the room, weaving past people and ducking under waiters with trays. I didn't miss the curious glances thrown our way or the delighted smiles. Something was going on. Cara was ignoring my murmured questions, her eyes fastened on the small device in her hands, but her grip didn't loosen, even after we made it to the front-center of the ballroom, where Dad's table was. "Cara- would you- stop..." I tried to shake her arm off but she was apparently stronger than she appeared cause it was like trying to loosen iron fetters.

"Okay, sit down-" she suddenly said, shoving me into one of the ornately upholstered chairs lining the table. I fell down into the seat with a thump and glared up at her as she moved away to her own chair- conveniently placed right next to mine. I examined the red fingerprints she had left on my light skin petulantly- after all the weirdness of tonight, I felt like I had the right to be annoyed. What on earth was going on?

The entire ballroom was humming with the low murmur of voices and without the background hum of orchestral music, it seemed louder than before. I sat up straighter in my chair, intending on searching the crowds for Ryan (though how I expected to do that in the dark lighting of the ballroom, I have no idea) and bit back a growl when Cara clamped her hand down on mine.

"I'm not going anywhere, you freak," I muttered under my breath. She just grinned, finally tearing her gaze away from her phone.

"No, you're not," she said, with all the knowing smugness of a leprechaun. I could have smacked her. I was annoyed, and my heart was racing away in my chest for no apparent reason.

I leaned over to her, placing my mouth close to her ear. "Could you freaking tell me what's going on?"

"Maureen, honey, there you are," I heard my mother suddenly say and I looked up to find her swishing her way towards me in her floor-length, red gown. "You were with Cara?"

"Yeah. We were in the bathroom... hey, what's going on with the stage over there? Is there gonna be a performance?" I asked her, figuring my own mother would be on my side with this one. Why did I feel like I was the only one missing out here? Even the guests seemed to know what was going on: they all had the relaxed, settled-in air of one about to see a show or a performance. I certainly hadn't known about any performances... from what I had been told, it would just be a nice evening gala, with dinner, dancing, and music.