I can't believe I'm back at the Hidalgos', and it hasn't even been a week. In my defense, if Mom finds out that I don't have the chain, she'll be so upset with me that she will force me to watch all the nighttime soap operas with her. Pure torture, I know.
Taking a deep breath, I ring the doorbell. The red-haired girl opens the door, looking a little agitated.
"Good afternoon," she says, adjusting the skirt of her uniform.
"Is Ares here?"
"Yes, of course." She steps aside and gestures for me to follow. "The party is in the back by the pool, come in."
Party?
She guides me through the hallway until we reach the pool, which is inside the house. I can see steam rising off the blue water—it must be heated—and the pool lights make the water glow in a cool way. There are more lights and torches all around the room, giving it a tropical, beachy vibe. I guess this is what you get to enjoy when you're rich.
As soon as I set foot in there, everyone's eyes turn to me, and I feel superuncomfortable. I look around for Ares. He's in the pool with a girl on his shoulders facing another couple in the same position. They're having a water fight. I can't help feeling jealous of the girl with Ares. She's very pretty and has a dazzling smile. Ares turns to see what everyone is looking at, and our eyes meet. He doesn't look surprised. He looks pleased.
He looks so good all wet. No, focus, Raquel. Ares continues his game as if nothing happened. I stand there awkwardly until Apolo walks up to greet me.
"Welcome," he says with a smile. "These are all Ares's classmates, but I know them too." He takes me over to a group of three boys, and I recognize one of them as the guy I bumped into when I was spying on Ares at soccer practice.
"Raquel, this is Marco, Gregory, and Luis," Apolo introduces them, pointing at each boy respectively.
"Ha! Pay me!" says Luis, the blond one. "I told you someone from Apolo's new school would come."
Gregory grunts. "Oh, I can't believe it." He takes a few bills out of his pocket and passes them to Luis.
Marco, the dark-haired boy from practice, says nothing, just glancing at me by way of greeting.
Apolo grimaces. "Your bets suck. I'll be right back, Raquel, make yourself comfortable."
Gregory points at me with his finger. "I would welcome you, but you just made me lose money."
"Don't be a sore loser," Luis says to Gregory while giving me a smile. "Welcome, Raquel, have a seat."
I can't deny that they're very attractive. I would never have imagined sitting with guys like them in my life. But they don't seem to be too obnoxious so far. My eyes wander to the pool as the girl on Ares's shoulders falls into the water, pulling Ares down with her. They emerge from the water, smiling at each other, and she gives him a quick kiss on the cheek.
Ouch!
I can almost hear my heart breaking.
And, for once, I find myself at a crossroads.
I have always said that life is about choices, good and bad, and I've made both. In front of me, I have two:
1. Turn around and walk away with my head down.
2. Stay, get my necklace back, and maybe have a good time with Ares's friends. Show him that I'm okay and that I don't care about him.
And if he can act like nothing has happened, then so can I. I need to regain my dignity; I need to do something to stop feeling like a lovesick girl. So I swallow my heart and, with a big smile, sit down next to Marco, the one who hasn't spoken so far.
"Do you want a beer?" Luis asks me, and I nod, thanking him when he passes it to me.
Gregory raises his bottle. "Let's drink to the fact that the only friend Apolo has made at school is pretty."
Luis raises his. "Yeah, I have to say I am impressed."
Blushing, I clink my bottle with theirs. The two boys look at Marco, but he doesn't move an inch. Luis looks away.
"Let's drink without him. He's grumpy like Ares. No wonder they're best friends," says Gregory.
We toast and continue drinking. When Marco stands up, he's almost as tall as Ares, and he's shirtless. My eyes have no shame and travel down his chest to his abdomen. The Virgin of Abdominals has been very generous to these guys. My eyes follow his movements as he dives into the pool.
"He's hot, isn't he?" Luis asks playfully.
Fun and daring Raquel surfaces. "Yeah, he's pretty hot."
"Oh, I like her." Gregory gives me five. "She's honest."
I raise my beer to them with a smirk. We talk a bit, and I realize that they're not the pretentious guys I thought they might be, nor do they think they're superior to anyone else. They're very polite. Luis is a fun guy who makes something crazy out of everything and makes you laugh, while Gregory is more into telling interesting stories.
And for a moment, while talking with them, I completely forget about Ares. They make me realize that there are more men in the world and it's possible to get over him. Yes, there could be a guy out there for me who is cuter than he is, with a better heart. I don't have to get stuck with that stupid, sexy Greek god.
I don't even bother to look around to see where he is or what he's doing. Someone puts on a song that I really like, and I get up from my chair, dancing. Luis and Gregory follow my lead, dancing and throwing their hands in the air on the spot. Gregory slips and almost falls, and we crack up. We laugh so hard that everyone looks at us. I notice that people are staring, but I don't pay attention to them. I have to admit that the alcohol is having an effect. I feel freer and more confident when we sit down again.
"Confession time, Raquel," Luis starts in, amused.
Marco returns to the table, his wet hair dripping on his face and lap, and takes a long sip of his beer.
Luis ignores him and continues. "Do you have a boyfriend?"
A chuckle leaves my lips. "Nope."
Gregory wiggles his eyebrows. "Would you like to have one?"
"Ohhhh." Luis snorts. "Apparently you have an admirer."
"Flirting so soon, Gregory?" I tease.
Marco clears his throat and we all look at him. When he speaks, his expression is serious. "Don't waste your time. She's with Ares."
My jaw drops. What?
Gregory pouts. "Ugh! It's so unfair."
Offended, I look Marco straight in the eye. "I'm not with anyone. I have nothing to do with him."
"Of course," he replies, sarcasm evident in his tone.
"What is your problem? Why do you hate me if you don't even know me?"
"I don't have a problem with you, I'm just warning the guys."
"You have nothing to warn them about. There is nothing between Ares and me."
Luis intervenes. "The girl said so, Marco, and I believe her."
Gregory raises his beer to me. "Why don't you prove it?"
Frowning, I ask, "How?"
Gregory holds his chin, thinking. "Dance for me."
Marco laughs victoriously. "She never will."
I open my mouth to protest, and my eyes go to the pool. Ares is still in the water with the girl hanging on his back, laughing. I've been here for over an hour and he hasn't even come out to greet me. And he's got that girl attached to him.
The boys follow my gaze, and Luis groans in defeat. "It can't be. She turned to look at him. Marco is right."
I stand up, determined to prove them wrong. "No, he's not."
I take a few steps toward Gregory, and he looks at me with excitement. "Will you dance for me?"
But his expression falls when I pass by him. In front of Marco, my confidence wavers, but his gaze is full of it. It's as if he's telling me that he's sure I'm not capable of this. I ignore the protests of my embarrassed conscience and begin to move my hips in front of him. He leans back to get more comfortable, accepting the challenge.
Imagine you're dancing in front of the mirror, Raquel.
I let the music flow through me and run my hands down my body, pausing for a moment on my breasts and then going down the curve of my waist. Marco's eyes follow my movements. I remember how much power I held over Ares when I danced for him, and that gives me more strength.
I run my hands back up over my breasts as I sway to the music. Marco takes a sip of his beer without taking his eyes off me. I turn my back to him and sit on his lap, moving against him, feeling his wet body soaking the back of my dress. The friction feels so good. Pressing myself against him, I can feel how hard he is. That was fast. I lean back, almost lying on top of him to murmur in his ear.
"If I had a thing for him, I wouldn't turn his best friend on, would I?"
I get up and can feel my heart beating rapidly inside my chest. Saying the three boys are speechless is an understatement. Their faces are priceless. I'm about to turn to face Marco when Ares appears, walking toward me, looking extremely angry. It's like that night he came into my room looking for Apolo, but this time it's for very different reasons.
He stops right in front of me. "Can I talk to you for a second?"
I'm questioning whether to say no, but I don't want to make a scene in front of all these people, so I follow him into the playroom. I close the door behind me, and he pounces on me instantly, taking my face in his hands, pressing his lips to mine. My heart melts at the warm sensation of his lips, but I won't make the same mistake twice. I push him away with all the strength I have.
"Don't even think about it!"
Ares looks upset. His red face reminds me of Yoshi's reaction when I told him I had lost my virginity. Is he jealous?
"What the hell do you think you're doing, Raquel?"
"Whatever I'm doing is none of your damn business."
"Are you trying to make me jealous? Is that what you're playing at?" He approaches me again, and I step back.
"The world doesn't revolve around you." I shrug my shoulders. "I was just having fun."
"With my best friend?" He takes my chin between his fingers, his eyes piercing mine. "Five days after what happened in this room?"
Inevitably, I blush. "So? You were having fun with that girl in the pool."
He presses his hand on the wall next to my head. "Is that what this is about? If I do it, you do it?"
"No, and I don't even know why we're having this conversation. I don't owe you explanations. I don't owe you anything."
Ares runs his thumb across my lower lip. "Is that what you think? It's not clear to you, huh?" He slams his other hand against the wall, trapping me between his arms. "You're mine. Only mine."
His words ignite hope in me again, but I push it away. "I am not yours."
He presses me against the wall with his body, his gaze never leaving mine. "Yes, you are. The only one you can dance for in that way is me, only me. Got it?"
I shake my head defiantly.
"Why are you so stubborn? You know very well that the only one you want inside you is me, no one else."
Fighting my hormones, I push him again. I won't show him how much he affects me. He's hurt me enough.
"I'm not yours," I say with determination. "And I won't ever be, I don't like idiots like you."
Lies, lies.
Ares gives me that smirk that annoys me so much. "Oh yeah? That's not what you said that day in this exact room, remember?"
I can't believe he's bringing that up like this. I feel the need to hurt him. "The truth is, I don't remember it very well. It wasn't that good."
Ares takes a step back, the haughtiness on his face replaced by a pained expression. "Liar."
"Think what you want," I say with all the contempt I can muster. "I only came to get my necklace. Otherwise, believe me, I wouldn't be here. Give me my necklace so I can leave."
Ares stares at me with an intensity that leaves me defenseless. I don't know how I gather the strength not to throw myself into his arms. He looks so handsome: his naked torso, all wet, and his black hair stuck to the sides of his face.
He looks like a fallen angel—beautiful but capable of doing so much damage.
Ares turns around, and I struggle not to look at his ass. He reaches for something on one of the tables behind the couch and walks back to me with the necklace in his hands. "Just answer one question, and I'll give it to you."
"Whatever. Let's just get it over with."
He runs his hand through his wet hair. "Why are you so angry with me? You knew what I wanted, I never lied to you. I never tricked you to get it. So why the anger?"
I look down with my heart in my mouth. "Because I . . ." I laugh out of nervousness. "I was expecting more, I thought that . . ."
"That, if we had sex, I would like you and take you seriously?"
His blunt words hurt, but they're true, so I just give him a rueful smile. "Yeah, I'm an idiot, I know."
Ares doesn't seem surprised by my confession. "Raquel, I . . ."
"What's going on?" the redheaded girl asks as she enters the room, surprising both of us.
It's going to be a long night.