Page 68 of Passenger Princess

I gag a little at that.

"But in my opinion, you'd be even more of a badass if you said fuck it and stopped caring about what that stupid contract says about how you act and who you can or cannot date. Imagine the press firestorm you could start if you justleakedsomething about how they're expecting you to act," Jules says.

"Absolutely not. Don't evengiveher that idea. Something tells me if the Miss Americana organization is fine with putting a clause about remaining single, they definitely put in something about not openly talking about the contract they made her sign,” Harper says.

"I could read it, figure out if there's some kind of NDA in there."

"Jules, you're a dance instructor, not a lawyer."

"I could figure it out, I'm a wiz with Google," she says. I shake my head, remembering why Iactuallycalled and my limited time before Jaime returns.

"It doesn't even matter," I say loudly to stop their arguing.

"What?"

"That's why I called you. Ever since we kissed, he's been ignoring me."

"Excuse me?"

"Not ignoring me, that's not fair. He's ignoringus. And everything that happened that morning." I fill them in on how, for the last three days, he's been absolutely nothing but professional. How, before when we had a few free hours in a hotel room at night, he'd hang with me, joke with me…flirtwith me in a very Jaime way that I still considered flirting, and how now, every night he locks himself in his room, and I don't see him until morning.

"So what are you going to do about it?" Jules says when I finish.

"What?"

"What are you going to do about it, Ava?"

"I don't know, I just wanted to call you guys and complain. I?—"

Harper shakes her head, cutting me off. "I have never known you, Ava Bordeaux, to just sit back and let the chips fall as they may."

"I don't?—"

"You always have a plan. You need a plan, Ava. Something that will put his shit into gear. Something hecan'tignore," Jules says.

"You guys, I—" I start, but Harper sits up straighter, an idea forming on her face.

"The pink feather dress," Harper says.

"What?

"No, no. Floor-length champagne," she says. "Yes, that one's perfect. The slit is high, the back is non-existent, and your boobs look phenomenal in it."

Jules nods like she sees where she's going. "Oh, yes, definitely that one. Pink lip, classic cat eye. Highest heels you packed."

Slowly, I pick up what they were saying. "Okay," I say with a nod.

"And be you. Gloves off, babe, no more playing nice. Be flirty, sexy Ava. Remind him that, if he doesn't want you, that's fine. There will be at least a dozen men there who wouldloveto be with you."

And as I continue to get ready with my friends on the phone, I start to feel good again, reminded of just who I am.

THIRTY-THREE

AVA

The dress works.

Okay, it doesn’t work in the sense that he grabs my hand and drags me back into a room, fucking me until we both can’t see straight, but when I step out of my room in the floor-length champagne dress covered in sparkles with its nonexistent back and plunging neck, meaning I can't wear a real bra with it and the slit that nearly goes to my hip, I do catch Jaime closing his eyes and taking a deep breath as if praying to some unseen god.

---