Chapter 16

16

L IZ

The housekeeper directs us to the restroom on the first floor, and Chloe uses it first. And I'm next.

She's waiting for me outside when I exit the restroom.

"Do you feel better?" I ask.

"I don't know. I think I need to go home."

"Already?"

"Yes. I'm tired. And grumpy. Do you plan to stay much longer?"

"I don't want to leave right now. Can't you wait a little longer?"

"Like twenty minutes?"

"Maybe more?"

Still negotiating, we make the trip back when the male voices we have heard before trail across the first floor.

"Shit. They're coming here," Chloe says.

"I don't think they're coming here," I argue. "There's nothing here."

I gesture at our surroundings. A large space opens into the main hallway. This looks like a lounge area.

"Then maybe somewhere nearby," Chloe insists as she rounds the corner.

Moving quickly to keep up with her, I'm about to argue with her again when two men enter my line of sight.

James Sexton talks to a man whose back is turned to us. Something looks familiar about him.

The door is cracked open as James signals the man to follow him inside.

James' eyes fall on us first before the other man has the chance to vanish inside.

Chloe makes a soft gesture as in ‘we're only passing through' when the other man turns his head to us.

Somehow, he locks my eyes first, and I stumble, almost falling into Chloe's back.

Startled, she swivels to me, and I feel like my cheeks are about to melt off.

"You okay?" James asks, studying me with his astonishing dark green eyes.

A soft, knowing smile clings to his lips.

These men must be used to women getting clumsy in their presence. Like me now. Looking silly.

I'm trying to hold his gaze, but my stare is drawn to David's eyes.

Wearing a dress shirt like James and having his hands tucked in his pockets, he looks at me with a lifted eyebrow, and I simply lose myself.

I don't know what to say or do. I can't walk straight. I'll probably be off whatever I decide to do.

The two men look at me.

James, because I'm a train wreck, and David, because…?

I have no idea.

I don't even have the brain cells to compute.

Are we still on?

Are we not?

Last night was our secret?Was it not?

Yes, it was.

I think we can safely say that.

So, theoretically, I don't know him.

I tilt my chin down as if greeting him.

"Have you met before?" James asks, and Chloe and I look at each other before shifting our eyes to James.

It's not clear what he refers to, but we both say no.

"David Moore," James says before waiting for me to say my name.

I'm sure he only knows me as Thea's cousin.

"Elizabeth Fox," I say, holding David's eyes again and trying hard not to blow my cover.

He slowly shifts and takes my hand.

His lips don't move, yet his eyes push back a kernel of amusement.

He doesn't seem surprised to see me here, but that may only be because he is so good at hiding his reaction.

"David," he says. "Nice meeting you."

And then I find myself talking.

"I didn't know you were––"

I stop abruptly, livid.

Shit.

What was I about to say?

‘I didn't know you were here?'

Am I nuts?

The silence thickens as everybody expects me to continue.

A lump forms in my throat, and my lips are dry as James' gaze bounces between David and me, while Chloe looks like a kid who ate too much chocolate and is about to throw up.

"Have you two met before?" James asks, and I have a feeling he's already noticed something is off.

"I'm sorry," I say, embarrassed, shifting my eyes to James, my hand still captive in David's grip. "I wasn't talking to David."

I laugh, trying to obliterate my awkwardness.

"I was thinking about you. I didn't think you were home," I say, and James narrows his eyes at me, a faint smile on his lips.

"I wasn't sure I'd be home either. I didn't want to intrude. Make my wife's guests uncomfortable," he says with a hint of humor in his voice.

We all sort of move away from this mishap, although, except for Chloe, who seems oblivious to everything surrounding her, I'm quite doubtful James hasn't gotten a clue about what's going on.

"I'm sorry," I say, retrieving my hand.

James' eyes fly to David, who doesn't let anything out.

"Rain has people over," James says to David, who moves his eyes to Chloe.

I elbow her slightly, and she stretches her hand out.

"Liz's friend. Chloe Ames. Nice to meet you too."

Their hands connect and disconnect, and unlike when he held my hand, I sense no stream of awareness floating between them.

The moment ends, and the two men enter James' office.

The door closes, and Chloe and I walk away.

LIZ

My legs are made of rubber as we return to the terrace.

Chloe says nothing, which is weird considering how much we gossiped about David.She's either still affected by the guy she met last night or too tired to care.

Or she's an amnesiac.

Normally, she would run her mouth like nobody's business, but that's not the case with her right now.

We spend about half an hour on the terrace before the women return to the table.

James' brother, Tiago Rossi, makes an appearance and kisses his fiancé, who melts into a puddle before he pulls away and joins the other men inside the house.

He looks stunning in his high–end suit, his eyes mesmerizing like his brother's.

No wonder Eve Malone's cheeks turn crimson.Like Rain, she's a lucky girl.

Tiago is fiercely in love with Eve.You can see it in his eyes. And that kind of thing gets to me, making me remember those times when Chloe, my cousin, and I went out to have fun.

And Thea is one of them now.

My cousin's phone rings, and she checks the screen before looking at the house.

"Ed is here," she says mainly to herself.

Instead of going to the entrance, she turns to me.

"Are you going to stay for dinner?" Thea asks.

Chloe talks next to me.

"Are we having dinner?"

"Yes, I think we are," Thea says when her future husband fills the doorway.

I look at Chloe.

She looks at me.

"Think about it. I'll be right back," Thea says.

Smiling, she pushes out of her seat and walks to Ed Preston.

He has a nice tan, his eyes glinting with a smile when Thea wraps her arms around him.

"Lucky woman number three," I say under my breath, and Chloe laughs quietly next to me.

"I thought I was the only one keeping track of them," she says, and I flick my eyes to her.

"I thought you were asleep."

"Nah… I'm not envious or anything, but it's hard not to notice," she retorts.

"Our days will come," I say, focusing back on them. "You'll see," I murmur, having a hard time believing my own words.

"Uh-huh. Like I didn't see you."

My stomach sinks.

I whip my gaze to her.

"What did you see?"

"You couldn't put a string of words together in that man's presence. David Moore. And then you mumbled stupid shit. If that's your plan, you'll turn into a spinster."

"Look who's talking."

We both laugh, and I think having dinner here with them becomes a real possibility.

And then, suddenly, Chloe's face falls, her amusement fading, her eyes widening in horror.

"Oh, my God," she mutters.

"What? What happened?"

I try to follow the direction of her gaze and notice a large group of people heading our way.

James, Tiago Rossi, the gorgeous Lex Harrington, whose eyes make me lose my train of thought, a couple other men, and then the man Chloe has spent the night with.

"What the fuck…" I say softly before Chloe swiftly grabs and squeezes my hand.

"Listen. I don't know who this guy is, but he has no business being here. Or maybe he has, but I don't have any business being here. Please help me get out."

I swing my eyes to Chloe.

I don't think I've ever heard so much desperation in her voice.

"What do you want to do? We can't just leave. We have to call a cab, and it will take some time for the driver to get here. Your man will see you anyway. It would be much better if we waited…" I say, turning my eyes to the group.

"Liz?"

She almost breaks my hand, trying to get my attention.

"I will forever be indebted to you if you get me out of here," she says.

My eyes go to her.

"People will notice if you're making a scene," I say under my breath.

"I'm not making a scene," she says, sliding off her seat like a snake and almost falling behind my chair.

She looks like she's searching for something on the ground.

"Please," she hisses, and luckily, no one notices us bargaining.

They're all busy chatting with each other while Rain instructs the staff to get dinner ready.

I have no idea what to do when Chloe sort of sneaks behind a woman's back and starts walking around the house. I can't let her wander like she's lost her mind, so I pull out of my seat, tap Thea on the shoulder, and lean over to whisper in her ear.

"I need to go. Please tell Rain everything was perfect. Chloe doesn't feel well. We'll get a cab. I don't want to make this into an event. Okay?"

Our eyes connect.

"Is she all right?" she asks, concerned.

"Yes. She's fine. But she hasn't had much sleep. We went to a club last night."

"Oh. Okay. Are you all right?"

"Much better than she is."

I give her a smile, and she nods.

"Okay. I'll let her know."

"Thank you so much. You're the best."

I hug her quickly and rush away, not glancing back or even knowing whether David is still here or not.