“Sure you don’t want to come up?!” I ask him. “The more you drink, the more it costs my father!”
“I’ll hang out with you girls anytime you aren’t with your family!” Jake says, putting his arm around me and kissing Jade on her cheek. “Have fun! I’ll be ready the second you need to be rescued!” I nod my thanks as Jade pulls me toward the elevators.
She pushes the button and the metallic door promptly slides open. As the elevator starts to climb, I can feel my dinner rising in my stomach. “Take a deep breath and relax,” she says. “We don’t have to stay long. Just make an appearance and then, if you want, we can go to any other club or bar in town.”
“It doesn’t take long for my parents to sink their claws into my skin, Jade,” I remind her just as a chime dings, telling me I’m about to meet my doom.
“You got this,” she encourages from beside me. “Besides, how bad can they be when they’re out in public?”
The instant I step foot out of the elevator, it’s almost as if the excessively crowded room parts and my mother walks toward me. She’s just a bit taller than me, but makes up for it in the highest heels she can find. Her naturally dirty blond hair has always been dyed to be a prettier shade of brown. We look absolutely nothing alike. People have actually asked if I was adopted because my red, curly hair matches no one in the family. The truth is, my mother has had more cosmetic work done than anyone will ever know.
“Hello, Mrs. Foster,” Jade attempts to intercept her.
“Jade,” my mother barely acknowledges. “Well, it’s about time you showed up to your own brother’s party.” She glares at me. I can feel my neck tightening up. It’s extremely hard to resist the urge to rub it.
“Hello to you, too, Mom,” I say, sarcastically. “Considering the party just started about ten seconds ago, I would hardly consider myself late.”
Why the hell would a fifty-something woman really need to come to a nightclub for this party? Sophia Foster never, and I mean never, misses a party or any chance she can get to show herself off. Then, as if on cue, she leans over and kisses my cheek for anyone paying attention to her.
She ignores me and continues with her condescending remarks. “You finally get back into town after being away for months and you don’t even call your mother to tell her? It’s bad enough you aren’t even staying with your parents.”
“I haven’t lived with you for almost five years. Why would I move back there now? And I just got back a few hours ago,” I lie to her. “I know better than to interrupt when you’re at Lorenzo’s.” Before every outing my mother goes on, she’ll spend two or three hours at an overpriced salon to “look her best”, as she says.
“I would always take a phone call from my only daughter,” she says, trying to play “Mom of the Year”.
“I know, but you wouldn’t like it,” I retort, not trying quite as hard to play “Daughter of the Year”.
“I understand you wouldn’t have had time to go shopping, so that explains the hideous dress. However, you could have done something with your hair. This family still has an image to maintain, despite you traveling from town to town. I taught you better than that, dear.” She smiles at me before looking around to see if anyone is watching.
I can sense that Jade is ready to attack my mother, so I excuse us before she does. “I’m going to go find Noah to congratulate him on his promotion. We’ll catch up with you in a little bit, Mom,” I say, grabbing my best friend’s arm and pulling her with me.
“Jesus Christ, Kacie. That woman gets bitchier the older she gets,” Jade says through clenched teeth as soon as we’re far enough away.
“Tell me about it. I need a drink. Now,” I mumble. We stroll up to the bar and Jade orders two strawberry martinis as I try to spot my brother in the mob. How the hell does he know so many people?
“I say we find your brother and get the hell out of here,” she grumbles. “That bitch has no right talking to you like that.”
“That’s my mom, Jade. You just have to ignore her.”
“How the hell do you ignore that?” she demands.
“Kacie,” I hear my brother’s voice from behind me. When I turn and see him, my heart softens a bit. This is why I’m here. I really missed him.
“Noah,” I say, walking over to him. Immediately, his arms fall around me and he squeezes me. “Congrats, big brother. I’m so proud of you!”
“Thank you.” He smiles. “This whole thing is overkill, but you know Addison wouldn’t hear of not having this party. I’m so glad you’re here. I missed you, kiddo!”
“I’m glad, too,” I say, half-heartedly.
“Don’t lie to me. I bet you’re plotting your escape as we speak. I saw Mom swoop in like a vulture the moment you walked in.” He sighs. “Sorry. I couldn’t get there in time to save you. I was in the middle of talking to someone.”
“I am glad to see you. Our parents, though? Not so much.”
“Hi, Jade.” Noah greets her a lot better than my mother did. “Thanks for coming with her tonight.”
“Sure,” she tells him, sipping on her drink.
“How was school? I’m sure you did well this semester,” he asks me.
“Still have my perfect GPA,” I proudly tell him.
“I wouldn’t doubt it,” he says, as his girlfriend walks up beside him. Addison Morgan is basically a five foot, ten inch blonde super model. She’s a professional cheerleader or, at least, she used to be. I don’t really keep up with her. She also used to be an exotic dancer, but I don’t know if my parents know that or not. They won’t learn it from me. This nightclub is her kind of place. My guess is she planned the whole thing and my parents just paid for it.
“Hi, Kacie,” she says. “Welcome home.”
“Thanks, Addie. You look beautiful, as always,” I say. My mother adores Addison. More than once, she’s commented how I should be more like her. It doesn’t cause me to have any hard feelings for the girl my brother loves, though. She really is sweet.
“That’s very nice of you.”
“Well, there she is,” another obnoxious voice rings. My shoulders and jaw tighten once again.
“Hi, Dad,” I say when he reaches my side. The smell of his whiskey burns my nose. Jade steps back to sit on the barstool next to where I’m standing. I’m not sure if it’s to get away from the smell or from him.
“So, how come you came back to town this summer? You need money or something?” my father questions as if I’m still a small child.
“No,” I say. The ironic thing about that question is I haven’t asked him for a dime since long before I moved out.
“Dad, tonight’s a celebration. Let’s not do this now,” Noah steps in. I shake my head at him. I’ve been dealing with this my whole life. A few hours won’t hurt me.
“I’ll say whatever the hell I want, whenever I want. And who the hell knows when we’ll see her again, so I may as well get it out now.” A guy who looks familiar, but I can’t place, steps up next to my dad. “There you are. Kacie, you remember Doctor Sean Murphy?” He had to emphasize the doctor part of his name as if it would impress me.
“No, actually, I don’t,” I say, uninterested, and attempt to turn my back on him.
“I met you when you were home in January,” Doctor Sean Murphy volunteers.
That jogs my memory. “Ah, I remember now. You were the douche bag who tried hitting on me at my grandmother’s funeral,” I snap. Jade chokes on her drink and Addison elegantly tries to contain her laugh.
“Watch your mouth, Kacie,” my dad warns.
“My mistake,” I apologize with a fake smile. “You’re doctor douche bag who tried hitting on me at my grandmother’s funeral.” I’m starting to lose my patience. After downing the rest of my drink, I slam the glass on the bar. “Excuse me, Noah. Addie. I need to use the ladies room. Jade.” I motion for her to follow me and leave my father standing there before he says something else.
Safely inside the restroom, I grab onto both
sides of the sink, breathing in and out rhythmically. Jade is silent while I calm myself down. When my moment passes, she raises her eyebrows at me. “What the fuck was that?”
“I’m assuming you’re referring to the warm welcome I just received from my parents,” I say, starting to laugh. I can’t control it. If the laugh doesn’t come out now, it will come out as tears later.
“Kacie, how the hell do you deal with this shit? I was about to break the glass and stab your father in the throat,” she growls.
“I don’t deal with it, Jade. I usually hold it in until I crack, then I run away from home,” I remind her, still trying to calm down.
“Let’s go. You don’t need to tolerate this bullshit.”
“I’m not here for them,” I sigh.
Addison pops her head in the door and blurts out, “Your mom and dad were just talking. Now she’s looking for you.”
“Thanks, Addie,” I say. I knew there was a reason I liked her. A little warning is nice. She nods and disappears. “It’s a shame there aren’t any windows in here or I’d jump.”
“Time to dance?” Jade smiles.
“Yup.”
We go back out and immediately hide in the middle of the dance floor. A waitress is walking through, so we ask for two more martinis. About eight songs and two drinks each later, my mother finally finds me. “Kacie, I need to speak with you right now!” she shouts and turns away. I have no choice except to follow. She’ll make a bigger scene if I don’t.
Jade says, “I’ll wait right here for you. Come back when you’re done.”
“How dare you speak to Sean like that?” she starts as soon as I’m within hearing range. “He’s a very sweet man. Your father is trying to find someone to take care of you so we don’t have to for the rest of our lives. The least you could do is be polite.”
“Find someone for me? What the hell are you talking about?” I almost yell.
“Kacie, you have been acting like a child long enough. Sean is a well-respected surgeon and will be able to support you through medical school, if you even make it until the end. Now grow up. If you didn’t piss him off by the way you acted, he’ll be asking you out. Your answer will be yes, do you understand me?”
I don’t take threats very well, especially from her. “What are you saying? You want me to marry this guy?”
“Marriage is a little premature, but maybe he’ll eventually be able to tolerate you enough,” my mother declares, folding her arms over her chest.
“I’m twenty-one years old. I have my whole life ahead of me. You expect me to marry someone I don’t even know?!” Now I am yelling and I’m not worried about who hears me, either.
“I expect you to date him.”
“No.”
“If you don’t, we will take the house now. We’re only tolerating you living there for the time being,” she informs me.
“Gram left it to me! Not you. Not Dad.” I start to choke up.
“You cannot afford to live there on your own. Your grandmother’s estate is paying for it right now but, eventually, that money will run out. You have until then to win Sean over or else the house goes up for sale,” she finishes and walks away.
Anger, confusion, and sadness are all running through me right now. That’s a nasty combination, especially when you toss in the alcohol. The room just became too small and I need some fresh air. I find Jade and tell her I’m just stepping out to clear my head. She offers to come with me, but I tell her I really need to be alone at the moment. Fortunately, she understands the way I tick.
Once I’m back on the ground floor of Skyline, I head for the bar. Lucky for me, someone gets up from a stool as soon as I reach it.
“What can I get for you?” a male voice asks.
When I turn to look in the direction it came from, my drunken ass almost falls off the stool and onto the floor. I’m not sure which feature to look at first. He has sandy, blond hair, which is sticking straight up in a sexy as shit way; crystal blue eyes that are almost the exact shade of my favorite gemstone, aquamarine; perfect cheekbones; and facial hair, which is normally a huge turnoff for me, but on this guy? Oh…my…god… The black shirt he’s wearing, with the sleeves rolled up to the middle of his very beautiful forearms, is barely containing the muscles of his whole upper body. Did I just say he had beautiful forearms? “Are you okay?” he questions, looking at me a little concerned.
“I’m sorry. I’m…I’m fine.” Damn him. He has me stuttering.
He chuckles, which makes him even sexier. “Okay. What can I get for you?”
I decide to stick with the martini’s Jade started earlier, but switch the flavor. I don’t do well when I mix drinks up. “An apple martini and a shot of something fun,” I say, a little more stable.
“Something fun, huh?” he smirks at me. I nod and try not to look at his lips. “Okay. Coming right up.” He has the martini out in seconds, but it takes him a few more to get the shot ready. When he puts it on the bar in front of me, I have no idea what to make of it.
“What the hell is that?” I ask.
“Something fun,” he laughs. “Try it. If you like those things,” he points to the martini glass, “you’ll like this.”
“What’s it called?” I wonder, picking it up to get a closer look.
“A brain hemorrhage.”
“Well, that’s just disgusting,” I blurt out because that’s exactly what the thing looks like. The alcohol on the bottom is clear and it looks like Bailey’s on top of it. Then a small amount of grenadine is dropped into the middle, pulling part of the Bailey’s into the clear part below.
“Wimp,” he mocks me. I’ll have none of that, so I immediately down the shot.
I wipe my mouth with the back of my hand. “That’s actually not bad,” I admit.
“Told you,” he smirks at me again. He needs to knock that shit off. “So, what’s your deal?”
“What’s my deal?” I ask, unsure of what he’s talking about.
“You looked upset when you first came over here.”
“Doesn’t that get old?”
“Doesn’t what get old?” He throws a white towel over his shoulder and places both hands on the bar in front of him. He has given me all of his attention. I glance from side to side, checking to see if he should be waiting on someone else. It appears as though there’s a bartender for every few customers. How many people do they need back there?
“Listening to people’s problems. Don’t you get sick of it?” I pick up my drink, swirl it around a time or two before sipping it.
“I don’t usually. I just figured I’d make an exception for you.” It feels like he’s undressing me with his eyes.
“Why would you do that?” I want to know. If I hadn’t already been drinking, I probably wouldn’t have had the nerve to ask him any of this.
“Why do you ask so many questions?”
“Why don’t you answer them?” I’m totally hiding most of my face behind the glass.
He shakes his head. “Okay, I don’t like to see a pretty girl sad. I figured if I asked you about it and you got it off your chest, I might get a chance to see you smile and that…” He pauses. “That would definitely make my shitty night a little better.”
“I’m sorry you’re having a shitty night,” I say. “I bet mine is a little shittier than yours, if that makes you feel any better.”
“Actually, it makes me feel worse,” he says, barely loud enough for me to hear over the music. I know he’s just flirting, but part of me feels guilty that I’m acting like a spoiled brat.
“My parents,” I tell him, pointing upstairs like he has any idea who my parents are.
“I see. Parents can really suck.”
“Every damn day of my life,” I tell him, finally getting the chance to rub my neck. He places another one of his fancy shots down in front of me. “Thanks.” It’s gone with a flick of my head. “Do you want to talk about why your night is so shitty?” He still hasn’t looked away from me.
<
br /> “That’s not how this works,” he chuckles. “Tell me what your parents did to make you so upset.”
“You don’t have enough time or energy to listen to my bullshit,” I mumble before sipping more of my martini.
“I have all night, but if you don’t want to talk about it, that’s cool.”
“Don’t let me hold you up. I’m sure you have other people to help,” I say, reluctantly. I don’t really want him helping anyone else but me.
“Nope. I’m all yours,” he says in a deep voice, as his sexy smirk returns. Well, shit. If I wasn’t turned on before, I totally am now.
“Evan, there’s a call for you on line three,” a tall blond interrupts us. At least now I know his name.
“Take a message, Meg. I’m busy,” he tells her, not taking his beautiful blue eyes off of mine.
“Are you freakin kidding me? Do I have to do everything around here tonight?!” she snaps. Her tone causes him to spin in her direction.
“Did I do something to you?!” he snaps back at her. “You’ve been pretty bitchy since you walked in the door.”
She loosens up right away. “No. I’m sorry.” She looks at me, then turns to walk away.
“Meg…”
She looks back at him. “I’m good. We’ll talk later,” she groans. He nods his head, dismissing her.
“Sorry, about her. She tends to be a little moody when she has to work Friday nights.”
“Maybe you should take the call, Evan.”
“You caught that, huh?” He grins. “Alright, out with it. Tell me yours. I’ve been trying to figure out how to ask you anyway.”
“Kacie.”
“It’s very nice to meet you, Kacie,” he smiles. I can’t help it. I smile back.
Chapter Four
Evan
How much bullshit is one guy supposed to take in one day? When I first came into work this afternoon, there was a screw up with the liquor supplier, which took me nearly three hours to get sorted out. How does this idiot still have a job after fucking up my order so bad on a Friday afternoon? It was only a few hours before opening. Not even thirty minutes later, I got a phone call from the event coordinator saying she wouldn’t be able to make it in because she’s been sick since last night. Then she reminded me about the party scheduled tonight for some big shot, which will need to be covered. Fuck me! There’s no way I can keep an eye on everything down here and give them the attention they’ll demand. I realize how rude that sounds. They’re paying customers, but I can’t stand people who act like they’re better than everyone else. If I owned this club, we wouldn’t even have private parties. As much as it kills me to do it, I have to call my cousin and tell her she has to come in to help out.
Left Behind: Left Behind Series #1 Page 4