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Then I spot them up ahead: Celeste and Michael. I push down the urge to cry as I rush toward them, too scared to blink for fear that they’ll disappear and I’ll be left on my own again.
They’re among the crowd of people playing craps, and she’s pressed up against his side as he grips a pair of dice in his hands. He holds out his fist and she kisses it. Another few shakes and then he tosses the dice out onto the table. The crowd erupts with a mixture of cheers and groans. He turns to Celeste and kisses her hard enough that they nearly topple over. I’m almost to them when Michael starts to string a line of kisses down her neck. She turns to give him better access and her eyes light up when she spots me.
“Brooke! There you are!” She breaks away from him to reach for me. “Come, come. We’re playing craps. I’m Michael’s lucky charm!”
She grips my arm and tugs me closer. I lose my footing and stumble into the leggy blonde on the other side of Celeste. She curses and turns to scold me, but Celeste levels her with a stare. “Fuck off, will you?”
The blonde mutters something under her breath but still moves to the side, making space for me.
“Where have you been?” Celeste asks as she wraps an arm around my shoulders and draws me against her.
She sounds giggly and carefree—in complete contrast to how I feel.
I try to collect enough words to form a reply but my head is too cluttered. I can’t grip hold of English, let alone French.
My struggle makes her laugh.
“Enjoying that drink I gave you?” She winks.
I swallow and find my voice. “Wh-What?”
She leans closer and whispers, “That drink—did you finish it?” I shake my head and she continues, “Good. I probably put too much in.”
Wait.
What?
My body breaks out in a cold sweat.
“Too much?” I repeat.
Her laughter sounds like the evil cackle of a hyena.
“Jesus, calm down.” She’s rubbing my back, trying to soothe me. “Don’t cry.”
I didn’t realize I was.
“James?”
The name falls out of my mouth with no context.
She shrugs. “I haven’t seen him since we left for the bathroom, but who cares! He can be so boring.”
Can he? I can’t remember.
“Ugh! Cheer up. C’mon, I want to have fun! Look, here—” She forces a pair of dice into my clammy hands. “You want a turn being Michael’s lucky charm?”
Somewhere in the back of my mind, I know I don’t want to be here, playing along with Celeste. I know something is wrong, but the alarm bells aren’t loud enough to overpower the crowd around the craps table.
A handsome man with a sinister smile is telling me to kiss the dice.
Michael.
Celeste helps me by wrapping her delicate hand around my neck and forcing my face down to his fist.
“Kiss!”
I do as I’m told and then Michael tosses the dice out onto the green felt. The crowd erupts again and I get jostled between bodies. My rib smarts and I hiss, trying to place the pain. It’s the blonde on the other side of me, jabbing her elbow into my side, seeking retribution for earlier.
I shove her back just before a strong hand wraps around my upper arm.
“Where’ve you been?”
My stomach dips.
I look over my shoulder and there he is—the man I’ve been trying to find.
“James! My man!” Michael says, clapping him on the shoulder. “C’mon, we’re just getting started.”
James doesn’t shift his attention off me. His brown eyes trace along my features, and he looks concerned; maybe he should be. I was trying to find him earlier, but now I can’t remember why.
“Are you okay?” he asks, his grip tightening on my arm a little more.
It’s nearly painful.
I nod because I am. Right? I look around me. The room sways, and I can’t focus my vision no matter how hard I try.
“Hey, Brooke. Are you okay?” he asks again, his tone a little more gruff than it was a moment before.
Celeste laughs and presses herself against me. I focus on the feel of her tuxedo jacket. It’s cool and silky, and maybe I’m overheated because I like the way the fabric feels against my skin.
“Relax, will you?” she says in English. “We wanted to have a little fun.”
I think her accent is so beautiful, and maybe I say so because she laughs and presses a kiss to my cheek.
“I don’t have the accent. All of you do!”
I smile because she makes “the” sound like “zee” and it’s so charming. Michael must have fallen in love with her so easily.
“What did you take?” James asks. I turn my attention back to him, but he’s not looking at me anymore. Of course he’s not—how could he focus on me for long with so many beautiful people around?
How terrible.
