Free Absolutely True Lies by Rachel Stuhler Page A

next to Daisy. Before I could say “nice to meet you,” Sharla was attacking my face with all sorts of brushes and powders I’d never heard of. I had to stifle a feeling of claustrophobia as she leaned so close that I could make out each and every one of her pores—a huge feat, since they were tiny and well disguised.
    “Glad to have you aboard, Holly.” Sharla smiled, revealing an enormous set of teeth that bordered on horsey.
    “Thanks for doing this,” I said. “I really appreciate it.”
    “Are you staying with us the whole time in Miami?” Axel asked, speaking for the first time. There was something that seemed intentionally haughty about his tone, and while that should have made me dislike him, I had this sudden desperate desire to earn his approval. This almost certainly meant that he was gay, as I never have this kind of visceral reaction to straight men.
    I looked to Daisy, unable to answer that question on my own.
    “She totally is,” Daisy answered quickly. “Holly will be so much fun to play with.”
    I have never felt more like a Raggedy Ann doll in my life.
    “Then please—pretty, pretty please, let me teach you how to pluck your eyebrows. We all love Frida Kahlo, but she would have been more successful if she didn’t look like a Cro-Magnon peasant girl.”
    “Sure,” I replied, trying hard not to blink as Sharla practically tore one of my eyelids out of my head to apply eyeliner. “I’ve never been very good at it.”
    Axel laughed. “You didn’t need to tell me that, sweetie. I have eyes.”
    •  •  •
    W e left the hotel just after midnight, and despite the late hour, the paparazzi were still hanging around the entrance. I wondered if Jameson had made them aware of Daisy’s schedule, or if there was always someone from each tabloid waiting for pictures, should she happen to go out. It didn’t seem like an efficient system to me, but I also didn’t understand why people wanted pictures of her eating dinner at a restaurant in the first place.
    I will say this for Axel and Sharla—I looked amazing. I was corseted so tight inside the tiny dress that I could feel my heartbeat in my liver, but seeing my nearly unrecognizable figure in the lobby’s mirrors was worth the pain. I’ve never thought of myself as particularly heavy, but I was a little too pleased with my unnaturally narrow waist and enormous cleavage. The instant I saw myself, I decided that this designer was someday making my wedding dress. That is, if he or she knew how to work with more than a yard of fabric.
    As we took our first few steps outside, Daisy was immediately flanked by two enormous bodyguards she seemed to know quite well but whom I’d never seen before. I couldn’t even tell when and where they’d appeared, it happened so suddenly. One minute, our little group was just five, and then a moment later, we were seven. The ridiculousness of this teenage girl’s entourage was starting to dawn on me. I spend most of every day completely alone; I suddenly realized Daisy was probably only by herself when she slept.
    And if I thought the level of media attention was absurd before, once we reached the club, it was insane . There were throngs of people, packed together like sardines, as far as I could see in any direction. And since everyone seemed to have a camera, it was almost impossible to tell who was a fan and who was paparazzi. If any one of us spoke on the walk from the SUV to the club, I wouldn’t have heard it. It’s also unlikely that I would have seen it—or anything—with the endless flashes bursting in front of my eyes. From where I was standing, the club might as well have been pink-and-purple speckled.
    Three steps inside the door, so many things happened at once, I could hardly process them all. On stage, the DJ gave a loud shout-out to Daisy, prompting the crowd to go wild. At the same time, our group was herded up to a VIP level above the dance floor, and before we reached the room, all