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“Sorry.” I gather myself and look around, embarrassed. Did I just drunken stagger?
“How many champagnes have you had?” he asks, looking at my empty.
“I don’t know.” I swap my empty for another full one and toast the air. “I’m enjoying it, though.”
“I can see that.”
I giggle and hiccup at the same time, my head suddenly feeling very fuzzy. “What now?” I ask, looking around the giant room.
“Well, we could have a little gamble.” Luke points through to a casino, where people are gathered around tables, cheering. “Or you could take me on the dinner date my sister has paid for.”
“I can’t afford either,” I say without thinking, looking down into my glass. “Perhaps it’s time I go home.” I shouldn’t leave Billy for too long, no matter how much he pleaded with me to have fun. I have had fun. Now it’s time to go home. And through my drunkenness, I also manage to consider the fact that Scarlett might not be best pleased if I start staggering around the place. It won’t look good. And on that thought, I stumble once again, bumping into Luke’s side.
He hums, running scrutinizing eyes down my tipsy form. “Maybe home is wise.”
“But I don’t want to go home,” I mumble without thought, the drink allowing the truth to speak. It’s been a lovely evening. I don’t want it to end yet. I look up at Luke hopefully. “Can we go somewhere else?”
“Like where?”
“I don’t know. Anywhere.” I shrug and finish the fizz that I probably shouldn’t finish.
“Come on.” Luke confiscates the glass as it’s at my lips, leaving a drop dribbling down my chin. “Messy pup.”
I grin and wipe myself up, linking arms with him for support as we walk through the milling guests. My vision is a little strained, my steps purposely measured and slow. I can feel Luke gazing down at me, probably with a disapproving look on his face. I don’t care. My head might be full of fuzz, but it feels empty of everything else usually filling it. “Oh no,” I breathe, catching sight of a familiar, disgruntled face as we approach the exit. “It’s Amanda.”
Luke looks up and sighs, quickly diverting us in another direction. I could see she was miffed. I could also see she had every intention of intercepting our escape. “Where are we going?” I ask, my steps no longer measured, but now clumsy as I struggle to keep up with Luke’s urgent pace.
“We’re hiding.”
I look over my shoulder and see Amanda clearly in a hurry to catch up with us. What’s she planning on saying? Or doing? Will she kidnap Luke and wrestle him to a church?
“This way.” Luke pulls me down a corridor, trying a few doors that fail to open on his way. “Shit.”
“Just say a polite hello and we’ll be on our way,” I suggest. It’s pretty simple.
Luke scoffs at my suggestion. “I’m not subjecting you to her viper tongue.”
“I’ve already been subjected to her viper looks.” I shrug. I can handle it.
“Trust me, Lo, she’s scathing. My ears have bled every time I’ve listen to the voicemails she’s left me.” Luke finds an unlocked door and makes a grab for me, hauling me inside. “She’s scorned. Trust me, we need to avoid her.” He shuts the door and brings his finger to his mouth. “Shhhh.”
I mimic him and shush too, breaking out in a fit of giggles when he rolls his eyes at me. “Sorry.” I snort, earning Luke’s palm over my mouth to shut me up. I grin behind his hand, hearing the clicking of heels from behind the door. He looks pensive as he keeps one eye trained on the door. Is she that bad?
I reach up and pull his hand down. This is utterly ridiculous, but I keep my mouth shut and rein in my chuckles, looking around the room. “A store cupboard?” I whisper, seeing mops, buckets, and a whole heap of other cleaning equipment and cleaners stacked on the metal shelves.
Luke doesn’t answer, heading for the door and pushing his ear up against the wood. I wander over to a corner and reach for a broom, swinging one leg over the handle and holding it between my legs. “Hey, Luke,” I whisper, probably too loudly.
He looks back on a frown, dropping his eyes to the broomstick I’m riding. “What are you doing?”
“I’ve found Amanda’s ride home.”
He bursts out laughing, folding over at the waist and bracing his palms on his knees. “Lo, you kill me.”
I match his amusement, trying to get off my broomstick, but I lose my footing and tumble into a nearby shelving unit. “Oh, shit!” The clatters and bangs that engulf the small cupboard are deafening, and my arse hits the floor, various things falling off the shelf above me. “Ouch! Damn! Shit!” I cradle my head with my arms to protect me from the various bottles raining down on me, still laughing through the mild stabs of pain that keep hitting me. “Oh my God, how much stuff is up there?” I wail, not daring to look up for fear of something smacking me square in the face.
