by Nick Braker
Weston and Rose walked up, standing next to Asher. He took stock of those at the party. As he scanned the room, looking for Jules, he heard Greg and Seph walk into the kitchen area from behind him. They started setting up to tend bar.
Good luck, my friend.
“Okay, where is Jule? I gather that is her four letter name tonight,” Asher said.
He spotted her walking in from the far side of the great room.
Time to deliver.
He worked his way through the crowd, straight to her.
“Jule, a homonym for a sparkling gem of great beauty and value.”
“Well, thank you. That is so sweet. I am glad you could make it. I was beginning to get worried. Did you get sidetracked? At all?” she asked as if she knew something about their journey.
“Not really,” Asher responded. “The adventure is not the destination but the path to it. We were not derailed in the slightest.”
“Adventure?”
“Life in general, our road trip more specifically and this party at this instant in time,” Asher said.
He motioned toward the kitchen area.
“Shall we get a refreshment or two? I’m buying,” he laughed.
“Absolutely, my good man,” Jules said, mimicking the same level of flare he had used when greeting Rose.
“You--,”
“Lead on,” Jules said. “So tell me, Aeon. Are you a romantic at heart? Your dia-- comments to Rose were very chivalric.”
“I am, through and through,” he said. “Ever heard of a White Russian?” he asked.
“The Armyane, Avartsy, Azerbaijdzhantsy, Adygeijtsy, Altaijtsy, Abaziny, Andiijtsy, Aguls kind? I could list more but I am already bored with the attempt at humor.”
“Well, you didn’t sort the list alphabetically, so I take it that was by population?”
“Good guess,” she said.
It was quick but Jules looked surprised by his answer. They each took a seat at the chest high counter surrounding the kitchen where Seph and Grep’s impromptu bar was setup. The lip of the upper counter shelf was about six inches above the preparation area. Here, they had set up a dizzying array of alcohols. Liquors, brandies, and Cognac were some that stood out to him. What was most amazing was the organization the two put into it and so quickly, it seemed a bit over the top, even for Greg’s obsessive nature. The kitchen was quite large and the counter surrounded it on nearly two sides. The counter space provided Grep and Seph room to maneuver and to place the bottles in a systematic way. Asher couldn’t figure out what their system was but they seemed to be in sync and it clearly worked. Without hesitation, they made any drink ordered and did it quickly. The two of them looked like they were having a blast.
Good for you, Greg.
Asher returned to his delayed response to Jules’ statement.
“A guess? You think so?” he said, switching his gaze to Greg. “White Russian for me and the lady. Put it on my tab.”
“Coming up, sir. Would you be interested in a male Russian? You look the type,” Greg responded with an obvious jab to Asher.
“Take a look at the lovely lady sitting next to me and you make the call,” Asher retorted, returning his gaze to Jules. “Let’s give him a moment. He’ll get there. Look, see the slight brain activity going on behind those dull eyes of his?”
Greg looked up to the ceiling, as if trying to remember something.
“Let me see. Ingredients in a White Russian. Oh yes, that is the drink made from cream, Vodka, coffee liqueur and bartender spittle,” Greg replied.
“Can I get mine without the latter?” Jules asked, disgusted.
“I’m sorry. Yours will be without the extra ingredient. Did I gross you out?” Greg asked concerned.
“No, nothing bothers me but I still prefer the standard ingredients,” she said.
Jules glanced at Seph, who made eye contact with her. They had just exchanged something between them, but what it was eluded him. He made a note to ask about that later.
“Of course, lovely lady, but your companion seems to enjoy messing with the people preparing his drink. That would be like insulting the chef before he prepares a meal for you. Basically, not the brightest move,” Greg said, smiling evilly at Asher.
“Anything other than the expected ingredients and you’ll be drooling spittle uncontrollably,” Asher joked back at him.
“Wow,” Greg said, feigning shock. “You must have started drinking already to say something that dangerous to your wellbeing--”
“Do you two do this all the time?” Seph said, handing Jules her White Russian.
“He is insecure about his manliness,” Greg said. “He over compensates for it verbally. Ion would be a better name for you, Aeon. Wish we were doing three letter names tonight. Know what I mean?”
“You--” Asher started to say.
“Walk with me?” Jules asked, interrupting Asher.
“Your lucky night, Grep mi’ boy,” Asher said.
The two of them walked away with Jules leading. In the background someone yelled drink, followed by Rock cursing and a room full of laughter.
“What the hell was that?” Asher asked.
“He must have referred to someone by other than their four letter name and therefore has to take a shot,” she said. “Remember the game?”
“Ah. Actually, no. I have been distracted,” he said as he stared into her eyes.
Asher hadn’t forgotten but she didn’t need to know that. She led him outside to the deck of a large pool. The night was cooling off from the heat and humidity of the day and it felt great. The breeze was blowing and Jules’ hair moved with it.
She is exquisite.
She had changed clothes since Annie Oakley’s and the short shirt and skin tight jeans revealed her flat, tanned abdomen.
“Easily distracted?” she asked, watching his eyes.
“Not until tonight.”
“You are a charmer. I will give you that. Try harder though.”
“What? You’re offering me advice on what to say to you?” Asher replied with mock surprise.
“You are doing great of course, otherwise, I would have booted you out by now,” she laughed at him and poked him in the stomach.
“Booted me? As in a swift kick to the ass and out I go?”
“Yes, and I might even break my foot off in the process, leaving you a large memento of the evening.”
Asher liked the banter and her acerbic, take-no-shit attitude. She smiled so innocently at him too, which was part of her game.
“I can honestly say, I’ve never met anyone like you before.”
“And you never will again,” she said, raising her right eyebrow at him.
“Show me around?” he asked.
“Absolutely. A good hostess must take care of her guest’s needs,” she said.
“Is that an opened ended statement?” he asked.
“Careful, cowboy. There are limits. Do you know the phrase Remember the Alamo? For tonight, it’s Remember the Foot.”
Hell, yeah, it’s going to be a great night.
Jules led him to the west, still outside, from the pool area to an attached secondary deck that had three entrances leading into the building.
“So, here we have what I call the lounging deck. I spend much of my time here studying and reading. The sun leaves this deck alone for most of the day, so it stays cooler. My bedroom is the far door over there on the left, to the right there is the bath and further right, behind us is Seph’s bedroom. Come on in, I will show you my place.”
They walked across the lounge deck to the far side. Jules opened the door and they both entered. The far wall had a canopy bed between two small walk-in closets. Asher started taking mental notes of the items it contained, the general cleanliness of the place and any other clues he could garner about her, all to make sure he increased the odds of a successful night.
“This is a traditional canopy bed with a Victorian influence. Notice the ornate carved wood design on e
ach of the posts. I picked this up last year in England with Seph,” she said looking at him.
He was being tested. Jules was prodding him with useless information. She wanted to see if he was interested in her enough to put up with such mundane details.
You’re going to lose this one, little lady.
“Over here are matching end pieces that I actually had to hunt down, going through several other stores in London to find. You would not believe the trouble it took. When I did find them, the store clerk must have realized my interest and wanted to charge three times their value.”
“Jule, I am impressed. Your tastes tell me you are a woman who knows what she wants and settles for nothing less. You are intriguing and beautiful. Does Jule have any other secrets to share?” he stared at her, holding her there with his eyes.
She hesitated as if she got something caught in her throat.
“Uh, well... of course,” she managed to say.
Gotcha.
She turned and continued her tour of several interesting and special items she had acquired on her journey. Asher took in every detail and gave her his undivided attention. He asked questions when needed, making sure she was convinced he was interested and that he wanted to know more. He noticed a single dollar bill, framed in a rather ornate fashion, on the wall near the door leaving her bedroom. He started to ask her what that was about but he couldn’t take his eyes off her hips as she walked in front of him through the door. She took him around the northern hallway from her bedroom back in the general direction they had come from, left around the bath and Seph’s bedroom, into the great room, and then left going outside to a patio.
“Here is the entertainment patio. As you can see, it is quite dull and lacking any... entertainment. Also, it gets most of the sun during the day.”
Asher nodded, being polite. She took him back into the entry way from a side door, through the foyer again, but this time left into the next section of bedrooms belonging to the other girls.
“Wait a minute. This is more of a home than a sorority,” he said.
“Yes, we bought this house and turned it into one. We are Pi Delta Delta now. We had to get a charter and go through an assortment of paperwork. I actually laughed at the dean when he told me I would never get this accomplished on my own. I wagered him a dollar, which he accepted. Did you notice the framed dollar bill in my room?” she asked.
“I did. You pulled this off on your own? All of this?” he asked surprised.
“Yes. Why do you act surprised?”
“A better question is why are you asking me why am I surprised?” he asked.
“Okay, I concede. Granted, it was not easy but I sort of have a knack for getting the job done, an insight into things that I have learned others do not possess. Sorry if that sounds arrogant, but it is a fact,” she said flatly. “Have I scared you off?”
“Uh, no. In fact, you are even more interesting. I would love to explore those--”
A loud crash erupted from the great room.
“What was that?” she asked him, alarmed.
Both of them ran through the foyer and kitchen and stopped short at the edge of the great room. Greg stood over another guy who was lying on his back. Seph was holding Greg back by his arm.
“Grep, he is down. Back up, please. I am fine,” she said.
“Yeah, he’s down alright.” He pointed at the guy on the ground. “Keep your mouth shut, because you obviously do not know how to talk to women.”
Brandon walked over to Asher’s side.
“Grep decked the dude. One punch, man. Nearly knocked him out. His friends didn’t want any part of it. Seems the dude on the floor had it coming and everyone knew it. Man, what a punch,” Brandon said, barely able to contain himself.
Asher’s mouth dropped. Greg wasn’t normally that aggressive.
“Gotcha, Rock. Let’s clean this up.” Asher said, stepping forward. “Okay, enough. Dude, I think your invitation has been revoked. Now, get the hell out.” He grabbed the guy by the arm and pulled him up. “The door is that way. Be thankful I don’t show you the way.”
The guy couldn’t meet Asher’s gaze and instead just nodded as he walked around him, leaving.
“I’m sorry,” the guy told Seph. “It was the alcohol.”
She nodded.
“Want to get back to making those drinks?” Seph said, eying Greg.
She played him like a fiddle. Greg visibly relaxed and smiled back at her.
“Yeah. I think Weston was wanting--”
“Drink,” several people in the room all yelled at once, with Brandon yelling so loudly several people near him all put their fingers in their ears in pain.
“Shit,” Greg exclaimed. “Hey, if I get too drunk, who’ll make your drinks?”
Brandon grabbed Greg by the arm, pulling him toward the bar.
“Time to drink, buddy boy. If you think you’re going to get a pass, think again,” he said, excited.
“Fine, Rock, but I’m drinking my own and not that shit you like,” Greg said.
“Get it. We want to see you drink a shot of it, just like I had to.” Brandon said, pushing him forward toward the kitchen again.
“Dude,” Greg said. “You had to drink that shit several times. I think you lost count an hour ago.”
“It’s party time and drinking is part of it,” Brandon told him.
Brandon pushed him again, this time getting him into the kitchen.
“Okay, okay. Here’s mine,” Greg said, downing a shot.
“What the hell are you drinking anyway? Hey, Asher, is Grep actually drinking--”
Shouts from around the room rang out again, “Drink.”
“Damn it,” Brandon yelled, following it with a shot of vodka.
He stumbled around them to the dining area and sat down next to a dark haired young woman.
“Zara, how the hell am I going to keep from passing out before the fun actually begins?” he asked her.
“Your best bet? Keep your mouth shut,” she laughed.
“I bet your friend Rock is going to pass out shortly,” Jules said, looking concerned
“Perhaps but he’s got a resistance to it, built up over years of practice,” Asher said.
Jules grabbed his hand and smiled.
“Let’s see what the others are up to. Shall we?” she asked.
“Back for more, Aeon?” Seph said.
“Yes I am,” he said, sitting down and handing her his glass. “Except this time, make it a black one.”
Greg handed Seph the drink as soon as Asher had finished his sentence. She looked at him surprised.
“He has habits. All bad but predictable,” Greg said, answering her puzzled look.
Asher ignored the taunt.
“So you two purchased this home and now it is your sorority? Officially?” he asked.
“Yes,” Seph said, answering for Jules. “Jule is quite a determined individual.”
“Well, do not let her tell you otherwise but so is Seph,” Jules said.
“Okay that implies you two started this sorority?” Greg asked.
“Four actually. Zara, Seph, Mira and myself.”
“Who owns the Lamborghini out front?” Greg inquired, obviously interested but it was clear he was trying to hold back his enthusiasm.
“The yellow one?” Seph asked.
“Yes, are there others?” Greg asked with some suspicion in his voice.
“No, there is just the one. I do not know anything about cars, so I needed to figure out which one you meant,” Seph said, smirking.
“You have got to be joking me,” Greg said as if she had just spoken something blasphemous. He followed with a quick smile.
“Well, I guess I better come clean. I suppose I do know something of them,” Seph replied.
Asher leaned forward.
“You know something of them? Jules, what is--?”
At least five people in the immediate area all yelled, “Drink.”
Asher
nodded in defeat and finished off the Black Russian.
“As I was saying, Jule, what is going on here? Seph is evading an obviously easy answer.”
Again, they heard, ‘Drink,’ followed by another set of howls and laughter.
Asher heard Weston cursing as he downed his shot. Greg poured grenadine into a shaker, finishing off another mixed drink and handing it to another person at the party.
“I actually like this drinking game. Who created it?” Greg asked.
“Zara’s idea,” Jules replied. “She likes the intellectual challenges. Personally, I believe she designed the game to weed out the-- whoops, I think I have had too much to drink. That was going to sound very bad.”
“The dumb shits?” Asher said, finishing her sentence for her.
Jules looked at him in surprise.
“I would not have put it that way but Zara is looking for someone like your friend, Rock. He will be quite the happy man tonight.”
Greg and Asher both looked up at Jules and finally over to Zara. She sat relaxed in a chair around the dining room table quietly talking with Brandon. He was laughing at something she was telling him. In fact, he was laughing way too hard. Asher cocked his head at Jules.
“Zara is a comedian. She has a way with words,” Jules said, seeming to have read his mind.
“I’ve never seen him laugh so hard before,” Asher said.
“Dear God, Aeon. He looks like he’s about to pass out from laughter,” Greg said.
“His sides will be hurting all night,” Seph said, leaning in to whisper to the group.
“In more ways than one, I would imagine,” Greg smirked.
“She will not let up until he begs her to stop,” she continued. “She has already figured out what he finds funny and is focusing her humor on him, one right after another.”
“What... the... hell...,” Asher said, looking incredulous.
“So, are we scaring you off, Aeon?” Jules asked.
“Well, they are attending MIT,” Greg offered. “We’re in the company of gorgeous eggheads.”
Seph grinned at Greg. Greg would have to fight that one off tonight if he wasn’t careful with her.
“Good thing you did not leave off the adjective or I might have been offended,” she said.