Chapter Fifteen

Amelia's POV

Great.

Just great. I was currently dressed in a jacket over silk pyjamas, walking with Mandy and Angela into a party which one of my supposed boyfriends took part in organizing. And here I thought I always made smart decisions.

Angela and Mandy did not seem bothered by any of this. They were laughing excitedly, dragging me forward by both hands.

"Stop dragging your feet, Bella!" Mandy said, shouting to be heard over the loud music.

"For the millionth time," I said. "We're wearing pyjamas."

"Doesn't matter," she replied. "My brother's friends are chill guys. They won't mind."

The moment we stepped into the room, I wanted to turn and walk right back out. Nancy and I had done our share of clubbing, but this was wilder than anything we had ever attended. The place was packed, and so hot it was stifling. The music was blaring loudly enough to give somebody a panic attack. As if that wasn't enough, there were couples making out on practically every surface, bodies moving against each other in every corner I turned.

"Chill, huh?" I said drily.

"Oh no, we're not staying here," Mandy said.

Thank goodness. Because there was literally nowhere I could sit or lean that didn't have people mashing faces together.

Mandy led the way past the suffocating crowd until we pushed into a corridor. We walked further till we arrived at an inner room. There was also a party going on in here, but it was more my speed.

"They entertain friends in here," Mandy said. "The one percent can't be seen mixing with just anyone, after all. But any of us are free to go out there whenever we want. Have a little more fun, you know?"

'No,' I thought. 'I don't know.'

But it wasn't like I was going to say that. Instead, I made a show of looking around with my brows furrowed.

"I don't see Neil anywhere," I said.

"He's right over there," Angela replied, pointing towards a couch at the far end of the room.

A buff guy sat there, sprawling like he owned the place. A tiny brunette was perched on his lap, holding a glass of wine to his lips. Because apparently, his hands were for decoration. As if he could feel me watching, he looked up. Our eyes locked, and his lips stretched into a smirk.

Seconds later, he had his fingers in the brunette's hair and was kissing her like there was no tomorrow.

Clearly trying to make me jealous. I made sure he saw me roll my eyes, then I turned away, walking towards the other end of the room. I came here to escape from drama.

I wasn't going to do that by getting caught up in more drama.

"Where can somebody get a drink around here?" I asked.

"The bar is over there," Mandy replied, leading Angela and I to the bar.

I ordered a vodka with lime, and sipped it while looking around.

"Look! Neil is trying so hard to make you jealous!" Mandy giggled.

Oh, so she had noticed his little performance too.

"He's just proving that he's not over me," I replied with a scoff.

But it was kind of troublesome. That was the second one of Isabella's exes that I had run into in less than a week. Just how many of those did she have lying around?

"How many ex boyfriends do I have, exactly?" I asked, keeping my tone as casual as I could. "It's so hard to keep track sometimes."

"It is, isn't it?!" Mandy replied with a laugh. "There's a reason they call you the heartbreaker. Not even I can remember how many. About fifteen, give or take? What do you think, Angie?"

That was when I noticed that Angela had not been saying much. Before I could ask her about it, she stood up and knocked back the contents of her glass in one gulp.

"I'll catch you guys later," she said, before heading to towards the exit.

Someone was walking in at the same time, and she wrapped her arms around him as soon as she reached him. He tilted his face down to capture her face in a hungry kiss.

"Um… who is that?" I asked.

"That's Ken," Mandy replied with a laugh. "Why do you keep forgetting, Bella?"

Looks like Isabella forgets this Ken guy a lot. Lucky me.

"Well," I replied, tucking my hair behind my ear as I laughed along, "I only remember guys who are my type."

"That's so true," Mandy giggled. "Ken is cute, but you like to go for the gorgeous ones."

"So… he's Angela's boyfriend?" I asked.

"Secret boyfriend, but yeah," Mandy replied. "Angie's parents don't approve of him because his family isn't rich. In fact, he's only allowed in here because he's friends with my brother."

"Wow," I said, "that must be tough."

'That will be me by the end of this year if I don't get Julian Lake to fall in love with me,' I didn't add.

"Yeah, it's really tough," Mandy replied. "When they first began to date, her parents confiscated her car and blocked her credit card until she pretended to break up with him. It was terrible."

Okay, wow. That was some high level rich girl X poor guy stuff. The kind we only saw in movies.

"So," Mandy said, "let's talk about my birthday."

I blinked at her in confusion.

"What about it?" I asked.

"The gang has to be together by then, so you have to make up with Jackie and Ray before the shopping trip," she replied.

My jaw dropped.

"What?" I exclaimed.

"Yup," Mandy said unrepentantly. "But don't worry, I know just the thing for you to do."

"Which is?" I asked suspiciously.

Mandy beamed.

"Apologize by throwing a party at the Domitia mansion," she replied, grinning like "I'm such a genius."

Hang on.

That sound in the distance had to be the Domitia family's dwindling funds screaming in horror.