Chapter 31

Chapter 31: The Makeover Mandate

Aria's POV

I stared out my bedroom window, watching the late afternoon sun cast long shadows across our small front yard. My mother hummed in the kitchen, preparing dinner with a lightness I hadn't heard in her voice for years.

Ever since she met Alaric, everything had changed. She smiled more. Laughed more. It was like watching a flower that had been wilting for years suddenly bloom again.

My phone buzzed on my bed, interrupting my thoughts. A group call from Vivienne and Isabelle lit up the screen.

"Hey guys," I answered, tucking my feet under me on the window seat.

"Aria!" Vivienne's excited voice burst through the speaker. "Are you ready for tonight? Gareth's parties are legendary!"

I chewed my bottom lip nervously. "I'm not sure I'm going."

"What?" Isabelle practically screeched. "You have to go! Gareth personally invited you!"

"I know, but—"