“I thought you weren’t drinking anymore?” Kai asked. Instead of waiting for me to answer, he poured the liquid onto the patchy grass.
“Such a waste.” I frowned at the pool in the dirt. “I was only doing it to support Silas. And learn how to moderate. He thinks I need practice, and I agree. Drinking isn’t the problem.”
“Yeah, right.” Kai tossed the bottle into a nearby trash can. “Come on, Emmy. You’re better than that.”
I scoffed. “There’s nothing wrong with a drink every now and then, Mr. Holier Than Thou.”
“I don’t care about a little drinking. I care about you making a fool of yourself in front of thousands of people.”
I blinked. There was nothing to say. I wanted to throw something embarrassing in his face. Except, Kai didn’t have embarrassing moments. I could practically hear my mom’s words in the back of my head as she told me,You need to be more like Kai. For everyone’s sake.
“Fuck off,” I muttered, a little to him and a little to the voice in the back of my head.
Instead of getting into it with my brother, I started over to our group, prepared to ignore him for the night. If he wanted to act like the world was on the brink of ending then, fine. I’d let him. But I was here to enjoy myself. Life at Westbrooke could be temporary but if that was so, then I wouldn’t let it slip through my fingers. I was going to enjoy every moment of it until the last one faded.
Dakota and I finally got a moment to ourselves at the third hole.
“How did filming go this weekend?” he asked as Ari teed up. Silas’s eyes never left her ass, not once. I nearly rolled my eyes at the sight.
“Good,” I said. “Really good, actually.”
“I’m glad. So, was the greenhouse a good choice?”
“The best.”
I smiled, remembering how warm the light had been when the sun started to set. Ari’s story was difficult to hear. She told it with such bravery. I knew quite a few people would be in awe to hear what she’d been through.
“I have a few more interviews lined up for next week,” I told him. “Some people answered a flyer I posted on the bulletin board in the student center.”
“That’s great. I’m glad to hear you’re getting some traction. I know you were worried about people being afraid to share their stories.”
I nodded. “Yeah, it’s been surprising. I wish I had more people who identified as men come forward because of the large stigma for them. But it’s still going to be great.”
Dakota made a humming noise, keeping quiet for a moment. The cold night air nipped a little at my nose. I kept brushing my fingers on the tip, trying to warm up a bit. Grand Prix’s golf course was set in the back of the property, close to a wooded area. Besides the sparsely placed white lanterns on the course, there wasn’t much light and quite a few dark patches. Dakota and I currently stood in one of those darker patches, waiting for our turn in the long line of people. Our group had caught up to another, so the wait for putting was extra-long.
“It’s hard, talking about stuff like that,” Dakota finally said after an awkward lull.
I raised a brow, curious at his strange tone.
“I mean, I imagine…” He cleared his throat. “As you know, I spend an inordinate amount of time around guys, and let’s just say, we’re not used to having heart-to-heart conversations.”
“That’s for sure.” I smiled. “But that’s also why I think it’d be vital to get someone.”
“Undoubtedly,” Dakota agreed.
“Hey, can I shoot something by you real quick?” David interrupted us.
Dakota opened his mouth but when David flashed him his phone screen, he nodded. I didn’t get a chance to glance at what Dakota saw. Whatever it was, it set a line in his usually smooth forehead.
“Be right back,” he told me and moved away to talk to David.
I frowned, watching as the two huddled together under one of the dying lanterns. Neither one of them looked pleased with what they were witnessing on the phone. David’s mouth moved quickly while Dakota just nodded and chewed on his bottom lip.
My stomach twisted. I wasn’t too attuned to the feeling over the past year, but post-Tyler and a year of sobriety, I knew myself a little better. And my body knew when to pick out red flag moments in men I was interested in. This felt like one of them.
I turned back to our group, trying to listen in on the conversation they were having. My heart wasn’t in it. Maybe I was rushing to conclusions too soon. But this wasn’t the first time I felt something weird going on with Dakota and David. The two looked like they had a secret.
“You cold?” Dakota appeared back at my side after a few minutes. His expression now unbothered and his gaze trained on how I was hugging myself.
