Tad licks his lips and I recoil, sorry I ever fell into his mouth with my curiosity.
“You got to treat yourself at least once in life.” He sniffs hard, rocking back on his heels with pride. “Life isn’t just about suffering, paying the bills, and wondering if you’re going to step in a pile of dog crap when you walk through the living room barefoot.”
A couple ofamensshoot off from the peanut gallery.
It’s true. D-O-G craps like a bear right here in the house, and he doesn’t seem too fazed when you reprimand him about it either. D-O-G, who also goes by Bullet, is under a shared custody agreement between Mia and her old boyfriend. We’re on hiatus from D-O-G at the moment since it’s Revelyn Booth’s turn to play host. Rev is Mia’s punk rock ex-boyfriend, five years her senior who actually cleaned up his scruffy leather and chains act and transformed himself into a hot underwear model fit for Times Square. If I were Mia, I would have dumped Gabe, too.
I spin on my heel and gag at the sight before me.
“What’s he doing here?” I ask, looking right at the malfeasance himself, my sister’s soon-to-be ex-husband.
Mia whips past him. “He’s my date. Melissa and I will be ready in a second.” She looks to me and rolls her eyes. “Everyone knows it’s bad luck not to have a date on New Year’s Eve. Don’t judge me.”
“I’m not judging you.” I’m judgingGagebecause his date for the night—for life, just so happens to be Chloe.
“Skyla, go on and get out of here.” My mother comes up from behind and lands a quick kiss to my cheek. “The boys will be fine with me.” She stiffens for a moment. “And full disclosure, Emma and Barron will be coming over. Oh, and Hal and Glendora are coming over, too. We’ve decided to band together since we’re going to be one big happy family.” She claps her hands and I want to take them apart and strangle her with them.
Hal and Glendora are Chloe’s parents.
“You can’t be serious.” I say, stunned, just as Olivia comes up and leans in.
“You’d best go along with it, Skyla. Your boys are young.” She shakes her head, her eyes steadying over mine as if she were forlorn for me. “It’s hard to be apart from your children. I don’t envy you. It’s part of the reason I reached an understanding with Morley. Even though we divorced, I was not about to move out and share Ellis. That boy needed the both of us under one roof, and look at what a fine young man he turned out to be!”
My lips twist as I work quickly to analyze this. It’s no wonder Ellis has been numbing himself with pot since he was a little boy. This sheds a whole new light on everything.
“Well, he is special. And he certainly has a special place in my heart.” In fact, Ellis’ utter devotion to me has made me outright love him as family, deeper than ever before.
“I’m glad you think so.” Olivia sniffs the air. “As for Gage, maybe try to work things out. He cheated, he smeated.” She waves the idea off as if it were a fly. “You know what they say, stand by your man—and his money.” A throaty laugh escapes her. “And judging by the fact he has his father’s backing, he does have money. Night, all! I’m headed to the mainland to ring in the new year with a few special friends.” She winks at my mother before trotting off.
“What was that about?” I whisper as the room comes back to life.
Mom lets out an exasperated sigh. “Olivia and her new boyfriend are into sharing.” She lifts a shoulder and indulges in an awkward nod. “As in the swingers scene.”
“What? Andew. Don’t you dare share what the good Lord gave you.”
“Ohh”—she looks back to the kitchen—“you just reminded me that I need to text Demetri to pick up some caviar on the way over.”
“No can do.” Tad stalks off toward the hall. “I foot the bill around here from now on. And I’m picking up the finest champagne, too! What is it? Ten bucks a pop? I’ll take twenty.”
Before I can pop his cheap champagne bubble, Bree skips over in a tight red dress while Emily waddles over in a psychedelic looking tent. Even in that, her swollen belly protrudes like a torpedo.
Em grunts, “If Ellis’ shit show doesn’t put me into labor, nothing will.”
Mom scoffs. “If you change your mind and want a home birth, I’ve got the blowup pool in the garage all ready to go on standby.”
Em grunts. “I shit like a lion just as Ember squeezed her way out. I think I’ll pass.”
It’s true. I was there. Not only did it morph into a shitty situation, but there was this whole blood and gore fireworks spectacular beforehand. I’m thankful that my birthing experience was nothing like that. A memory comes back to me from that day and it’s of Logan sweetly holding my hand. My heart warms at the thought of him for the first time in months. Maybe, just maybe, he can pull me away from the dark place Gage has landed me in. As much as I don’t need a man in my life, I need Logan’s sweet friendship and his kind smile to make me feel human again.
Drake and Ethan can’t tear themselves from their game, so it’s just Bree, Em, and me headed out for a wild night of fun.
Here’s hoping nothing cataclysmic happens.
But I know better by now.
Brielle screams her way from the car with a wild whoop in her throat, her body skipping up the Harrisons’ enormous driveway as if she were home after a long hiatus. The gargantuan fountain that sits in the middle of it trickles water gently from each of its tiers. The twelve stone lions at the base of it look far too forlorn, far too lazy to properly guard us from the night.
“So you’re not really going to kill Chloe, right?” Em asks as I help steady her on our way to the door. “I mean, she’s having a kid. You can’t kill the kid, Messenger. It’s not the baby’s fault its mother is a wicked bitch.”
