“Well, it looks like it will be a fun night,” Gwen tells him, equally trying to impress him as well.
“Drinks?” Leo asks.
There’s a bucket with ice and a bottle of champagne on a table close to me. I grab myself a glass and fill it with champagne. Across the room, someone has climbed onto a leather couch. He’s trying to take a group selfie. Meanwhile, the two guys next to him argue over the music like they’re negotiating world peace. Near the bar, a brunette in silver heels is laughing so hard she nearly drops her drink. For a weird, soft second, I realize I’m not panicking. I’m just… here in the middle of it.
“Finally! Who’s down to party?” Blake yells as he appears out of nowhere. This seems to be his normal.
“You?” Tess asks, breaking the silence.
“Damn right!” Blake responds before he hugs everyone. He hugs me last, and I notice him sniffing my hair. I roll my eyes and laugh.
“Do you even know him?” Tess asks as Blake walks away again.
“It’s a long story,” I start explaining.“He has the key to my brother’s apartment. I’m staying there; he didn’t know I was going to be there, and that’s how we met. We did meet when we were younger, but we both forgot. Actually, that wasn’t that long,” I determine.
Tess gives me a look that says she understands immediately that there is more to the story than I’m telling.
“So,” she says, glancing after Blake,“how long was he there?”
I take a careful sip of champagne.
“Long enough to make himself comfortable.”
Leo snorts.
“That sounds like Blake.”
“He canceled a date in my living room,” I add before I can stop myself.
Gwen’s eyes widen.“What?”
“Casually,” I say.“Like it was a normal thing to do while someone is still recovering from almost calling the police on him.”
Tess laughs.“Oh no.”
“Oh yes.”
“He does have a talent for acting like every room already belongs to him,” Tess says.
“That is exactly it,” I point at her.“Thank you.”
“And?” Gwen asks, smiling now.“Was he charming?”
“Annoyingly.”
“Dangerous answer,” Leo murmurs.
“I’m not saying he’s not charming,” I clarify.“I’m saying it should probably be illegal.”
“That feels accurate,” Tess says.
I like them. All of them. It sneaks up on me before I can defend against it. It’s the easy teasing, the way no one seems to be performing too hard for the room. It’s the way Gwen instinctively stands closer to Tess and Zane without looking like she means to.
This feels like a group with history. A group with inside jokes and stories and loyalties. A group I am standing inside of. Which is new.
Tess and I fall into conversation naturally after that. She asks me about California, and I give her the edited version. Not the ugly one. Not the one with whiskey breath and threats and feeling small in my own kitchen. Just enough truth to make me feel honest.
“I’m glad you got out,” she says quietly after I trail off. The words land heavier than I expect.
