I glared. “She’s five-foot-nothing with flaming red hair and looks like the reanimated corpse of a frog.”
“Like I said, uncanny.”
I couldn’t remember the last time I’d wanted to punch someone so much. There was absolutely no hope of getting along with him.
“Walk me through the festivities,” he said as we turned off the main road and started climbing into the foothills.
“There will be drinks and hors d’oeuvres right when we get there. Don’t overdo it on those, because Aunt Cordy’s dinners are usually five courses. Afterward, there will be more socializing and dancing, followed by the fundraiser.”
“And who do you expect to be there?”
I sighed, racking my brain. “I haven’t been to one of these in years, but the attendees rarely change in our circles, so I’m guessing the big names will be the MacArthurs, the Warners, the Crowns, the Rosenfields, and the Bluhms. Maybe the—”
“The Bluhms?” Theo interrupted. “As in, Bradley?”
“Obviously not, since he’s busy fleeing across Europe. And probably not his parents either. I think they’re pretty much housebound. But his aunt and uncle and cousins are still being sociable, and from what Mom said, they’re telling everyone who will listen that Brad always creeped them out, even as a kid.”
Theo scoffed. “Please tell me you’re not dumb enough to believe that.”
I placed my hands in my lap, clutching them together to keep from reaching out and squeezing Theo’s throat. “No, I’m not. Especially because I have it on good authority that they helped cover some of Brad’s crimes when he was younger.”
“You’d know all about that kind of behavior, wouldn’t you?” he said.
I craned my head sideways, staring at him. “What’sthatsupposed to mean?”
He sent me a scathing look. “Please. I did my research. I know all about the horrible shit you got away with because your parents threw money at the problem.”
“Look, I’m the first to admit that I was a reckless idiot when I was younger, but DUIs and pranks that got out of hand arenotthe same as driving your car into someone’s bedroom because they turned you down for a date.”
“But running someone over is.”
I sucked in a breath. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
“No? You didn’t run a woman down and then skip away from it scot-free?”
“Shut up,” I said, and in my mind, I saw Maddie sprinting into the darkness, heard Runa screaming.
“Not so high and mighty now, are you?” Theo said, an ugly, goading note in his tone.
“I said, shut up.” My ears were starting to ring.
“Talk all the shit you want, but the truth is, you’re just as bad as the rest of those assholes.”
“No, I’m not,” I said, my voice shaking.
“Tell that to the woman you—”
“I wasn’t the one driving the fucking car!” I screamed.
15
Tyler
Stella leapt from the vehiclebefore I’d even pulled to a stop.
I climbed out, tossing my keys to a waiting valet, and jogged to catch up with her.
“Stella.”
