Standing among the crowd not far away, Weston Stanton looked on with amused curiosity. He twirled the wine glass in his fingers, a small smile appearing on his face. Things in Lanford were becoming lively!

-

Coming out of the party, Lucas spoke to Serenity. "Where do you live now? I'll take you home."

"No need," Serenity refused. "I don't want to risk getting photographed in your car. It'll cause unnecessary gossip again."

"Afraid Jackson will misunderstand?" Lucas said, his gaze intent.

Serenity met his gaze and answered softly, "Yeah." Her answer was very natural, so blunt and honest.

Jealousy quietly struck Lucas. He told himself countless times that he had lost his right to be jealous of Jackson. He had missed his only chance to be with Serenity, and he had never seized the opportunity.

"If he truly loves you and believes in you, he won't misunderstand anything," Lucas murmured.

"It doesn't matter. I just don't want to do something that'll cause him to get the wrong idea,