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“There were only a few tiny pitchers and it wassooooooogood.”
Monty began to squirm against Allison’s tightening grip. “That was for tonight.” How was she going to host the best gathering without a signature cocktail? Mandy still waxed poetic about Kara’s Starburst martinis.
“Yeah, for our party!” Sophie tossed up her hands, almost clocking the Viking. He set his Bud Light down on the stairs so he could wrap his arms around her waist.
She tapped the side of his face but otherwise ignored his nuzzles. “I’m so glad you suggested it. It’s been way too long since we’ve done something like this.”
There’d been a handful of parties at the beginning of the summer, but they’d beenSophie’s, full of her fellow designers and co-workers.
Tonight was for Allison. It was supposed to be an intimate gathering of her peers, not some rager. “I said I was having people over.”
Sophie’s eyebrows quirked. “Right. I figured I would, too. The more the merrier, right?”
Wrong. So, so wrong. There was nothing merry about any of this. Allison’s murder mystery wasn’t suited for more than eight people, and, even if it were, Sophie’s friends were stylish and sophisticated. They wouldn’t be into a DIY party game, and, anyway, Allison had no interest in performing it for what would no doubt be a hostile audience.
She shook her head. “Sure. Right.”
Sophie’s eyes narrowed. “No. I know that tone. What?”
It wasn’t worth arguing about while drunk. The conversation would go nowhere, Sophie would cry, and then not remember a thing the next morning.
“I’d just been saving that sangria and the food for my friends from school, that’s all,” Allison explained.
“It’s fine.” Sophie grinned, slapping the Viking’s arm. “Eric brought beer. And we can order pizza.”
Allison nearly cracked a grin as she imagined herself offering Link, the king of artisan brewing, a Bud Light. But that tiny drop of humor quickly soured.
First her fight with her mother. Then the Wales trip. Now her carefully planned gathering was ruined. Tightening her jaw, she turned to Eric. “Can I get a few of those?” Time to obliterate this disaster of a week.
He popped the box open and offered it. “They’re warm.” Allison was pretty sure his eyes skated over her own set of D-cups as she reached in.
“I do not give a shit.”
“Hard-core.”
“You know it.” As if she needed validation from the Nordic equivalent of a caveman.
Rolling four beers out of the box, Allison stuffed one in each of her pockets and another under her arm. The fourth she cracked open with one hand and guzzled without taking a breath. She did her best to ignore its yeasty taste, which reminded her of how the kitchen smelled whenever Sophie made bread.
She slammed the empty can on the end table, earning another appreciative mumble from the Viking. Without hesitating, she cracked open beer number two and pounded it back. It was going to take an ocean of this garbage to snuff out her anger.
Sophie took her arm, her brow furrowed. “Slow down there. We’ve got all night.”
“I’m good,” Allison lied.
A tepid stream of amber liquid slipped from the corner of her mouth onto her dress as she chugged. The stain it left behind was the exact shape of Colin’s big, dumb head.
How fitting,Allison mused as she popped the tab on her third drink.
If anyone in Allison’s cohort was disappointed by her party, she never would have known it.
As more people arrived, they grabbed whatever drinks and snacks were available and settled right into chatting with the rest of the guests. The last time Allison saw Mandy, she was actively flirting with one of the Viking’s friends. Everyone else had joined Sophie and the designers in the living room to watch some terrible reality TV.
Allison was the one being antisocial. For the last half hour, she’d been sitting outside on the front stoop under the pretense of giving Monty, who had become extremely overstimulated by all the people, some much needed quiet time.
But really, she was fuming and drinking, two of her favorite pastimes, especially when done in tandem.
Despite all her planning and careful thinking and rethinking, this entire week had gone off the rails. Every one of Allison’s sound decisions seemed to summon some sort of chaos. Deciding to cut ties with Jed had led to Allison’s mom not calling her for days. All her preparations for this party led to its ruin and to a not-so-subtle reminder of how far apart Sophie and Allison were growing. And well, Colin was… Colin. Of course he’d taken a bulldozer to her week. That’s what he did.
