Beautiful People | wlw

Twenty-six: Cringe

Sharise looked as surprised as Vera felt. "I'm... not sure."

"Wait." Vera gestured toward the entrance, where Marina had thrown her arm around Carmen and pulled her close to whisper in her ear like they were schoolyard BFFs. Or girlfriends. The romantic kind. "You didn't know about this?"

"Well, Carmen and Marina did talk on the yacht. I had a hand in that." She looked a little embarrassed. "That's what started it all."

"All what?"

"The kerfuffle. But I didn't know Carmen was inviting Marina here."

"Doesn't Carmen tell you everything?" Vera asked without thinking. She wished she'd bit her tongue when the concern creasing Sharise's beautiful eyes began to look an awful lot like hurt.

"My job would be so much easier if she did."

Still clinging to each other as though making up for all those months of non-contact, or as though to prove to all the bystanders that their fondness was authentic, Carmen and Marina headed off towards the bar.

Sharise shook her head. "Maybe they really made up. Or Cora might have suggested it. Damage control."

"It could be both?"

"It could be."

"So... why are we doing damage control? What was the 'kerfuffle'?"

"Do you need a drink? Oh, you have one. Good. Why don't we sit down for a minute. "

Distracted was not a mood she was used to seeing on Sharise.

They wove through the crowd to the tables by the far end of the pool. It took a long time. Everyone wanted to say hello to Sharise. Vera suspected they were sniffing for the dirty details as eagerly as she was. Sharise seemed to think the same; while she greeted them all pleasantly, she kept running her empty palm over her hip.

Vera couldn't focus well enough to appreciate how many celebrities she was meeting. She had too much on her mind. She needed to know whether she could finally come clean about working for Marina and get this horrible weight off her shoulders. She needed to know what had happened on that yacht – whether it was dramatic enough to bury any potential story about a stylist taking an embarrassing illegal swim in the canals. She needed to know whether Fatima Bhatia was really going to be here later.

Most importantly, she needed to know whether Ellie's presence was going to spoil her opportunity to see Sharise in a swimsuit.

When they eventually escaped from the crowd, Vera sank into a delicate chair with a sigh and set her wine glass on the table. A few sips of prosecco had been enough to sate her desire for celebration, and wobbling lights at the edges of her vision made her regret demolishing that whole bottle of wine with Jay. It wasn't too late to start sobering up a bit.

Beside her, Sharise sat facing the party. Their knees touched, a silent thread of support in the contact.

"This is not gossip. I'm only telling you this because Carmen's image is part of your work. And because you're her friend." Her dark brown eyes were serious. "I trust you not to share the details with anyone."

"Of course."

Sharise nodded once. Still twirling the martini glass she had yet to put to her lips, she surveyed the glittering guests. At nearby tables, people chattered, laughter sprinkling the night air.

Vera reached over to squeeze her hand under the table. Sharise laced their fingers together and held on.

Keeping her voice low, she said, "After her premiere went so well, Carmen decided it was a good idea to post about the bouquet. Cora put something together. Maybe you saw it before she took it down?"