Focus

by Alyssa Rose Ivy

  “Wow, you look incredible.” He took a few steps closer to me.

  “Thanks.” I turned around to give him the full effect. “Does it meet your specifications?”

  “Do I need to answer that?”

  “What about me? Do I look incredible?” Hailey teased.

  “Of course, Hailey. Although you’re not old enough to wear a dress like that.”

  “I’m the same age as Allie.” She glared at him.

  “You’ll always be twelve to me.”

  Hailey shook her head. “You’re worse than Owen.”

  Levi shrugged. “I’m just being honest. Shall we?” He gestured toward where he parked his black BMW over on the street.

  “Sure.” I linked arms with Hailey before he could even try to put an arm around me.

  Levi opened up both the passenger door and the backdoor behind it.

  I moved toward the back. “You can sit in the front, Hail.”

  “No, I don’t mind the back.”

  I didn’t miss the look that passed between them.

  I took a seat, and Levi lingered for a moment before closing my door.

  “I don’t have to remind you how important it is that you go along with everything tonight, do I?” He pulled out onto the road.

  “No, I get it.” I looked out the window, annoyed at myself for how much I liked the way he looked in the navy sports coat he was wearing. I distracted myself by watching how the moonlight lit up the beautiful live oak trees. There really was something almost magical about New Orleans.

  He put a hand on my bare leg. “Al?”

  “Yeah?” I looked toward him.

  “You really do look incredible.”

  “You don’t look so bad yourself.” I heard Hailey laugh and turned around to see her making a kissing face. She was lucky I couldn’t reach her.

  Levi laughed. He must have seen her in the rearview mirror.

  “So, is there anything I should know before we get there?” If I was going into the lion’s den, I wanted to be prepared.

  “Nothing other than the fact that my dad thinks you agreed to marry me next summer.”

  I reached up and grabbed the ‘oh my god’ bar. “Excuse me?”

  “Chill out, we can always tell him we pushed it off further, but he was worried. If I didn’t say that, he would have called your dad to make sure he wasn’t the problem. I figured you preferred it this way.”

  I sighed. “It is preferable to getting my dad involved. It was bad enough telling him I wasn’t going to Princeton.”

  “I told you I’d talk to him…”

  “And what would that have helped?”

  “He likes me—or at least he likes my name.” That was the first time Levi had acknowledged my dad’s response to his background and money.

  “Please tell me the wedding is the only surprise.”

  “It is. You might get a few questions about why you aren’t living with me. The wedding is just a formality for you and the outside world.”

  “I’ll just say I’m traditional.”

  Hailey laughed again. “You obviously realize they know you two have slept together, right? I mean you wouldn’t be his mate otherwise.”

  “Yeah, but that doesn’t mean I’d want to move in with him.” I looked at Levi even though I was answering Hailey.

  Levi turned, and I knew we were getting close. I took a deep breath; I could handle this. Levi squeezed my leg, and I realized he hadn’t moved his hand the whole drive. I hadn’t stopped him. Levi grinned as he watched my realization. I groaned.

  Levi stopped the car, and a guy came around immediately to open his door. There was something funny about him, but I couldn’t place it. He was large and bulky. “Hello, Sir. Welcome.”

  Levi nodded, leaving his keys and coming around the car to open the door for both of us. He helped me out and put an arm around my waist. I didn’t shake it off. I needed to play the part. Even Hailey had reiterated about twenty times how important this meeting was.

  “That valet wasn’t human, was he?” I asked quietly before we reached the entrance.

  He leaned in. “Nope. He’s a Silver.”

  “Oh, but he wasn’t silver.”

  Levi laughed lightly. “Silver as in silverbacks.”

  “A gorilla?” I gasped.

  “Exactly.”

  I nodded. I guess I’d eventually get used to all of these new groups. Well, only if I stuck around long enough to find out.

  “You ready?”

  “As ready as I’ll ever be.” I glanced behind me to make sure Hailey was with us. She was grinning. At least I was able to get her into this meeting—one positive thing.

  I looked up at the large, blue and white restaurant. Even before I had visited New Orleans, I’d heard of Commander’s Palace.

  “Allison, it’s lovely to see you again.” Levi’s dad came over and shook my hand—the one that wasn’t currently pressed against Levi’s side. I wasn’t about to correct the king of a supernatural society on the use of my full name, even if he did ask me to call him Dad.

  I gave him the brightest smile I could muster. “Hi, Robert. It’s great to see you.”

  “Hello, Hailey,” he greeted her politely.

  It took Hailey a moment to respond. “Mr. Laurent, thank you for having me tonight.”

  “Of course. I hope you enjoy the evening. If you ladies don’t mind, I need to borrow my son. I think Helen’s already inside if you want to go find her.”

  “Great, I look forward to seeing her.”

  “See you in a few minutes,” Levi whispered before kissing me lightly.

  “Don’t take too long,” I said flirtatiously. If I was playing the part, I was going to have fun with it.

  Hailey and I walked further inside but before we could get too far, a tall guy stopped us. He blatantly checked me out before his eyes settled on my face and he grinned. He reached for my hand. “Bryant Florence. I’m sure I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting you before, because there is no way I’d forget you.” He shook my hand, holding it for longer than socially appropriate.

  I stole a glance at Hailey. “Florence? So you’re related to Jared?”

  “You know my brother?” He watched me, like he was trying to reevaluate me.

  “Yeah, I know your brother.”

  “It’s unfortunate you met him first. I assure you he doesn’t represent the family.”

  I felt a surprising offense at the way he talked about Jared, almost protective.

  Hailey jumped in before I could say anything. “Bryant, do you know who this is?”

  “No, I’m still waiting for her to give me her name.”

  “Her name’s Allie. Allie Davis.”

  A look of shock crossed his face. “Oh shit. I’m sorry, I had no idea—”

  “No harm done.” I took a step back.

  “Tell that to Levi,” Hailey mumbled.

  She took my hand and led us away. “He’s worse than Jared. He’s been in Paris for a few years. I have no idea why he’s back.”

  I looked over my shoulder, and he was still watching me.

  I saw Helen, Levi’s mom, and decided we should head over. I glanced at Hailey and she nodded.

  “Hi, Helen.”

  She turned, pausing in her conversation. “Allie.” She immediately pulled me into a hug. “How are you doing? How have your first few days been?”

  “Pretty good. I have an awesome roommate.” I smiled at Hailey.

  “I bet. It’s wonderful you girls are so close. I’m sure it’s made the transition easier. And Hailey, we’re so glad you were able to make it tonight. Have you talked to your parents today? I invited them as well.”

  “My parents? They’re here?”

  “They should be.”

  “Well that was really generous.” Hailey was already looking around the room.

  “We really do appreciate everything you and your brother have done to help the family.”

  Hailey beamed, her atte
ntion returning to Helen. Sometimes I forgot how important The Society was to Hailey, but it was obviously huge.

  One of the women Helen had been talking to moved to join us. She edged Hailey out of the way in the process. “Hi, Allie. I didn’t get a chance to meet you at your party. I’m Missy, and it’s an honor to meet you.”

  An honor? This was all so weird. I just smiled awkwardly. “It’s nice to meet you too.”

  “You know, I have a daughter just a few years older than you. She’s at Tulane, too. Let me give you her number so you girls can meet up and get coffee or something.”

  Annoyed at the way she treated Hailey, I cut her off. “That sounds nice, but I’m just getting settled. Hopefully, I’ll meet her sometime soon.”

  I nervously looked toward Helen, hoping I hadn’t just committed some huge social faux pas, but she smiled. I really loved Levi’s mom.

  We told Helen we’d talk more later, and headed over to grab something to drink. “Thanks,” Hailey said as soon as we were out of earshot.

  I took a sip of my champagne. “That was obnoxious.”

  “Yeah, her daughter’s worse. There aren’t many girls our age, and she always treated me like garbage.”

  “I definitely don’t need to meet her then.”

  “You rock.” Hailey smiled.

  “So do you.”

  “Hello ladies.” Jared sauntered over.

  I waved with my free hand. Any familiar face was welcome that night. “Hey. I just met your brother.”

  “Yeah? Did he talk your ear off?”

  “No, he tried to pick Allie up.” Hailey took a sip from her glass.

  “No way.” Jared laughed. “Is she being serious?” He turned toward me.

  “Yeah. It was pretty awkward.” I didn’t mention the way Bryant had talked about him.

  “I’ll have to remember that the next time he goes off on me. Dad would kill him for that.”

  “In his defense, he didn’t know.”

  Jared reached over me to grab a glass for himself. “He should have figured it out. He’s supposed to be so incredible at security. He should at least know what our princess looks like.”

  “Oh, there are my parents.” I followed Hailey’s gaze across the room and saw an attractive, middle aged couple. “Do you want to meet them?”

  “Sure, that would be nice.”

  I said goodbye to Jared and followed Hailey over to them. “Hey guys, this is Allie.”

  “Allie, hello. It’s wonderful to meet you finally.” Hailey’s mom smiled warmly and shook my hand.

  “It’s nice to finally meet you, too.”

  Her dad shook my hand as well. “It really is a pleasure.”

  I didn’t miss the way they beamed at Hailey and how happy she looked.

  “It’s just been so nice to have Hailey around. It’s only been a few days, but she’s the best roommate.”

  “We’re glad to hear that. She hasn’t had to share a room before, but I’m sure she’ll be a very thoughtful roommate.”

  “I’m not too worried. As long as she keeps her mess to her side, we’re fine.”

  “Mess? Hailey—” The mortification on her mother’s face had me jumping in immediately.

  “I’m joking.”

  “Oh, good.” Her mom’s shoulders relaxed. “Oh wait, we never introduced ourselves. I’m Jan and this is Timothy.”

  “Great, it’s nice to have names other than Hailey’s mom and dad.”

  It could have gotten awkward, but Owen joined us.

  “Hey.”

  “Hey.” I smiled. I hadn’t seen Owen since French.

  “Levi was looking for you, Allie.”

  “Oh? Where is he?” I started scanning the room.

  “He was heading toward the dining room when I saw him.”

  “I should find him. I’ll catch up with you in a few, Hailey.”

  I felt my phone vibrating but didn’t want to check to see who it was in the middle of the room. I turned down a corridor. It was a text from Jess checking in. I’d have to call back. It had taken weeks for things to feel normal between us again after she left New Orleans suddenly. Even though she told me not to, I still blamed Jared for making her leave. Maybe it was for the best in the end though. She was head over heels for Emmett, and from what I knew, she was loving NYU.

  I was about to look for Levi again when I heard a few voices. “You better not screw anything up. I know you’re Levi’s favorite pet but if you upset his girl, you’re going to be in a world of trouble.” I peeked over and saw Jared and Bryant talking to an older man who shared their black hair. I assumed he was their father, Jett. Had he seriously called Jared Levi’s pet?

  “You should talk? You—” Jared started.

  Jett Florence spoke and it gave me chills. “You can’t rely on Levi’s friendship. He can change his mind and pick someone else. Don’t mess this up, as usual, for the family.”

  I quietly slipped back out into the room. I noticed Levi talking to a man and went right over. I put a hand on his arm to get his attention.

  Levi wrapped his arm around my waist. “Hey, sweetie, I was just looking for you.”

  “Owen told me.”

  “Allie, I don’t believe you’ve met Mark yet. He’s one of Dad’s advisors.”

  “It’s nice to meet you.”

  “The pleasure is mine.” He shook my hand.

  “You ready to find our seats?” Levi asked.

  “Sure.”

  He led us into the dining room we were using.

  Unsurprisingly, Levi was seated at the head of one of the tables. He pulled out the chair directly next to his, and I took a seat. Robert was already seated at the other end with Helen at his side. I watched as others filed in, taking seats around us.

  I leaned over to whisper in Levi’s ear. “We eat before the meeting?”

  “Yes. We used to do it the other way around, but somehow it goes smoother when people are already fed.”

  I laughed. “I think that’s the case with most things.”

  “Hello again, Allie.” I turned away from Levi and saw Bryant sitting next to me.

  “Hi.”

  I heard laughter and looked across from me in time to catch Jared’s eye. Owen was seated next to him with Hailey a few seats further down. I wished Hailey were sitting closer to me, but I assumed it was a hierarchy thing.

  “Is something funny, Jared?” Bryant said snidely.

  I really didn’t like Bryant.

  A waiter came over and poured me a glass of red wine. I noticed no one was drinking it, so I waited for the toast that had to be coming.

  Robert stood up. “Welcome to the Autumn meeting. It’s nice to see you all here tonight. We have a lot to discuss, but first let us enjoy our meal.”

  He sat down and immediately a bowl of soup was placed in front of me. It smelled good, but I had no idea what it was.

  “It’s turtle soup,” Levi explained.

  “Turtle? Oh.” It smelled good, but it was definitely a first for me.

  “It’s good, trust me.”

  I nodded. Levi definitely had good taste when it came to food.

  I took a small spoonful, and Levi was right. It was fantastic.

  “Like it?” he asked.

  “Yeah.” The soup was rich and warm.

  “Good.”

  I knew that proper dinner party etiquette demanded I talk to Bryant, but I resisted until he spoke to me again. “What do you think of college so far? Is it what you expected?”

  “It’s been interesting.”

  “A good interesting?”

  “Mostly.” I savored the final spoonful of the soup.

  “I heard you are living on campus. I’m sure Levi doesn’t like that.” He moved, and his leg brushed against mine. I scooted over in my seat just a little.

  Was he seriously talking about this with Levi sitting next to me?

  “I’m sure a few more nights of dorm life will have you moving in with him. It makes m
ore sense that way.”

  He had to know that Levi could hear, so he must have thought this would somehow make him look good in Levi’s eyes.

  “I’m happy on campus. I miss Levi, but it’s important to me. Luckily, Levi is really understanding and doesn’t mind.” I turned toward Levi with a smile.

  “I never said I didn’t mind. But as long as you keep spending nights with me, I’m fine with it until the wedding.”

  I swallowed down the response I wanted to give, and played along. “You know I’ll keep spending nights with you. How could I resist?”

  Levi put a hand on my leg. “I’m just glad I get to take you home tonight.” His hand slid up my leg, right below my thigh.

  “I can’t wait.” I looked across the table and was met with Jared’s smirk.

  I was saved from more embarrassing conversation, or Levi’s hand doing anything else, when our steak arrived. Thankfully, Levi needed both hands to cut it.

  I glanced at Hailey. She looked at me sympathetically.

  I finished my first glass of wine but declined a refill. With all of Levi’s talk, I couldn’t afford to get drunk around him.

  I thought I was too stuffed to eat anything else until dessert came out. I jumped a little in surprise when the waiter set it on fire.

  Levi touched my hand to get my attention. “Bananas foster.”

  I turned back to the cart with the dessert. “Nice presentation.”

  It was delicious—bananas, caramel and vanilla ice cream. I literally ate every bite.

  “I see you like things sweet,” Bryant said, barely audible above the voices around us. I looked over and he had a hungry look in his eyes, and it wasn’t for more dessert. I turned toward Levi, but he hadn’t heard. Was he seriously hitting on me again?

  I could feel Bryant’s eyes still on me. “I like dessert, yes. What girl doesn’t?”

  I didn’t wait for his response before I scooted closer to Levi. Levi felt me shift. “Is everything okay?”

  Either I was showing my emotions more than I thought, or Levi really knew me. I hoped it was the first. “Everything’s fine.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah.” I certainly wasn’t going to cause a scene at the party. I’d try to keep my distance from Bryant though.