Friday Afternoon

I groggily woke up around two in the afternoon. Twenty-four hours ago I was sitting in my studio in L.A. Now I'm in a penthouse in Las Vegas. Funny how plans change quickly. I sat up and quickly regretted it. My head was pounding. I groaned and headed to the bathroom. A cool shower always soothes my hangovers and I feel much better when I'm finished. I changed into shorts and a T-shirt and headed to the living room. Aurora and Melrose were chatting on the couch while Paul was sulking on a recliner.

"How come you guys didn't wake me up when you were about to leave?" Paul grumbled as I stretched out on another sofa. "Sorry", I said, "We didn't think you would last much longer if we woke you up. Try not to drink so much next time." Paul rolled his eyes and turned on the Style Network.

Dom emerged from the kitchen, carrying two cups. "I thought I heard you talking", he said, sitting down next to me, "So I made you a vanilla bean Frappuccino." He hands me a cup topped with whipped cream! "Yummers!" I said, taking a sip. Dom makes better drinks than Starbucks. "How hung over do you feel?"

Dom sipped his drink while he thought. "Not too bad actually", he said. He glances at my cup. I followed his gaze and smiled. "Would you like some?" I asked. Dom nodded and we traded drinks. Even if Dom and I order the same exact thing, we always trade food and try out what the other person got. It's a funny tradition we share.

I sipped Dom's drink. "Banana protein shake?" I asked. Dom nodded proudly. "Do you taste the chocolate powder in there too?" he asked. I taste again. "Yeah! Wow, that's really good!" Dom beamed and we traded drinks again.

"Thanks! Is it going to be your new favorite drink?"

"Nah, vanilla bean will always hold a special place in my heart."

Matt emerged from his room, hair messy and still wearing the boxers he jumped into the pool with. "I need a banana", he muttered as he disappeared into the kitchen. A few seconds later, he came out with a smile on his face as he unpeeled the fruit. He plopped down next to Dom.

"You still smell like chlorine", Dom grumbled, moving closer to Matt. Matt could care less. He watched TV as he ate his banana.

Several minutes later, Tom and Lucinda come out of Lucinda's room, holding hands. We all stare at them in awe. They come down the stairs together, Lucinda giggling at our dumbfounded expressions. She sat down on a chair while Tom leaned against the entrance to the pool. "No need to stare", he said, walking outside. Dom and I stared at each other, open-mouthed.

"Go!" I ordered. The guys ran outside to Tom while us girls surrounded Lucinda. "Spill!" we said. "You guys are acting like teenagers!" Lucinda laughed. She sat back and smiled. "He was a real gentleman", she sighed. "We didn't do anything except a bit of kissing before going to sleep. We cuddled the entire night!"

"Aww!" we said in unison. "He also asked me to go sight-seeing with him today." We go 'aww' again. "Did you say yes?" I asked. Lucinda rolled her eyes and bopped me on the head. "Of course I said 'yes' silly! We'll be out for the rest of the afternoon, but we'll join you guys for the rest of the night."

"Wait are you waiting for?" Aurora asked. "Go get ready for Kirky!" Lucinda smiled and sprinted back up to her room. "Well ladies", I said, standing up. "I don't know about you guys but I'm itching to spend some of my winnings!"

We all rush into our rooms to change. I decided to dress in shorts with a yellow top and wedge heels. I completed the look with sunglasses and a cute hate. Paul whistled when I stepped out fo my room.

"Like what you see?" I asked, twirling around for him. "I sure do!" a voice answered to my left. I turned to see Dom coming out of his room, dressed in light blue swimming trunks. "Staying poolside today?" I asked. Dom nodded, putting on matching shades. "We're going to relax, have some drinks, and go bird-watching." Paul looked at us confused. "Why would we go bird-watching?" he asked. "That's really boring." Dom and I giggle. "'Bird' is a British slang term for a 'woman'", I chuckle.

Matt comes out of his room wearing painfully bright pink trunks. "My eyes!" I said, covering my face. "I will never see again!" Dom and Paul laughed. "Very funny", Matt said, smoothing out his shorts. "People tell me they like the way that I dress." I wanted to say something, but stopped myself. Matt can be touchy when someone makes fun of his clothes.

Melrose and Aurora were ready to go so the six of us left the penthouse and headed down to the lobby. At the entrance, the guys went to the pool while we walked across the street to the huge shopping center. We happily spent a few hours (and a few hundred dollars) shopping for new clothes. Melrose and Aurora spent most of their time in boutiques selling party dresses while I stuck to buying outrageous skinny jeans in every color of the rainbow. Once we couldn't possibly carry another bag, we went back to the hotel, dropped off our purchases, and ordered some room service. We treated ourselves to shrimp scampi and this amazing chocolate cheesecake. We laughed as we tried to steal shrimp from each other's plates.

After dinner, Tom and Lucinda returned, looking very happy. "Hey ladies!" Tom called out to us. "Have a nice day?" We all nodded and grinned at the sight of them together. They looked so cute! Tom grabbed the shopping bags that Lucinda was carrying. "I'll take these up to your room", he said, kissing her on the cheek. Lucinda giggled like a little girl and waved to Tom. Once he was out of earshot, we tackled Lucinda.

"How was it?" I asked. "It was amazing!" Lucinda said. "We went to all of the famous sights and buildings. We took a ton of pictures together and we did some shopping afterwards. Best date ever!" Lucinda collapsed on the couch. "I'm so glad the two of you are together and happy!" I said, squeezing her hand. "Now we just need you and Dom to get together and this weekend will be perfect!" Melrose said. "Come on guys", I said as the front doors opened, "You know that will never happen!"

"What will never happen?" Dom asked as he entered the room with Matt and Paul. Lucinda and the girls burst into laughter. I shot them a Please Shut Up! glare and they quieted down. "Nothing important", I answered. "How was your afternoon?"

Paul happily pulled out pieces of paper from his pocket. "Seven phone numbers!" he declared, walking to his room. "I love bird-watching!" Matt began laughing when Paul shut the door. "He calls that an accomplishment?" he asked, taking out even more paper from his pockets. "Tell me when he gets thirty numbers like I did!"

Friday Night

An hour later, all of us entered a nightclub down the block from the hotel. It's only seven and the place is already packed. Lucinda pulled Tom to the middle of the dance floor. The rest of us found tables in a quieter section. Paul saw one of his former shoe models and he walked over to meet her. Matt pointed out a group of cute brunettes to Dom and they went over to talk to them.

"We need to snag some guys tonight!" Aurora shouts over the pumping music. I scan the crowd and spot a cute guy with tousled blond hair watching me with interest. "Watch and learn ladies", I said, making my way towards him. The guy smiled when he realized I noticed him.

"Hello", I said, batting my eyes. "Hello there", he said with an Australian accent. A foreign cutie? Even better! "My name is Isabelle", I said, moving closer. "Isabelle", he sighed, "Such a beautiful name!"

"Thanks, and yours?"

"You may call me Christian", he said, taking my hand and kissing it softly. I couldn't help but giggle. "Can I buy you a drink?" Christian asked hopefully. "I suppose I can give you that honor", I answered. Christian smirked and led me to the bar. "Beautiful and witty!" he remarked, getting the bartender's attention. He ordered two drinks and while the bartender prepared them, we had a quick chat.

"What brings you to Las Vegas?" Christian asked.

"My boss gave me the weekend off so I decided to have some fun!"

Christian smiled. "What's more fun than Vegas?"

"Exactly. So, why are you here?"

"I'm here for my brother's wedding this weekend. I decided to arrive a day early to have some fun on my own." Christian hungrily eyed my dress. "I'm glad I did."

The bartender handed us our drinks. "To fun times!" Christian says, clinking his glass on mine. I drink a little and almost gag. The drink was way too strong and tasted horrible. Christian seemed to like it since he swallowed most of his.

"Do you want to get out of here?" Christian asked, placing a hand on my leg. Before I could respond, Dom came out of nowhere and sat on the bar between us. "Sorry mate", Dom said, glaring at Christian, "She's with me!" Christian glared back at Dom, downed the rest of his drink, and stumbled away. Dom slid into the empty seat with a satisfied smile on his face.

"What the hell are you doing?" I hissed, barely believing what had just happened. Dom looked at me. "What?" he asked. "I was only trying to protect you!"

"I am twenty-five years old. I can take care of myself, thank you very much!" Dom snorted. "Yeah, you were doing a good job of that just now. I bet you would have left with him."

I felt my face flush. "Why do you care? Are you jealous?" Dom became silent, expression changing from cocky to sensitive. "Maybe", he muttered. Whoa, I wasn't expecting this. Dom has never shown any type of interest in me before. Sure, he gives me compliments, but that's all for fun. Everyone says we should get together, but they know that I'm simply not Dom's type. We're just close friends.

Dom jumped off the stool and walked away. "Dom, wait!" I cried out, running over to him. Dom looked embarrassed. "Hey", I said softly, "I'm sorry I snapped at you. In fact, I should be thanking you. That Aussie was giving me the creeps! Plus he had a bad taste in drinks!" Dom smiled a little. "Come on", I said as I pulled him back to the bar. "Let's get a few drinks and have some fun together okay?"

Dom's face brightened. "Okay!" he replied. We scanned over the drinks menu. "Why don't we try the Volcano?" I suggested.

"You get red and I get blue so we can trade?" Dom asked.

"You read my mind!" We order our drinks and watch the bartender pour glowing liquid into our glasses. "Enjoy!" he said, handing us our Volcanoes.

"Oh my God!" I said. "They glow!"

"That's impressive!" Dom said. He lifted up his glass. "To best friends!" I clink my glass on his.

"Cheers!"