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I guess that’s what painkillers are for. I don’t like using them since they sometimes leave me feeling loopy—and I don’t want to feel that way around Colt or Nix, who I know would take advantage of it. At the same time, what’s the alternative? Having Mom get mad at me for being a wet blanket, as she puts it? I guess since we’re going to a dinner, it isn’t like the pill will sit on an empty stomach. I go to my bathroom and pull the bottle down from the cabinet, popping one into my mouth and washing it down with a handful of water from the sink.
“Leni, we have to go. We can’t keep people waiting!”
I give myself one last look in the mirror, checking out my makeup and hair before squaring my shoulders and starting for the hallway. Another good thing about these pills: in about half an hour, I’m going to feel happier than I have any right to feel. Kinder, friendlier. I’m sure Mom will be pleased once I’m feeling social.
Everybody is waiting by the front door. Instantly, I know I’ve made a mistake. Colt and Nix are wearing dark suits, like their father, while my mother is dressed in a white gown not unlike the one she’ll be wearing tomorrow. They could be headed out for some red-carpet event, and I’m wearing a dress I bought from Target a couple of years ago. Sure, it’s the nicest thing I own, but compared to them?
My mother doesn’t seem to notice, so at least she’s not going to berate me. “Finally. We can get out of here and not be seen as rude for keeping hungry people waiting.”
“You’re too hard on her sometimes, sweetheart.” James offers a wink that I appreciate, even if I don’t love what I know will be my mother’s reaction. When he sticks up for me like that, it only makes her angry with me. She’ll find some way to take it out on me when we’re alone.
It’s no secret the guys think I look like crap. If the glance they exchange when I fall in step with them is any indication. “Nice dress,” Nix mutters while his brother snickers.
“Thanks,” I say flatly.
“Where did you get it? Goodwill?” Nix murmurs as we get into the car. Of course, we’re only taking one car, meaning I have to sit in the back between the two worst people I know. Now I wish I was wearing pants since they both insist on rubbing their legs against mine as James pulls away from the house.
This is like one of those nightmares where I show up for school without shoes on, or in my underwear, or something like that. Only there’s no waking up from it. I’m an afterthought, and now everybody will know it when they see me standing alongside the rest of my so-called family. For somebody so concerned about appearances, You’d think Mom would have mentioned the dress code for tonight. I could have figured out a way to dress up a little more if I’d had warning.
“Are you feeling cold?” Colt asks, his hand brushing my thigh. “You have goose bumps.”
“Stop,” I whisper, smacking his hand away while our parents are oblivious in the front seat. Mom won’t stop talking about tomorrow, and all the little last-minute details she hopes don’t fall to pieces. Meanwhile, her daughter is getting groped in the back seat.
“Loosen up,” he murmurs, snickering the way his brother does while once again groping my thigh. “You might actually have a little fun for once.”
“Somehow, I doubt that.” This time, I dig my nails into his hand, and he doesn’t try again.
The dinner is being held at a country club, some big, fancy place with fountains out front and dramatic lighting. Mom takes James’s arm once we’re out of the car, and they glide into the building like a king and queen. Nix and Colt make it a point to walk in front of me, so I’m bringing up the rear.
Everybody is already here, and it’s a lot more people than I expected. They all start applauding when the happy couple enters the room. I’m a few minutes shy from when my pill is supposed to kick in, and I wish it would hurry up because grinding my teeth through this is painful, maybe more so than my back. Everybody’s dressed the way the rest of my family is, and I have never felt so out of place. That’s saying something since I spent a lot of time in a back brace.
Mom doesn’t bother introducing me to a lot of people, which is fine with me, though I get the feeling most of them are from the office. “Hey, Amanda! How come you don’t dress that way at work?” one of the men calls out across the room, and she giggles and waves at him while everybody laughs like that was a funny joke.
