Beneath the Glitter: A Novel (Sophia and Ava London) (23 page)

Ava waited for the waitress to take their order. Her eyes on their joined hands, she said, “I—Sophia and I have been fighting. A lot. We never used to fight but recently it’s like we can’t be in the same room together without it feeling like there’s a minefield and one wrong step will cause an explosion. I don’t know what to do. I feel like I’m losing my best friend.”

“We won’t let that happen, will we?” Liam asked Popcorn, who, with Liam’s assistance, shook his head. He turned a serious face to Ava. “I had hoped this wouldn’t happen, but I have to say, I’m not surprised.”

Ava stared at him, wide-eyed. “You’re not? Why?”

“It happens a lot when one person gets more famous than another. It happened with my friends. Hunter, he’s cool, but we used to have another friend who kind of lost it when my career blew up. He couldn’t be supportive. Instead of being happy for me when my picture started showing up places, he acted like I’d done something wrong. I felt like he was always judging me, always angry unless I did what he said. Like he was the only one who knew what was right. Finally we stopped hanging out.”

Ava shook her head. “That’s not what it is. London Calling has always been our top priority, and that’s why she’s been worried about getting caught up in the gossip mill.”

Liam stroked Popcorn’s head and nodded pensively. “Maybe—or maybe you’re just too sweet and trusting. The way I see it, she’s jealous of all the attention you’re getting from dating me. So she tries to hold you back, to punish you.”

“Jealousy’s never been an issue with us, so I don’t think that’s it. But there’s got to be
some
reason she’s been leaving me out so much. Doing things with Lily and not telling me about them. Maybe she feels left out of our relationship, so she’s trying to leave me out.”

“You’re trying to understand her because you have a kind nature,” Liam said. “But I’ve seen this plenty of times. She’s jealous, babe. The only power she can have is the power to rip you down.” He reached across the table and put a hand on Ava’s shoulder. “You can’t let her do that. You deserve to be a star. Promise me you won’t let her—or anyone—stand in your way.”

Popcorn, still in Liam’s lap, barked in apparent agreement.

“Of course I won’t,” Ava said uneasily. “But—”

“No buts. You have to make her realize that you don’t need her, and that you’ll leave if she doesn’t start treating you with the respect you deserve. That’s why I had to leave
Heaven Is Next Door,
and it was the best move I ever made.”

“Don’t knock that show. It’s what got me sleeping with you,” Ava teased as the waitress came with the coffee (for Ava) and the strawberry-kiwi-coconut smoothie that wasn’t on the menu but they were sure the chef would be happy to whip up and of course they could add a sprig of mint as a garnish (for Liam) they had ordered. “Or at least, poster you.”

Liam grinned while the waitress set down their drinks, then followed her with his eyes until she was out of earshot. “Let’s hope she doesn’t have a blog or you’re going to have some denials to make.”

Ava inhaled sharply. “You don’t really think she does, do you? Sophia would kill me, especially with our launch coming up so soon.”

“I was kidding?” Liam gave her a bemused smile. “Wow, Sophia really does have you wound up.” He turned his chair so he was facing her, his knee touching her leg. He put his pointer finger under her chin and tilted it up so he could look right into her eyes. “I know this is hard. But I also know what I’m talking about. You have to take a stand. You can’t let her walk on you. Trust me.”

Ava gave a little nod and got busy lining up the creamer, the sugar bowl, and the small silver stirring spoon alongside her saucer. “I do trust you,” she assured him. “It’s just, even though everything you’ve said makes sense, somehow it just doesn’t seem like Sophia. At least not the Sophia I know.”

Liam threw up his hands, a move Popcorn took as a cue to jump off his lap. “As you wish. You know her and the situation the best. I’m just telling you how it looks to me based on what you’ve said.” His crossed leg vibrated up and down with tension. “Do what you want, but take my advice about one thing?”

“Of course. What?”

“She seems to be giving you signals that she wants some space?” Ava gave a tentative nod. “So do that. Give her some space. Don’t ask her questions about what she’s doing or where she’s going. Don’t be needy. Quietly let her know you’re fine on your own.”

“Okay,” Ava said, nodding. “That makes sense. I can do that.”

Liam smiled at her. “Good girl.” He pulled her toward him and gave her another one of those devastating kisses on the lips where she forgot where she was and who she was … and the fact that there were half a dozen paparazzi outside on the sidewalk.

Until Popcorn started barking. “Speaking of someone who feels left behind,” Liam said, reaching down to pull him back into his lap. But Popcorn growled at him. Ava laughed and picked him up. “Don’t you start being jealous,” she told him. “There’s plenty of me for two men.”

“And another quote we hope the blogging waitress didn’t hear,” Liam said.

“You told me she doesn’t have a blog!”

“Kidding again.”

When he dropped Ava off, Liam said, “Now what are you going to do?”

“Give her some space.”

“Right. Remember less ‘we,’ more ‘I.’”

“The I’s have it,” Ava joked. But her smile vanished as soon as she turned away from him, and her stomach felt hollow even though she’d just had a burger and fries and most of Liam’s fries because he had to slim down for an audition for
Rocky on the Block,
a
Rocky
prequel.

She had begun to hate coming home, the oppressive tension in the first moment that she and Sophia saw each other. The air was pregnant with meaning, with unspoken accusations and judgments. Leftover phrases from every bickering exchange they’d had clung to the atmosphere, ready to be reactivated at the slightest brush. The more hostile they felt, the more polite they acted.

Ava hated feeling like every conversation she had on the phone was being scrutinized, every move she made studied and observed. One night she and Sophia had both been on their laptops in the living room. She’d had her phone on her lap so she’d know when Liam texted. And every time it vibrated, Sophia would sigh in annoyance. Until, not able to take it anymore, Ava retreated into her room. Since then she’d started going straight to her room, leaving Sophia and the kitten the living room to themselves.

Today she took a deep breath and opened the door of the apartment. “Sophia?” she said in the softest possible voice.

There was no answer.

A wave of relief washed over Ava, then ebbed when she walked into the living room and saw Sophia on the couch.

She had her computer propped on her lap, and the little white fur ball was curled up at her hip. She was listening to music with headphones so she hadn’t heard Ava come in and for one insane moment Ava thought of fleeing. What was happening to her?

Sophia looked up and pulled out her earbuds. “You’re home,” she said in a completely neutral tone.

Ava kept her tone neutral as well. “I am. But I won’t bother you. I’m going to work in my room.”

Sophia looked at her nails, not at Ava. “I’m just organizing my vlog ideas for the next week.”

Ava clutched the strap on her purse tightly. “I watched your vlog this morning. The one about the gallery show. Congratulations. That’s really exciting.” Her tone was so flat that the word “really” almost sounded sarcastic.

Sophia nodded. “Thank you. I tried to tell you about it this morning before I posted the vlog but you—rushed off to bed.”

“I was tired,” Ava said.

Wanted to say:
“You must not have tried very hard.”

“Did you have a good night?” Sophia asked.

Wanted to say:
“Why didn’t you come home? Why didn’t you text? I was so worried and so afraid to show it because I didn’t want you to feel like you were being smothered. I don’t know what you want from me.”

Ava said, “I did. I assume yours was nice.”

Wanted to say:
“Did you and your friend Lily have a nice time? Did you meet all the important people you wanted to meet? Did you make good connections for London Calling?” And also: “What was the food like? What were the other people like? How many courses did you get through? Would I have liked it? Were there good desserts?”

“Very nice,” Sophia told her.

Wanted to say:
“I wish you’d been there. I met two stylists who are interested in previewing Message in a Bottle. Also one of the top three animal psychics in the world, according to him anyway. They had these little mac and cheese squares dipped in bread crumbs and deep fried that you would have been crazy about. I wanted to sneak some out and bring them home for you but we left sort of suddenly. It turned out champagne is more ‘fast’ than ‘juice.’ Giovanni drove us home. He—he has a nice car.”

Ava said, “I’m going to go work on some content for the site in my room.”

Wanted to say:
“Unless you want to show me your photos and tell me about your show.”

“Well, bye.” Sophia put in her earphones.

Wanted to say:
“What did I do? Why are you being so distant? Please don’t run away.”

Ava clutched the strap on her purse. “Bye.”

Wanted to say:
“What did I do? Why are you abandoning me? Please don’t leave me alone.”

*   *   *

Later that night, Sophia sat on the ledge of her window with Puff(ball?) in her hand and searched for a star. “Not just any star,” she explained to the kitten. “It has to be brighter than the stars around it, and have a slight bluish tint or else the magic doesn’t work.”

Sugar(puff?) reached out his tongue and licked the end of his nose which Sophia took as a signal that he understood.

The lights of Los Angeles were bright but usually if you looked long enough you could find a good candidate. “There,” she said, holding Puff(Daddy?) up. “I think there’s one there.” She studied it for a few minutes before deciding for sure. The way Sophia saw it, you didn’t get a lot of wishes on stars in your life total, so you had better make sure each one was as correctly executed as possible.

When she was satisfied, she began the ritual she had invented when she was ten and used, only in emergency situations, since then. Staring at the star she intoned, “I wish I may, I wish I might, have the wish I wish tonight.” Then she closed her eyes. “I wish for things to be back the way they were,” she said. “I want my sister back.”

LonDOs

Calamari at the Ivy

Burgers at the Ivy

Berry crumble at the Ivy

Liam holding Popcorn

Kissing

Not being needy

Four days until the LuxeLife launch!

LonDON’Ts

Finding out news about your sister from a Web site

Finding photos of your sister making out with Liam Carlson on a Web site

No, make that
every
Web site

With the caption, P
RINCE OF
P
REQUELS
’ P
UBLIC
P
UCKER

Four days before the LuxeLife launch

20

star light, star slight

Sophia’s dream evening that night would have had her in her pajamas and in bed by nine. At the latest. Two straight days of rehearsals for the LuxeLife launch had left her longing for a hot bath, a bowl of pasta, and
TV
she could fall asleep in the middle of.

But Hunter had other plans. He wanted to take her out for a celebratory dinner in honor of her gallery show.

“Could we do it another night?” Sophia asked him when he called as she was walking through the door that evening. “I’m afraid I’m not going to be very good company.”

“You’ll be great. Come on,” he urged. “How can you say no to your number one patron? Besides, I bet you haven’t laughed in over twenty-four hours.”

She stifled a yawn and settled onto the couch. “That’s probably not quite—”

“I knew it,” Hunter said triumphantly. “I’ll pick you up at eight thirty. You won’t regret it.”

Sophia set her phone down on the coffee table next to the living room couch and kicked off her shoes. If she had been a little less tired she might have protested a little more, but basically he had her. She
hadn’t
laughed in well over a day, unfortunately.

Well except for when the choreographer suggested adding “Just a simple spin-jump-moonwalk-moonwalk-freeze!” combination and she and Ava had leaned over to whisper, “Can you really use the words ‘simple’ and ‘moonwalk’ in the same sentence?”

They had both cracked up. Their eyes met in the mirror and for one instant they forgot what was going on between them and everything was how it used to be. But then reality flooded back, rushing between their gazes like a swollen river and sweeping the laughter away.

But that moment only underscored how little laughter there had been. And it did feel a little rude to say no to Hunter after everything he’d done for her. What was one—
yawn
—dinner? A few hours? She owed him so—

Sophia woke up with just enough time to change into a white gauzy dress and touch up her mascara before Hunter knocked at the door. When she opened it he looked her over from head to foot, reached out, and tucked a hair behind her left ear. “Perfect. You’re like a doll.”

“I feel more like a throw pillow.”

Hunter put on a fierce impression. “I’m supposed to be the one doing the entertaining. Stop that.”

Their reservation was at Mr. C—“Because technically this is where we first met,” he explained—where the maitre d’ showed them to the best table in the house. As soon as they sat down a bottle of Dom Pérignon in a frosted silver bucket, a plate of toast, and a ramekin of caviar arrived at the table.

“It’s the Boy Scout in me,” Hunter explained. “Always call ahead.”