Junior, however, was definitely fast enough.
In a flash, Junior caught the young man’s arm before he could make contact with Noah’s face. Junior pulled him forward and snatched away the cup, driving his foot into the back of the young man’s knee and sending him sprawling onto the ground. He then dumped what was left in the cup on the young man’s head, dropping the empty cup along with it.
“Holy fuck, Junior!” Noah gasped.
“Oh, you motherfucker!” the young man snarled as he flailed, trying to get back up.
Crybaby put her foot on the young man’s back to pin him in place and cautioned, “Probably best for your health if you stay down.”
“My apologies, Liam,” Alistair said briskly. “Please enjoy the rest of the party.”
“Don’t yous worry, Mr. Star,” Junior, who was apparently a ninja, promised. “We’ll take good care of him.”
Noah didn’t see what happened next because Alistair pushed him inside. The house wasn’t as crowded as the pool, only a few people hanging out in small chatty clusters. Every one of them stopped what they were doing to watch Alistair shove Noah along, and he wanted to melt into the floor and fucking die.
He felt weak and pathetic, and his shirt was completely ruined and reeked of grenadine. He could hear the opening beats of DJ Quigs’ new single, “The Quiggle Wiggle,” and it took all of his willpower not to scream.
“I’m missing the fuckin’ show because we gotta have dinner right now?” he complained loudly. “Are you serious?”
Alistair stopped in the middle of the hallway right before the dining room. “Do you truly wish to have this conversation here, dear Noah?”
“I’ll have it anywhere you fuckin’ want, old man!” Noah glared back at Alistair over his shoulder. “What the fuck is your problem? We had a great day. A fuckin’ awesome day! And then you had to start actin’ like some old bitch and whine about gettin’ your stupid dinner!”
The other partygoers were still watching them, but Noah was too angry to care. He was also too angry to realize the clear danger he had put himself in. The alcohol was only making it worse, and he was definitely bold enough to keep running his mouth.
“Who even eats this early? No one! No one but fuckin’ old people! You ancient fuckin’ bastard! I’m surprised I don’t get a bunch of cobwebs when you bust in my mouth—”
“That’s quite enough,” Alistair warned.
“Oh, I’m just gettin’ started!” Noah’s leg suddenly gave out, probably from Alistair’s shoe slamming into the back of it, and he dropped down like a sack of potatoes to his knees. “Fuck!”
“Allow me to clarify something because you seem to be confused,” Alistair said as he grabbed Noah’s hair. “The invitation to dinner was not optional.”
“Mm, fuck, let go of me!” Noah reached up to push away Alistair’s hand, but Alistair only pulled his hair harder.
“We were going to have a light dinner, some dessert, and then spend the rest of the evening enjoying the concert. I was happy to let you drink all day since you’d been behaving yourself, but I see now that was a mistake.”
“Fuck off! Fuck your dinner, fuck your dessert, and fuck you! I wanna go to that concert right fuckin’ now!”
“Oh, no, dear Noah.” Alistair chuckled darkly. “We have to address your awful behavior first. You were quite embarrassing, and you owe me a sincere apology for forgetting your promise.”
Noah’s heart thudded. Being forced down on his knees like this was getting his blood pumping, and there was a heavy lurch deep in his gut as he realized where this was headed.
“If you take your punishment like a good little boy and don’t protest too much, we should still be able to enjoy some of DJ Quigs’ performance. Or, if you insist on being a little brat, you’ll discover how very little you’ll be able to hear from your room.”
“No, come on.” Noah’s rage depleted rapidly as he realized Alistair could easily stop him from watching the show. Hell, he could get Crybaby or Junior to lock him up in his closet, and he’d miss the whole thing. “Look, I’m sorry, okay?”
“Oh?” Alistair yanked his hair sharply.
“I got mad, okay? I just, I just wanna go watch the show. Please.” Noah winced as Alistair pulled his hair again. “I’m sorry I got mad at whatever it is I got mad at… okay?”
“That’s certainly a good start, but we have quite a bit to get through before I’msatisfied.”
Shivering, Noah asked, “What do you want me to do?” Before Alistair could yank on his hair, he quickly added, “Sir?”
“You’re going to stand up, take off your clothes, and go to the dining room.”
“Wait, right here?” Noah’s heart was pounding now. They were still in the middle of the hall, and all the onlookers from the foyer could see them. They’d be able to see everything.
