I opened my mouth. No sound came out. So I closed it and looked away. Then Adam jumped in. He asked Malinda questions about her college years with basketball. She seemed eager to respond, and an hour slipped by. As it drew to a close, I sighed in relief. Becky hadn’t done anything for me to worry about. I hadn’t done anything for me to worry about. The only two who were sloshed by the end of dinner were Cassandra and Amelia. No one seemed to care.
Everything ended in polite farewells.
I looked up once and wondered if I’d get a one-on-one time with David, but he gave us all a goodnight grin with his hand curved around Malinda’s waist and I knew it wasn’t so. He’d go to bed with her beside him that night, someone who wasn’t my mother.
And then when the door closed on us, I was jerked back to reality. It was cold. I shivered and Cassandra and Amelia seemed too jovial for my stomach to handle.
“Let’s go party!” Amelia laughed as she tipped her head backwards.
Mark frowned at her, but he made no move to hold her in place. That seemed to be Cassandra’s job as she smiled at Adam. “I heard there’s a public party tonight. Wanna go?”
“I…uh…” He looked to me.
Everyone looked to me.
Becky grasped my hand.
I shrugged. “I have no idea where it’s at.”
Cassandra frowned and snapped, “Call your boyfriend. He’ll know.”
I turned heated eyes on her, but she was oblivious. The wine rendered her brave or careless when she threw her arms wide and laughed. The sound ripped from the bottom of her throat, and it sounded inhumane.
Then I closed my mouth. No retort would make a dent so I reached out and shoved her backwards.
She gasped and reached for a hold on the person nearest.
“Cass!” Amelia gasped as she fell with her.
Both of them tumbled backwards into Malinda’s bushes. When they were caught and held for a moment, the branches broke. They landed on the ground with a loud thump.
It was silent for one second. Mark and Adam burst out in laughter.
Cassandra screamed. It was bloodcurdling, and when she couldn’t climb back to her feet, she let out another one.
“Cass, shut up. My ears.”
She was thumped herself.
“Ow! Bitch.” Amelia tried to roll away, but the branches stopped her. They continued to be contained where they had landed. “Mark, help me!”
He snorted and stepped back. “Make me.”
Then I glanced at Becky, who had retreated behind me. She had both of her hands pressed to her mouth. Her shoulders were shaking and she was taking deep breaths. When a chuckle slipped out, she shook her head and turned away.
And then I didn’t hold back my own amusement. It felt right to smile at that moment.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Adam pulled the car down a long gravel driveway. Trees surrounded us and he peered around. “You sure this is where Mason said?”
Mark poked his head between the seat divider. “The party’s at an abandoned barn. Are you expecting pools and chandeliers?”
Becky snorted.
I said, “One of their friends’ dad owns this acreage. I guess they have a winery close to it, but yeah—this is the place. That’s all Mason said.” And the car turned a last bend. A large barn stood in front of us. Lights streamed out of it as well as people. When we found a parking spot in a field behind the barn, music blared out, mixing with shouts and laughter.
The barn had two wide open doors, one in the front and one in the back. We approached from the back, but three kegs were set up inside the doorway. As a girl raced past us giggling with only a bra on, Becky’s mouth dropped. Mark and Adam swiveled as one. A guy followed in hot pursuit. They disappeared past a group of trees. When the girl shrieked, both the guys had wicked grins on their faces.
Mark bobbed his head in approval. “My kind of party.”
Adam barked out a laugh and thumped him on the shoulder.
Becky’s eyes were wide. “So this is what the real public parties are like?”
They all looked at me. I shrugged. “I guess. I don’t go that much.”
Adam frowned a bit. “Mason comes without you?”
My eyes narrowed. “If you’re insinuating what I think you’re insinuating, you better stop right now.”
His frown deepened, but he turned away.
Becky touched my hand lightly. “It’s no fun to go to a party with only your boyfriend. I understand.”
The knot that had grown in my chest unraveled a bit. I hadn’t known the knot was there in the first place. “I have my friends with me now.”
“And why didn’t Mason drive you?”
We turned and glared.
He held his hands up. “I’m just saying—”
“I told them to go without me. I thought I’d be wiped from the dinner.”
Mark bobbed his head as he appeared with a tray. “Hey, I got you all beer. Drink up, everyone.”
As he pushed a plastic cup into my hand, I shook my head for a moment. No one noticed his disappearance. Mark didn’t seem to mind as he couldn’t wipe his smile off his face. “Man, I love free booze. It never gets old.”
Adam murmured, “Your grandfather created one of the most widely-sold whiskeys in the world.”
Mark grunted as he drank half a glass in one gulp. “You think my mom lets me touch that stuff? I have to sneak the crap just like everyone else. Which is why I love getting free beer!” He lifted his glass in a salute.