I grab a fistful of both of their shirts and pull them into the house, giving them loud kisses on the cheek in greeting.
“Dorian will be around, his psycho roommate is out for the night, and the British roommate has been told to stay out of sight.”
“Mira, love, you should know by now that I’m not very good at listening to orders,” Seamus says fromdirectly behind me. His voice startles me so much I nearly jump out of my skin.
Cara practically salivates. “Thataccent. Thatface.” She clears her throat. “What’s your name, handsome?”
“Seamus Archibald the Third, darling,” Seamus responds. “And you are?”
“Just Cara,” Cara says, eyeing Seamus like he’s her next meal. “You single?”
“Miserably so,” Seamus says, giving Cara a mischievous grin, though I get the sense his flirting is a sign of friendliness rather than interest. When his gaze falls on Valerie, who’s looking at something on her phone, his eyes sharpen and his energy changes from watchful to alert, as if he’s a Doberman whose ears have just pricked up. “And who mightyoube, love?” Valerie’s eyes flick over to Seamus.
She gives him a critical up and down, snorts, and returns her attention to her phone. “Uninterested.”
Just like that, Seamus’s focuslocksonto Valerie, and I heave a silent sigh. I can already tell I should’ve bargained with Seamus to stay out of the house tonight.
“Well, that’s unfortunate,” Seamus murmurs. “See, I have a condition that makes me prone to only fall for women who are notoriously uninterested.”
“I’m pre-med,” Valerie comments drily. “I say you’ll live.” She powers off her phone and puts it away, turning to look at me. “So, food and a horror movie?”
“No horror,” Cara says with a shudder.
I shrug. “I’m kind of on board with Valerie on this one. Itisspooky season, and horror moviesareusually funny. Thrillers are even more hilarious, though.”
Seamus gives me a strange look. “You’re full of surprises, aren’t you?”
Dorian strolls into the entryway, slinging an arm around my shoulder and dropping a kiss on my lips before offering Cara and Valerie an enigmatic smile. “Ladies,” he drawls. “Apologies for intruding on girl’s night—”
“You can intrude on me or in meanytime,” Cara says with a smile.
Dorian doesn’t even look at her. “Sorry, I’m spoken for. Oh, and keep Mira out of your whole bar pickup routine unless I’malsoinvited. Now, dinner?”
Half an hour later, the five of us have settled in the living room, but we still haven’t managed to pick out a movie. Dorian and I are seated together on the blue couch, while Cara’s curled up on an armchair to the right of us. Valerie and Seamus are seated on a two-cushion sofa to our left. I’m actively shielding my box of sesame chicken from Dorian, who still manages to steal a piece every time I try to argue the merits of watching a horror movie.
“Oh,enough,” Valerie says with a loud sigh. “Let’s get some alcohol in Cara and she’ll agree to whatever.” She looks at Seamus. “You have a cocktail mixer? This place looks fancy enough for one.”
Seamus smiles. “I sure do, love. It’s in the kitchen—care to see it?”
Valerie’s gaze flicks over to me and she raises her eyebrows, silently asking me if it’s safe. I don’t think Seamus would hurt her, but he might come onto herreallystrongly, so I say, “I can show you. The cookies and cupcakes have probably cooled enough to frost anyways.”
Valerie’s gaze sharpens. “Vanilla cupcakes?”
I smile. “Yup.”
“With that vanilla buttercream frosting?” she says, her voice faintly breathless.
I nod. “Indeed.”
She stands. “Yeah, I’ll mix drinks while you frost cupcakes. And one or two might disappear in the interim."
Seamus makes a humming noise. "Vanilla, hmm? That's disappointing.”
Valerie releases a low, taunting chuckle, swooping down to pick up the paper bag she brought. “Seamus, there isnothingabout me that’s vanilla.”
“Oh?” Seamus says, sounding like he wants to know every sordid detail of Valerie’s sex life. I quickly pull her into the kitchen by her hand, cutting him off before he can start interrogating her.
“He’s hot, if not a bit arrogant,” Valerie says once we get to the kitchen. “I might fuck him. You cool with that?”
