“Are you going to tell everyone?” I ask, because I know he hates me. He has since moment one.

Ross sighs and shakes his head, reaching out and plucking the cupcake from my fingers.

“I wasn't ready to be outed when my brother did it for me. I wouldn't do that to you. But if you want to keep your secret, stay away from Ranger. He's not stupid.”

“Pretty sure he's already starting to suspect,” I murmur, noticing his dark head working through the crowd toward us. “Gotta go.” I move away, pushing between slow-dancing couples toward the front door where the crowd's a bit thinner.

Unfortunately, Spencer is there, leaning against the wall and slowly swaying to the music with his eyes closed. Just as I'm about to make a run for it, he snaps them open and locks those turquoise irises on me.

“Do I know you?” he asks, his voice dreamy and far away. “They'll be drunk and stoned by the time we get back to the party anyway.” Selena's words ring in my mind, and I pause, putting on a sultry smile. Pretty sure I've never given this smile out at Adamson; it'll help disguise me.

“No, but my cousin does,” I say, moving a step toward him. He has his hands tucked into the pockets of his jeans, his muscular body slouched against the wall. He squints at me, but I stand there like I have nothing to hide, chest out, chin up. “You might know him? Chuck Carson?”

Spencer's eyes get even wider, and he pushes off the wall to move toward me.

He really is beautiful, his charcoal colored hair shimmering silver under the low lights, turquoise eyes glittering a blue-green brilliance that makes my breath catch in my chest.

“Do you know where Chuck is? I was going to ask him to dance.” Spencer throws his arm out to indicate the room, and I smile as he refocuses back on me, blinking furiously. Pretty sure he's a bit stoned right now. That's okay by me. Maybe that explains why he's too stupid to recognize me? I mean, I'm pulling a serious Clark Kent/Superman thing here, and it's working.

“No, but … we could dance instead?” I blurt before I can stop myself. You idiot, take that shit back! I chastise myself, but it's too late. He's already smiling at me, and the expression takes over his entire face. God, this boy is gorgeous, I think, trying not to sigh when he reaches out for my hand.

“I'd like that,” he tells me, and then his fingers curl around mine and heat shoots from my fingertips, traveling straight to my heart. It begins to race, tumbling over itself in a wild sprint that has my lips parting, my throat closing, my head spinning. Chemical attraction, that must be what this is. I mean … I don't even like that guy. And yet … I do.

Spencer leads me out into the center of the dance floor, right underneath the chandelier where I danced with Aster. I can see her from here, trying to hit on Ross as he flashes one of his rainbow bracelets, and tries to explain his sexual preferences. She grabs his hands anyway and yanks him into the fray.

One of my hands comes to rest on Spencer's shoulder while the other is clasped firmly in his. When he puts his other hand on the small of my waist, I sigh and he chuckles, this sultry but playful little sound that somehow seems to invite me to lean into him.

“I didn't catch your name?” he asks, smirking in a way that promises that once I tell him, and he says it, it'll sound like pure sin rolling off his lips.

“Charlotte,” I admit, wondering if that's going too far, if that'll give too much away. Spencer doesn't seem to make the connection, but just in case … “Our grandfather's name was Charlie, so … Chuck, Charlotte … both names are in honor of him.” At least none of that's a lie.

“Charlotte,” Spencer breathes, and I shiver as he pulls me in closer. Never Say Never by The Fray is playing, and it's the most perfect song for a romantic dance. Ugh. I feel like I'm drowning in emotions right now. “I'm Spencer.”

“I know,” I say, and he crinkles his brow, but the expression only lasts a minute as I find myself drawn even closer to him. My head ends up on his chest, my eyes closing as I listen to his heart beating frantically beneath me. It picks up the pace as I press into him, and I smile with satisfaction, knowing I'm getting to him just as much as he's getting to me.

The song picks up at the end, this crescendo of repeated words that make me shiver. Don't let me go is repeated over and over again, and I realize that I'm dreading the end of it because I don't want to separate from Spencer. Then don't, I tell myself, clinging to his shirt as he curls his arms around me.

But then I see Ranger making his way toward us, and I panic. The song comes to an end, and I push off Spencer's chest, putting space between us that feels suddenly cold. A shiver takes over me as I start to move away.

“Where are you going?” he asks, looking all dopey and cute and lovestruck. “We've got all night.”

Technically, yes, that's true, but …

“I just need to pop to the bathroom real quick. I'll be back. Wait for me by the fireplace.” And then I duck into the surrounding couples, making my way toward the back door, and out into the cool air.

There are bathrooms inside, too, but I just need a breath of fresh air.

Outside, the trees rustle in a cool breeze, and the lake laps at the edges of the shore.

“Damn it,” I murmur, wondering why I'm being so resistant about my attraction to Spencer. Maybe because he's a total dick who sells pot to rich assholes just for fun? I mean, the guy's family is worth billions. I looked them up online. His dad’s family owns a massive pharmaceutical company, so it's clearly not for the money.

A bright lump on the ground attracts my attention, and I push off the wall, moving away from the lights and the music for a moment to see what it is.

It's a girl, passed out on the ground, breathing heavily. I kneel down to check on her, figuring she probably drank too much or something, and debating whether or not I should get an administrator. I don't want her to get in trouble, but … it could be alcohol poisoning or something, right?

“Hey,” I whisper, shaking her slightly. She groans as I reach up to pull some of that electric blue hair from her face. This is one of the girls that was hanging out on the dock with us earlier. What was her name again? I can't even remember if she ever told me.

When I pull my fingers back, I feel something hot and sticky, and look down to see the bright red of blood.

“What the fuck?” I look up at the sound of a creaking door, and see a figure coming out of the boathouse. My eyes widen as I take in the man, cloaked in a black hoodie that, paired with the dark shadows of night, completely and utterly obscures his face. I don't want to leave the girl, but my first instinct is to run. “Who the hell are you?” I ask, rising to my feet and trying to be brave. My skin prickles with goose bumps as I stare the dickhead down and try to tell myself that I'm only a hundred feet at most from the back door of the dance hall.

It would only take me a second to get in there and escape to safety.

The sound of bushes rustling brings my attention around, and I see a second figure in a black hoodie approaching.

What … the …

The second figure takes off toward me, and my instincts just kick in. My feet are moving before I can even give them a conscious command. The damn heels I'm wearing sink into the moist earth, and I kick them off as I go, scrambling up the small hill toward the lights of the cabin.