Page 118 of Tips and Trysts

Behind my father, my mother doesn’t even object. She just stares at Alyssa with her brow knotted as much as her Botox allows.

Unfazed, Alyssa takes a step closer to my father. “You think Everett didn’t talk to me all those times he begged to stay over because he couldn’t stand to be in the same house as you?”

The insinuation makes my father’s eyes narrow to slits. He advances toward her as he says, “Alyssa, I swear to god—”

“Thinkveryhard before you threaten my mother,” Dalton interjects, putting himself between my father and Alyssa—and unlike Alyssa, Dalton could snap my father in half like a strand of uncooked angel hair pasta.

My father’s glare moves to Dalton. “You don’t get to tell me—”

“Go,” I cut in, speaking across the length of the hallway. “I paid for this shitty party, so I can tell you to do anything I want. Go. We’re done here.”

He cranes around Dalton to see me, and his expression is a combination of disdain and desperation. “Are you out of your mind? You don’t have to do this. You can still—”

“I’m done,” I reiterate. “Find a new asset.”

My father falters, gaze furious and eyebrow raised. “What kind of life are you going to have when you’re left with nothing, and the world seeseverything?”

Everything.

He wields the word as a threat, but I gave that word to Cora. He doesn’t get to use it against us.

“I guess we’ll find out,” I answer, shrugging. “Go.”

“Yes, kindly fuck off back to Richmond,” Alyssa chimes in, standing on her toes to see over Dalton’s shoulder and waving her hand at my father as he leads my mother back into the private room.

“Wow,” Cora murmurs. “I might love her more than I love you.”

“Can’t fault you for that. Come on.”

We retreat to the room where Cora and I fooled around earlier. As soon as the door closes, Alyssa sweeps me into her arms for a hug before ruffling my hair and saying, “I’m so sorry, Everett.”

“Don’t be. I’m fine.”

Alyssa lets out a languid exhale and looks around. “Well, I don’t know about all of you, but I need a drink—or three. I’m hitting the bar.” She pats her son’s arm on the way out.

With Alyssa gone, nobody speaks. It’s Cora and me, Lander and Valeria, and Essie and Dalton all standing and exchanging silent glances.

Unsurprisingly, it’s Dalton who breaks the tension, saying, “Lander owes me ten thousand dollars.”

“Jesus,” Valeria mutters, pressing her hand against her forehead before she faces Lander and slaps his arm. “Will you stop making such big bets with him?”

“What?” Lander protests, rubbing his bicep and looking around. “Did anyone really think Everett was going to drop out?”

“I knew,” I mention, raising my shoulder in acceptance. “I think I knew a long time ago.”

“Ev, I thought you wanted this,” Lander responds. “If I had known…”

“I wanted to save the Earth,” I reply—and it’s really as simple as that: a kid who loved the environment and thought he could make a difference. “Running for office seemed like the best way to do it, but now that I’m deep into a campaign, I never get to talk about the issues that matter to me. Politics is all…subterfuge.” I exhale slowly. “This isn’t what I want.”

“What happened tonight though?” Dalton asks from behind the bar on the opposite side of the room where he’s pouring himself a drink.

“The last straw.” I face Cora. “You were right. How did you know my father leaked the story about you and Felix to 24N?”

“Felix made a throwaway comment about wanting to interview you because of the falling out taking place between you and your father,” she explains. “You and Warren are careful. Nobody would know you were having issues unless…”

“Unless my father colluded with Felix to leak the blackmail story.Motherfucker.” I shake my head. “It gets worse. He had us followed and has videos. He threatened to leak one if you and I didn’t join his campaign.”

Cora frowns. “What videos?”

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