Bent tried to take Sarah’s hand to help her out of the SUV, but she kept her hands stuffed inside the pockets of her sweatpants. “What’s wrong?” Bent asked, studying her curiously.”Nothing,” Sarah said, trying to think quickly. “I can manage myself.” She hopped down from the SUV, almost falling, but caught herself. “Are you mad at me?” he asked. He tried to take her hand again, but she shrugged him off. “Look, I’m sorry. I got a little bit handsy,” he said. He put his sunglasses back on and pushed past her, heading up the steps to the hotel entrance. It was a very grand hotel. Its many windows reflected brilliantly in the bright sunshine. Four large columns flanked a circular driveway, manned by busy valets. Erin caught up to Sarah. “Hey, what’s with you?” she asked. “I’m mad at Bent,” Sarah said. “What? Why?” Erin asked. She looked at Sarah’s sunglasses. “Whose sunglasses are those?” Sarah sighed. She told Erin about Bent stepping on the original pair Erin had given her. Erin laughed. “Chica, don’t worry about those dumb sunglasses. They were cheap. It’s interesting that Bent would even care what sunglasses you wore. It’s not like he bothered to replace mine.” Sarah saw Erin still wore a pair of sunglasses almost identical to the ones Bent had stepped on. It made her heart do a funny twang inside her chest. “That still doesn’t answer my question about what’s bothering you,” Erin said. Sarah took a deep breath and recounted the little episode in the SUV. Erin’s face had been all smiles. But now it fell into a sort of frown. “What the heck? Are you upset about gorgeous Bent Freakin’ Prince slobbering over your precious hand? Girl, what’s wrong with you?” Erin turned and stormed off. Sarah stared after her friend with a blank expression. That was not how she expected Erin to react. She’d expected sympathy and an ally to back her up that Bent had been too aggressive. She’s envious, Sarah thought with disgust. How could Erin, who had way more experience with boys than anyone she knew, be envious of her? But then it hit her. Bent didn’t see Erin that way. “Good grief,” Sarah said. Next time she’d keep her big mouth shut. She’d forgotten how affected Erin still was by Bent. The hotel was swarming with tourists. A woman with a long strand of pearls around her neck muttered to another woman beside her. “How can children possibly afford to stay at this hotel?” The woman glared at Sarah as she hurried past her. Ouch, Sarah thought. Thankfully the hotel was air conditioned. She’d have melted into a puddle if she’d had to wait outside in the soaring temperatures in her sweatpants. Sarah hung back from the group as Bent and the other boys chatted with a grouchy looking man at the front desk. Now that both Bent and Erin were mad at her, she figured this was going to be a very long weekend. “I’m sorry, Sir. But I think there’s been a mistake. We have a Mr. Prince for the Elite Ocean Suite.” The desk clerk seemed troubled. It was hard to hear what was being said with the voices of all the people around her and the exotic music drifting like the wind throughout the lobby. Bent looked angry- probably partly her fault- and had caused the little man behind the front desk to pick up the phone. Seconds later, a tall gentleman dressed in a business suit made his way to the front of the desk. Sarah saw the man’s name tag read that he was the hotel manager. Bent chatted with the manager for a few minutes. The manager started to type information into the computer. He squinted down at the digital screen as if he couldn’t believe what he was reading. His stern expression morphed into what seemed to be a combination of disbelief and humiliation. “This is Mr. Prince for the Elite Ocean Suite,” the manager choked out to the desk clerk. “We sincerely apologize, Mr. Prince. As a token of our appreciation and for the inconvenience we will take off ten percent.”Bent nodded. “Thank you,” he said. “Have them escorted immediately,” the manager snapped to the desk clerk. “Yes, Sir, right away,” the desk clerk mumbled. Before the group could depart, a man surrounded by a crowd of well-dressed people, came bustling over. “Bent! My boy!” the man said. Bent turned and beamed at the man. “Sheikh Abdul Ali Al Gazeem! Salam Alaikum.” The two greeted each other and spoke quietly. Sarah’s eyes bugged out of her head. It was a real sheikh, an Arab leader. And Bent knew him!Bent threw his arm around the man’s shoulders. “Sheikh Abdul Ali Al Gazeem, I’d like you to meet my friends. We’re here for Jack Lake’s concert. Trevor, here, is his nephew.” The sheikh nodded a greeting to each of them. He had the most amazing white smile. He whispered something into Bent’s ear when his eyes fell on Sarah. Bent laughed and whispered something back to him. Wonder what that was about? Sarah thought. “Enjoy your stay. Let’s catch up tomorrow before you head back, my friend,” the sheikh said. The poor hotel manager and the front desk clerk appeared to be on the verge of collapsing now. The manager came hurrying around the side of the desk. “Please, allow me to now personally escort your group to your suite, Sir.” Apparently the manager was now taking charge. Sarah noticed that Chad, Dan, and Trevor looked speechless as their eyes darted from the sheikh — who was now walking away — back to Bent. Erin was trying hard to remain calm. She kept jerking her hands strangely as if she had a ton of energy to expel but was trying to hold it all in. The manager’s hands were shaking as he led the group out of the lobby. They entered a room that had been roped off with a sign labeled ‘Private’. A gleaming elevator was at the back of the lounge and bar area of the private room. The manager swiped his card on a security panel. The elevator doors opened. The group walked inside. Sarah noticed Bent refused to make eye contact with her. Her stomach was feeling slightly sick now. Maybe she had been wrong about him? He wouldn’t do anything to make her uncomfortable, after all. And the fact that he knew a real live sheikh! The elevator doors opened, revealing a long outdoor wooden walkway that led directly to a private villa surrounded by nothing but ocean. It seemed Erin had forgotten she was supposed to be mad at Sarah. She grabbed Sarah’s arm. Sarah could feel her trembling.”Can you believe this? I had expected, you know, several rooms in a hallway or something.” She pointed a finger at the villa they were approaching. “But it seems Bent has rented out a mini castle!” Sarah’s own heart was thudding loudly. And to think she’d hoped to pay for her share of the trip.Chad leaned over to Sarah as they walked along the boardwalk. “I asked the front desk clerk the price of the pad we were getting. Guess how much this villa costs per night.” Chad’s face was slightly ashen. “I’ll guess five thousand per night,” Erin said. “That’s pretty typical from what I hear the super rich can afford.” Dan laughed on her other side. “You really want to tell them, Chad? They’ll never believe you.” “Tell us!” Erin snapped. She jerked her head forward to make sure Bent couldn’t hear. He was walking up ahead with Trevor and the manager. Trevor actually looked pretty laid back. Sarah guessed he’d maybe stayed in this hotel before with his celebrity uncle. She wondered, though, if they’d stayed at this particular villa. Chad swallowed loudly. “It’s thirty-five grand per night.” Erin and Sarah stopped dead in their tracks. “Get out of here,” Erin said. After that, no one said anything.The group followed the manager into the villa. There was a spacious living room with several different arm chairs and sofas. The entire wall was open and displayed an endless sky and ocean view. Aside from Bent’s own house, Sarah had to admit that she’d never seen anything so extravagant. There was a huge kitchen, a workout room, several different jacuzzis, a long dining room, a bar with a massive digital screen, and an ENORMOUS pool that ran from one side of the villa to the other, snaking around the different rooms. “Where are we sleeping?” Erin asked aloud to Dan who stood beside her. She didn’t have long to wait. “There are five bedrooms above ground with ocean views. Another five bedrooms you will find below ground if you follow the staircase over there,” the manager said. The boys chatted with the manager for several minutes before the man did a slight bow and departed. “I have got to see the rooms that he’s calling below ground,” Erin said. She took Sarah’s arm and ran to the staircase. The girls followed its spiral of stairs to a darkened hallway below. They opened the first door on the right and stepped inside. “Oh my holy heavens,” Erin said.