As if reading my mind, instead of beers, Colt joins me in the garden under a chiffon canopy covered with fresh flowers for the ceremony in the morning, armed with shot glasses and Patrón. “I thought you’d appreciate this.”
Instead of the chairs flanking a long wide carpet that serves as an aisle, we settle on a raised wooden platform where the piano for Mia’s performance will sit. They asked Mom to play throughout the ceremony, which meant focusing her attention on something other than Logan and Cassidy, so she framed Mia.
“Where’s Conor?” I ask, watching Colt unscrew the bottle. My stomach cramps at the strong smell of tequila wafting in the air, sending me down memory lane to Brandon’s house, and that first time I held Blair in my arms.
“Kissing his fiancée goodnight.”
“Close,” Conor says, stepping out of the darkness. “I was giving my fiancée a quick goodnight orgasm. She’ll be out cold before I make it back, so we wouldn’t have had our engagement night otherwise.”
“That’s not a thing,” Colt laughs, offering Conor a shot glass, then swiftly yanking it back as he reaches for it. “Did you wash your hands?”
“I didn’t use hands, bro.”
“Touché.”
We knock back a shot, their expectant gazes on me.
“I’m in love with her,” I admit, pulling out the big guns. “I don’t know how or when exactly, but I am.” I run a hand down my face, squeezing the shot glass just shy of hard enough to break it. “We agreed to casual sex, laid ground rules—”
“I guess keeping it a secret was one of them?” Conor asks.
“Yeah. She didn’t say why she wanted to keep it a secret—”
“That was her rule?” Colt grabs the bottle, pouring another round. “I figuredyoukept it on the down-low because of Mia.”
“That would’ve been my reason if I hadn’t got to know Blair better. She told me her side of the story but never made excuses. She owned up to everything...” I crack my neck left and right, staring at the white flowers above.
“What did she say?” Conor urges quietly, raising his shot.
“It’s not my story to tell. Blair needs a chance to clear the air with Mia before I tell you what I know. That’s if I get her back.”
“They already talked,” Colt chimes in, and my spine goes rigid as a titanium rod. “She stopped by the day after the graduation party. You didn’t know?”
“No, I didn’t. Why didn’t you tell me sooner? Did they—” I halt, remembering Mia was in Europe with Nico that weekend. “Mia wasn’t home,” I say quietly. “What did you tell Blair?”
“To try another day.” He shrugs, throwing tequila down his throat.
Him and his fucking tension-building pauses. “And?” I urge, my jaw ticking. “Did she come back?”
“Yeah, a few days later. They talked. Nico was with them the whole time. I don’t know what they talked about, but Blair didn’t leave in tears, and Mia just said she was okay.”
Why didn’t Blair mention this? Why didn’t Mia?
Blair went to see her way before we accidentally ended up in bed yet never said a word. It’s not like she didn’t have the time or the opportunity. She could’ve mentioned it when she told me why she bullied Mia in the first place.
I whip my cigarettes out and light one up, the smoke filling my lungs a plausible tranquilizer.
“Alright, keep talking, bro. I want the whole story,” Conor encourages with a hard slap on my back. “How did it start? How did you go from hating her to whipping your dick out.”
I get comfortable, resting against one of the pillars holding the canopy over the platform. “I got to know her first. We weren’t talking until she helped me with River one day, and then slowly, we built up on that. A sentence here, two there...” Colt takes my shot glass, filling it to the brim before handing it back. “One day, Ana came over,” I continue. “While she was accusing me of cheating, Blair rounded the corner. I saw an opportunity to get rid of Ana, so I grabbed Blair, acted distraught that she caught us, and, putting on a show, I kissed her.”
Memories flood back. That one kiss—hands down—the best moment of my life. The second my lips touched hers, I was doomed. Cupid, bow, arrow.
“And then?” Colt asks. “Stop daydreaming and talk.”
“I don’t know...” I sigh. “Something just fucking clicked. It was supposed to be a quick peck, but before I knew it, I slammed her against the wall. We were seconds away from fucking right there in the hallway.”
“Jesus,” Conor chuckles, running a hand through his hair. “Is this what I sounded like when I complained Vee didn’t want to go out with me?” He thrusts another shot glass toward me, downing his own simultaneously with Colt. “Too many details, bro.”
