Riley waves at me with both hands. “To support you, obviously. We wanted to be here to see you after you’ve passed your first college final.”
“I haven’t passed yet,” I say. It’s probably too sharp — I studied really hard for this test — but I’ve spent so long being a bartender, believing that I could only everbea bartender, that the idea that I’d be a decent college student seems disturbingly alien.
“You will,” she replies.
“You will,” Evan echoes, his words delivered as a whisper against my ear and a kiss to my cheek. “I know you will.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because I was there when you studied. Because I know you. Because I believe in you. Because I love you…”
There’s a tone in his voice — strong and warm — that tells me he could keep going, but my cheeks already feel so hot that, if I don’t stop him now, I’m worried the banner might catch on fire. “Okay, okay, that’s enough.”
“I’ll never get enough of you…”
I give him a look, then a kiss on the cheek. “Fine. But shut your mouth, please.”
I keep walking, but it’s stiff. Controlled. My feet carry me forward while my brain fights to come up with some explanation that’ll make me feel comfortable with the fact that my entire MC family is here, surrounding me, while every single student from my accounting class stares at me like I’ve grown a second head.
“Okay,” I say, looking up at the glitter monstrosity. “Can we take it down now? I mean, why did you even need to put it up in the first place?”
Mayhem lifts his chin proudly, like a man defending his art. “Because we wanted to make a banner.”
I stare at him. “That’s not a reason.”
“It is,” he insists. “It’s a strong reason. Unless you’re some art-hating fascist.”
I know better than to get Mayhem going, so I turn my eyes to Evan in pure accusation. “You let him do this.”
Evan’s smile makes my knees weak, but not my resolve. “I tried to stop him.”
“That’s a lie,” Goldie says. “You encouraged him.”
“Also,” Mayhem adds, holding up a roll of glitter tape like evidence, “you bought me the glitter.”
Evan makes a face. “I did not buy the glitter.”
June elbows him. “You did. You said it was ‘festive.’ And that if he needed more, you’d get it.”
“I didn’t need more, though. In fact, I’ve still got a ton left over,” Mayhem says.
My jaw drops. “You gave Mayhem extra glitter?”
Evan’s cheeks go faintly red, which should be illegal for a man with that kind of handsome face; I want to kiss him as much as I want to slap him. “I was trying to help.”
I point at Mayhem. “If I find glitter in my hair, I’m setting your bike on fire.”
Mayhem’s grin widens. “Sounds good. I’ll show you which button to push.”
“What do you mean?”
“You think I don’t already have an incineration button on my bike?”
“Why do I even ask?”
“Beats me. My bike’s parked out front, so if you want, I can show you the button now.”
“No, I’m good.”
