Living with the Millers

Chapter 16 - Fool Me Once

Chapter 16 - Fool Me Once

I stayed up on that balcony for a while, breathing in the fresh air.  Benjamin Miller kissed me, and I didn't know how to feel about it.  A million thoughts were swirling around in my mind; did he mean something out of it, or was he just playing games?  Why did he do it?  Did I even like Ben like that?  He gave me butterflies, but I didn't know if that was because I had feelings for him or because I was scared of him.

When I finally did go back to the party, things had died down a little.  It seemed like there were less people, and the music had been turned down a few notches.  I really wanted to take off my heels, but I knew Savanna would kill me so I gritted my teeth and forced a smile.  Savanna was standing by herself, sipping on a glass of champagne

"Have you seen Zoe?" I asked her, searching through the crowd.  She was the only one of my sisters I hadn't seen all night.

"She's over there with my son," Savanna pointed to Zoe and Dallas talking in the corer, heads ducked and backs turned to the room. "Don't worry, I've been keeping tabs on all of you tonight."  Suddenly, there was a lump in my throat.  I gulped, but it didn't help.  Did she know about me and Ben?

Before I could say anything, Ryder walked up and held a hand out to me. "Come on, let's dance before we leave."  I took his hand, giving Savanna weak smile as we walked away.  I was so anxious I felt like I was going to throw up.  Why did this feel like some deep dark secret? "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I shook my head, snapping back to reality. "I'm just getting tired, that's all."

"Okay, if that's the story," he told me, pulling me in for a dance.  He danced differently than his brother, placing both hands on my hips.  I put my arms around his neck and wrinkled my eyebrows. "You don't look tired Shiloh, I can tell when something is bothering you."

"I promise I'm okay," I told him, trying my best to make it sound convincing.  He just shrugged and continued to sway with the music, looking me straight in the eye.  It was uncomfortable, like he would be able to read my mind just by looking at me, so I leaned forward and placed my head next to his so that our cheeks were touching.

We stayed like that until the song ended, not speaking.  Ryder made me feel comfortable, like I belonged with this family and that everything else didn't matter.  He was quickly becoming my best friend, and I knew I would be able to count on him for anything.  When I was just having fun with Ryder, I was actually glad to be there and didn't miss home so much.

When the song ended, I pulled away from him with a smile.  I was waiting for the next song to start, but it never did.  Instead people started gathering their belongings and saying goodbye. "It's over already?" I asked, looking around frantically. 

"Well it is two in the morning Shi," Ryder laughed, locking his arm with mine.

"Are you serious?" I gasped, eyes wide with disbelief.  It did not feel like I had been there for such a long period of time.  When we reached the table, everyone else was already gathered there.  I immediately spotted Ben, but ducked my head so I wouldn't make eye contact with him.  There were those damn butterflies again!

"Okay," Jason clapped to get our attention, "Everyone is here.  Are ya'll ready to go to our hotel?" Suddenly, as if thinking about how late it had gotten, I was exhausted.  Dancing with Ryder had taken my mind off of my throbbing feet momentarily, but they had gotten even worse.  I hated wearing high heels.

I followed the Miller family to our waiting limo, fighting back yawns.  Thankfully Jason lead us out of a backdoor, where we were able to duck inside the car without anyone snapping our picture.  I sat next to Zoe and leaned my head on her shoulder, pulling Arielle into my lap. "Did you have fun, Zo?"