第16部分(第4/7 頁)

House　towels。　The　stylish　guests　had　taken　it　upon　themselves　to　match　the　scenery；　clad　entirely

in　white　bikinis；　wraps；　and　linen　pants。　The　pool　was　strikingly　turquoise　against　the　bright　white；

and　the　tops　of　Manhattan？s　Financial　District　skyscrapers　glittered　in　the　distance。

She　sighed；　feeling　the　hot　August　sun　warm　every　inch　of　her　smooth　skin。　This　really　was　the

life。　After　their　press　conference　at　the　Soho　House　on　Tuesday；　Ken　Mogul　had　handed　Serena

and　Thad　the　jet…black　key　cards　to　the　penthouse　and　let　them　know　the　room　was　rented　for　a

week。　Since　Thad　had　his　own　apartment　in　the　city；　he？d　told　her　she　could　stay　in　the　room　the

whole　time　if　she　wanted　to。　Serena　preferred　to　stay　in　her　own　room　at　home？her　parents　were

hardly　ever　home；　though　they　wouldn？t　exactly　approve　of　her　living　in　a　hotel　room　on　her

own？but　access　to　the　exclusive；　Meatpacking　District；　members…only　rooftop　pool　came　with　the

card；　and　she　certainly　wasn？t　going　to　say　no　to　that。　The　only　thing　missing　was　someone

special　to　enjoy　it　with。

She　picked　up　her　cell　and　dialed　a　number　she　knew　as　well　as　her　own。

？Hey　stranger。？　Nate　picked　up　on　the　first　ring；　his　slightly　sleepy　voice　sending　shivers　up　her

spine。　She　pictured　him　still　lazing　in　bed；　no　shirt　on；　just　waking　up　from　a　dream？about　her；　of

course。

？Hey　yourself。？　She　grinned　into　the　phone。　？What　are　you　up　to　right　now？？

Twenty　minutes　later　Nate　bounded　out　onto　the　deck　of　the　SoHo　House　pool；　his　brown　leather

flip…flops　thwacking　against　the　stone　tiles；　oblivious　to　the　ogling　female　eyes　that　were　fixed　on

his　perfect　body。　In　his　green　Billabong　swim　trunks