Page 16 of Mary had a Little Harem

The image of his empty bank account and a laughing Valerie flashed through his head. It was a painful memory, so he pushed it away. He didn't want to think about Valerie or her tricks. He glanced at Sam. He probably wouldn't want to think about her either.

Yes, Valerie definitely played them both. Played them at each other. He couldn't believe she almost managed to ruin their friendship.

In a way, she managed to ruin a part of it. After her, Sam and he hadn't managed to share another girl. Not healthily, anyway. His insecurities always seemed to mess the dynamic up. He ground his teeth on each other, angry at himself for ruining so many of the opportunities. Sam had broken up with so many girls, simply because he got too jealous.

And now there was Mary. Mary, who seemed to be holding her own. Mary, who was hot as sin. Mary, who seemed to be capturing all of their attention. Mary, who might not want to be shared.

"Hey, what are you daydreaming about? Drink up!"

Her voice broke his trance. Louis snapped out of his pondering and directed his attention to Mary.

"Sorry?" he asked, not entirely sure what was going on.

"You're just staring at your shot. Drink up," Mary grinned, her hand resting warmly on his arm. He glanced at her, temporarily losing himself in her silver eyes. She really was stunning. No way would she go for him.

Bitter, he brought the plastic cup to his lips and chugged the green liquid. The mead stung the back of his throat and the harsh taste of anise filled his nose. Yuck.

"Tasty?" the vendor asked, beaming proudly.

"Very," Louis coughed politely, dread rising in his stomach as his cup was filled with a pink liquid this time. Not more poison.

He glanced at his date, hoping she wasn't ready to run out of there kicking and screaming. But the glint in her eyes and the satisfied grin playing around her lips reassured him a little. It appeared she was having fun tasting all the weird meads. And as long as she was having fun, he could stomach this vile drink.

Pretending he was a seasoned veteran, he chugged the bottom of his shot glass. The spice of pink peppercorns hit the roof of his mouth. Tears sprung to his eyes as he doubled over and grunted.

Damn. Being a sissy wasn't exactly the impression he wanted to give Mary. He glanced at her, almost sure she'd be laughing at him.

"You okay?"

Surprised, Louis felt how Mary ran a hand soothingly up his back and gently patted him. Concern swirled in her eyes and for a moment, he saw through her mask.

"Y-Yeah, I think it went down the wrong pipe," he lied, enjoying the circles she was drawing on his back.

"Oh, that sucks. Do you need some water?" Mary proposed, looking around the venue for a restroom or a stall that sold regular sodas.

"M-Maybe?" Louis croaked, wanting to let his tongue hang out of his mouth like a dog. He glared at the vendor, wondering why he hadn't warned him what he was pouring them. Bastard.

"We'll be right back," she called out to Sam and Noel as she tugged Louis with her to the next booth.

"Here, have a drink."

Gratefully, Louis gulped down the cold water. It didn't really help the sting on his tongue, but at least it was refreshing.

"Oh and I could be mistaken, but I think Sam is hitting on me."

Louis grimaced. "You're not mistaken."

"And that doesn't bother you?" Mary asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"Not really. We share everything in our group."

Mary frowned. She wasn't too sure what that exactly meant, but she figured now was not the right time to get into that.

"Did the water help?" Mary smiled, still rubbing his back.

"More or less. I didn't like that peppery drink much."

Mary pressed herself against Louis, batting her eyelashes seductively. "Want me to kiss it better?"

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