Nina gets invited to a frat party by her non-famous friend (Rachel) and Nina continues to be a perpetual doormat by only putting a token resistance even though she doesn’t want to go. At least the media frenzy has died off some and there’s only one paparazzi stalker.

They get to the party and Nina is all asjdfhasldkjfhsdfds-ed out by being the center of attention. Which…is not new drama, why is this book so dull?

They try to shake it up by having Jeff call while Nina is moping in a corner, and she actually answers. Turns out he’s on campus and when she tells him she’s at the party, he hops on over to attend as well. And then…they go off to a private room to chit chat sans party so WHAT EVEN IS THE POINT?

They muse about who could have tipped off the media about them, there’s a few apologies that I don’t understand because Jeff didn’t even do anything??? Nina tells him about NDA she was asked to sign, says she doesn’t mind signing it because it makes sense BUT it also represents the public nature of dating him. …and then they spend several pages talking about how all the anonymous internet commenters like Daphne better. Which seems like it’s really shrinking the problem from “a lot of people would be involved in our relationship in an official capacity” to “mean gossips are mean.” Which is still a valid problem! It is! Tabloid shit is terrible! But maybe don’t introduce a really complex topic and then bring it back to the one and only point of drama this book seems to give a shit about? Or, like, actually DO SOMETHING with that one and only point of drama? So far all of the negative parts of tabloids and public opinion have all been off-page, or only seen very briefly.

And then they decide to keep dating anyway because…idk, hormones. Which is fine. I just still don’t have a reason to care.

THEN WE GET TO HANG OUT WITH DAPHNE SOME MORE!

Daphne is at the spa with her mother, and they’re talking about how to scheme Daphne back into Jeff’s good graces. Daphne is pretty despondent, because despite her best efforts Jeff hasn’t called her. Her mother pushes Daphne hard to scheme even more, and then says Daphne should finish off Nina since she can’t be too public desperate for the prince’s attention.

It’s heavy-handed, but at least the relationship between Daphne and her mother is more interesting than anything else going on in this book. There’s a lot of Daphne’s resentment in this chapter, and even some exhaustion, but her mother keeps pushing her forward anyway and Daphne goes along with it because that’s what she’s been trained to do. I would rather have a whole book of Daphne getting increasingly distressed with her schemes falling apart and then either going tragic villain or just, like, punching her mother in the face. Either way. I mean, it’s this book, so it wouldn’t be subtle or anything, but it might be interesting at least.

But we have to move on next to Beatrice, who is keeping busy with public appearances so she doesn’t mope about getting to date her wibbly-woobens Conner.

She heads down to the kitchens for a midnight snack.

No one was here at this hour: the first sous-chefs and busboys wouldn’t arrive until six a.m.

That late? Sheesh, half the morning is gone by that point.

Bea decides she’s going to COOK for herSELF like a REAL PERSON. She’s terrible at it because she doesn’t know where anything is. Didn’t we already go through the whole “Bea can’t even boil water because sheltered princess” routine?

Sam arrives, and at least knows how to make mac and cheese, and there is sisterly talking and reminiscing. Then they fight over Teddy, because this book, and in the middle of the fight Bea let’s slip that their dad is dying. They cry, they have some VERY basic and obvious “I want to be you” “No way, I want to be you!” convo which is treated like some big heart to heart but also…is so obvious that I’m confused why they didn’t both already know this? Then hugs.

We’re about 2/3rds through the book, I guess it’s wrapping up the pointless stuff to get ready for the big final showdown, which will probably be less of a showdown more “saying things everyone already knows.”