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She lifts her cup to her lips and downs the rest of the drink. She grabs Z’s cup and hands both of them to me, pushing out her bottom lip in an adorable pout she knows I can’t say no to.
I sigh and grab their cups. I forgo making them individual drinks and make a giant pitcher instead. This lot seems determined to drink their body weight in alcohol tonight, might as well make it easier on myself. Especially if they’re all planning on throwing them back like Brielle just did.
“You’re the best, Ash,” Bri coos from across the counter.
“What? What about me?” Z asks in faux outrage as he wraps his arms tighter around her waist. She nods frantically, grinning ear to ear.
“I stand by what I said.” She looks so proud of herself, I can’t help but chuckle, a sense of pride at her praise making my cheeks heat. “You can be second best, Z,” she teases.
“Traitor!” he roars as he throws her over his shoulder and spins in a circle. Her laughter rings out, louder and more uninhibited than I’ve ever heard it. I can’t keep the smile off my face as I watch her. She lights up every room she walks into, but something about her now, I’m not just awestruck by her or caught up in her orbit. I’m infected by her mood, as if nothing matters but this very moment. That all we can do is laugh a little louder, live a little freer, and not waste a moment thinking too hard about any of it.
“We all needed this,” Eli whispers in my ear as he brushes past me and fills four cups with ice. I raise a brow in question and he shrugs. “It’s been a long year. Why not get drunk off our faces?”
“Drunk off our faces?” I smirk, trying not to laugh. I’ve never heard Eli speak like that. He just winks and shrugs again. Apparently Hakuna Matata is the name of the game today. Might as well just roll with it.
I pour the mixed drink into the four cups and Eli passes Z and Bri theirs before taking his own and nudging one towards me in a not so subtle gesture to drink up and stop worrying. I roll my eyes at him but take the drink and drink half of it in one gulp. He nods approvingly and I shake my head at him, turning back to Bri as her laughter rings out.
Zaide has finally put her back on her feet but she remains in his arms, leaning against his chest. My eyes narrow in on her hand that lies flat against his abs, tracing small circles over his skin. When did he even lose his shirt? We have always been a touchy bunch but the small gesture somehow feels more intimate as I watch her look up into Z’s eyes with a blissed out smile on her face.
A mix of jealousy, heat, and confusion wash through me as I can’t tear my eyes off their embrace. Before I can even begin to decipher my feelings, Hudson grabs Brielle’s hands and pulls her into his touch, making her burst out in giggles all over again.
“Dance with me?”
“Always.” She beams up at him. Vanessa turns the music up louder and they sway to the music. Hudson maneuvering her in circles, spinning her around and dipping her until she’s in stitches. She can hardly stand on her own two feet as she laughs so hard. He holds her up and she moves closer to him, wrapping her arms around his neck.
A scene so familiar it shouldn’t cause an ache in my gut, but it does. I swallow down the rest of my drink before going straight for the whiskey. I need it to burn away the bitterness of jealousy at watching my best friends dance innocently.
Though it doesn’t seem so innocent anymore. Their bodies move perfectly in sync, closer than they normally dance. Their bodies flush against one another, not a millimeter of space between them, her fingers twirling through the curls at the back of his head.
Vanessa squeals as the song changes and grabs Bri’s hand and pulls her to dance with her. The girls lose control and I can’t tell if I’m more amused or turned on by the way Bri moves to the music, throwing her whole weight into the song as her and V both belt out the lyrics.
Eli taps his shoulder against mine and with one look I know he hasn’t missed my flare of jealousy. It’s something all of us are having to battle more and more frequently. It’s something none of us know what to do or say about it.
Brielle remains oblivious to the turmoil brewing as she continues to dance with Vanessa as if nothing can touch her in this state.
I’ve never seen her so vibrant, so carefree.
The fire goes outand it draws me from my memory. The sudden darkness highlighting the difference between the drunk Brielle in my memory and the drunk Brielle in front of me. One shined so bright, she forced the shadows even out of us. The girl in front of me only sinks deeper into those shadows. Allows them to consume her as she wobbles out of her chair and runs her hands through her hair, shaking it out.
She sways on her feet and I worry about her ability to even make it back to the front of the house and up the stairs of the porch. Her almost empty whiskey bottle lays discarded and forgotten in the grass still as she stumbles with her phone in hand toward the porch.
I hold my breath as she grips the rail and slowly makes her way up the stairs. She stops halfway up, shaking her head at herself and I hear the harsh, hollow sound of her laughter. It’s a sound that grates against my nerves, makes everything in me scream to wrap my arms around her and ease the ache of loneliness I can hear in her laugh. The longing I can’t understand but want to fix anyways.
She makes it to the door and pushes in, slamming the door behind her. I exhale slowly and press my palms into my eyes. I can feel a headache coming on from the rushing of my thoughts over the last couple of hours.
More than anything, I’m convinced there’s a piece to the puzzle we’re missing. Brielle chose Carson for a reason. Something happened, something that made her believe he was the only one she could turn to. I just can’t figure out what that could possibly be. They weren’t ever close enough for her to turn to him for help, but she obviously did.
If I can figure out why she thinks Carson can help her I just might be able to get our girl back.
The guys are going to regret their choices.
They might be playing to win, but I’m playing for keeps. Once I get Bri back in my arms, I’m most definitely keeping her.
ChapterTwenty-Two
The sun hasn’t even risenas I leave the room. I laid in the dark, too scared to sleep for hours on end after Carson finally calmed down and collapsed into bed, spent and relaxed. I didn’t want to stay but I knew I wouldn’t be able to survive his anger once more.
The loud laughter that drowned out my groans of pains last night, the thumping music that masked the pounding of my body against the wall are all silent now. It’s eerily quiet in the early hours of the morning as I carefully creep down the stairs. Desperate for no one to catch me on this particular walk of shame.
