Page 277 of Naughty Nelle

CHAPTER 32

“This is awful!” says Elz.

“It could be worse,” says Winnie.

“How could it be worse?” I gasp. I’ve just relayed my recent, life-shattering events at an emergency meeting with my two best friends at Sparkles. A plate full of chocolate cupcakes lingers on the table. No one has taken a bite.

Thumbing her lips, Winnie ponders my question. Finally, she says, “You’re right. This is bad. Very bad!”

Let’s face it. My life is a disaster. A living nightmare beyond all nightmares. “What should I do?” I plead to my friends.

Elz thinks I should tell Gallant the truth. The truth is always better than not telling the truth. I remind her of the time she confronted her mother with her true feelings and sent her to her grave. Tears well up behind Elz’s spectacles.

“How could you say that!” snaps Winnie. “Especially after what happened last week with Sasperilla.”

Yes, the fire was headline news. Elz bawled her eyes out over her sister’s heinous crime. I hate myself for making the cruel comment about her mother. I apologize. I’m not in my right mind.

Truthfully, I’d be better off dead. I should stick my head in the hearth or jump into the lake with a boulder strapped onto my body. Wait! It’s simple. I can whip up an evil potion—I’m sure I can rustle up the right ingredients—and chug it. I’ll fall to the ground and die instantly. People will say I died by my own hand. She got what she deserved. That’s it…

“I’m going to kill myself!”

“SHUT UP!” shout Winnie and Elz in unison. I’ve never seen them so angry with me.

“You’re being irrational,” says Winnie. “There has to be a reason why this is all happening.”

I adore Winnie, but I’ve had it with her “everything’s meant to be” attitude. Shrink had no clue what she was doing when she placed me in the Prince’s household. There’s only one reason this is happening: I’m evil! I’m being punished for all the terrible things I’ve done.

“Come on, Jane. Look on the bright side,” she continues.

And enough with this bright side crap. For once, can she not say that? There is no bright side. I want to explode! Self-destruct!

“Winnie has a point,” chimes in Elz. “He kissed you.”

Oh God, the kiss! That unforgettable kiss. A fire resurges inside my body.

“What was it like?” asks Elz, with wide-eyed curiosity.

My heart pounds madly. The truth is, I’ve relived it all day. His mouth parting my mouth, my breath warmed by his, our bodies one.

“I can’t explain it.” The magical kiss that saved Snow White has awoken every fiber of my being. Yet, I’m at a loss for words.

“Why do you think he kissed you?” asks Winnie.

I don’t know. I just don’t know.

“I’ll tell you why,” says Winnie. “Because he’s in love with you.”

Her words reverberate in my head. The Prince…in love with me?

“And you, girlfriend, are in love with him.”

Me…with him?Why does Winnie always have to be right? Oh my God! I am! I’m in love!

I burst into tears. Unstoppable, scalding tears.

“What should I do?” I splutter. “He’s marrying Marcella!”

“Don’t let him go,” says Elz. “Your prince comes along only once in a lifetime.”

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