The brunette woman goes in for a kiss on Kingsley’s cheek, and the man shakes his hand. They do the same to Shawn, but merely spare Thomas and me a swift glance.
“Kingsley, Shawn, it’s been so long!” the girl gushes. “How are you?”
“Making it through,” Shawn answers.
“Oh, I bet. With the gossip around Aralynn floating around, I’m sure you have had a lot on your plate,” she places a handto her chest as she sympathizes. “They need to release her; it’s obviously all a big misunderstanding!”
Kingsley takes a sip of his drink, silent. Shawn nods for both of them. “Xavier and Mya are working on it with the lawyers. Aralynn is innocent.”
Her eyes soften at Kingsley. “I know dealing with the questions about her on top of everything else can’t be easy. If you ever need to talk to anyone, don’t forget about me. Okay, King?”
For someone I’ve never seen around Kingsley before, she sure talks like they’ve been best friends for years. If they have, then she should know getting him to talk about anything is harder than punching through a brick wall. Unless you’re me.
As their conversation lulls, the couple makes eye contact with Thomas and me for the first time. It’s not like we’ve been stuck here awkwardly waiting for them to stop jabbering…
“This is Rip, and that’s Thomas.” Shawn points to both of us. “Friends of ours.”
Friends of Kingsley’s,I want to correct. Nothing about Shawn makes me want to call him my friend—I wouldn’t even call him my enemy. Not only because he clearly has a problem with me, but something about his face irks my soul. I can’t put my finger on it.
She reaches out for a handshake. “I’m Lila, and that’s my fiancé, Tanner.”
“Nice to meet you both,” Thomas responds.
That’s all the attention Tommy and I get before Tanner brings up his new business. They spend what feels like forever talking about it, and Thomas even joins in at one point, not wanting to be left out anymore. We’re at an art gala; we should be looking at the boring artwork, not listening to this mundane conversation.
But then I remember I’ve got something to keep me busy. Keepusbusy.
Sliding my phone out of my pocket, I open my freshly downloaded app and hold back a snicker. Will Kingsley kill me for this? He may try, but there won’t be much he can do when his new toy is vibrating inside of him.
I hope he doesn’t hate me.
Kingsley is in the middle of drinking his barely sipped wine when I press and hold the “on” button. His pupils dilate like black holes, and a choked gasp escapes him as he spits liquid back into the cup he’s holding so tightly I worry it’ll shatter into tiny pieces. I let go of the button as wide, startled eyes turn his way.
Lila blinks. “Are you okay?”
Looking as if he’s been electrocuted, King licks his lips and nods as convincingly as he can. I have to force the coolness of the oddly cheap wine down my throat to keep my lips from turning upwards.
Everyone moves on and brings up whatever they were talking about before. My eyes crinkle with mischief, while Kingsley’s are wide with disbelief and a hint of embarrassment. Neither of those is anger, so that’s a win for me. He pulls out his phone.
Kingsley
I’ll kill you
Rip
Aw it’s cute that you think so
We’re getting a tour of the gala from Lila and Tanner because it turns out Lila is hosting this event. We’ve been here for a while, and besides the initial inquiries when people arrived, no one has come by with a camera or bombarded Kingsley with an abundance of questions. I know it’s a private event, but people always find a way to get close if they want to. Did the sharks take the night off or something?
“This is the one we’re buying,” Tanner points to a colorful painting of a rainbow that looks like a toddler created in finger-painting class. “Lila fell in love with it the moment she saw it.”
“It’s stunning,” I say, my phone still in my hand, ready to push the trigger when needed. “I think it’s Kingsley’s taste too. Right, King?”
Looking my way, a tight line forms between his brows, and I throw my hand over my mouth. I can’t laugh, not yet.
“Do you like it, Kingsley?” Lila asks. “I wasn’t sure that it would fit in the color scheme of our house, but if you think it’s nice too, I’m sold.”
Kingsley glances at the painting, then turns to Lila. “Yeah, I think it’s?—”
